A balance account holds hours that can later be taken as leave. The flex balance is always available. An organisation can also use one or more time banks.
Types of balance accounts
An administrator sets up balance accounts under Settings → Working time → Balance accounts.
| Account | Typical use |
|---|---|
| Flexitime balance | Working days above or below their target. This account always exists. |
| Overtime bank | Overtime exchanged for time off. |
| Time bank | A general time bank operated under the organisation’s agreement. |
| Working-time reduction | Accrual and use of working-time reduction leave. |
Account names can be adapted to the organisation. Each account is linked to the record type or absence policy that adds to or draws from it.
How the balance accrues
A day’s surplus can be directed To the time bank. The employee makes the choice when confirming the day, but the transfer is recorded in the balance account only when the working day is approved. During approval, the manager can change how the surplus is handled or which account receives it.
Time can also accrue automatically under a configured rule. Working-time reduction may, for example, accrue based on hours worked.
How the balance is taken as leave
The absence policy determines which balance account the leave is drawn from.
- The employee requests leave as usual.
- Granting the leave reserves the required hours so that the same balance cannot be committed to another absence.
- The actual deduction is recorded in the balance account when the working day for the absence date is approved.
A full day of bank leave uses the day’s working-time target. A partial day uses only the absence minutes. For example, two hours of leave reduces the balance by two hours.
Balance accounts are not shown on the Leave balance row because they are measured in hours, not leave days. The account and the time available are shown when you select an absence type that uses the account.
Check the balance and transactions
Your balance accounts are shown on My working-time status. Select Show transactions to review opening balances, transfers, leave taken, adjustments, expiry and cuts.
A Balance account statement shows flex and time-bank transactions for a selected period. The report can be downloaded as a PDF or Excel file.
Import opening balances during setup
Balance import reads opening balances for flex, time banks and leave from a CSV file. Map the columns, check the preview and commit only the valid rows. The import history shows earlier batches and lets you revert a whole batch when needed.
Set caps and handle overflow
An administrator can define the following for a time bank:
- Upper cap and Lower cap
- Yearly cap
- Overflow target account
- whether excess time is sent to payroll.
Time-bank caps may block a transfer or leave that would take the account outside its allowed limits. The overflow setting sends time above the upper cap to another balance account or to payroll.
Schedule a balance cut
Cut rules reduce a balance to a target value on a specified date. The excess is sent to payroll or another balance account. A rule can run once or repeat annually, and the page shows the cuts scheduled for the next 30 days.
When operating a time bank, consider section 14 of the Working Hours Act and the agreements that apply in your organisation. The Act caps the time that may be saved into a time bank at 180 hours a year and the whole balance at six months’ working time. Current legislation: Working Hours Act (Finlex).
If something goes wrong
The day is confirmed, but the surplus is not yet in the time bank. The transfer is recorded only when the working day is approved. Also check which account was selected.
The leave is granted, but the recorded balance has not decreased. Granting the leave reserves the hours. The actual deduction is made when the working day for the absence date is approved.
The leave cannot be granted even though the account shows hours. Some of the hours may already be reserved for previously granted leave. The account’s lower cap or the advance-leave setting may also prevent the leave.
The transfer exceeds an account limit. Check the upper cap, yearly cap and overflow handling. The excess can be sent to another account or to payroll.
The balance appears incorrect. Open the transactions or a Balance account statement to see what changed. Ask an administrator to record an adjustment if needed.