If you’ve just started working in a Japanese-speaking office, it might feel intimidating to ask your boss about taking some time off or taking sick paid leave. It’s worth knowing your rights, especially if you are a student who wants to work. There is good news, though, as Japanese companies are required by labor laws to accept any reasonable request for time off.
So, what’s the best way to ask for some vacation at work? Here are a few handy phrases in Japanese to help you get time off work.
Types of Time Off Work
Photo: iStock/ Satoshi-KWhen you need to take some time off work, you will first need to know what type of time off you need. Japanese has a surprising number of different words for different types of time off, including:
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 法定休暇 | Legal Holiday (based on labor laws, typically weekends) | Houtei kyuuka |
| 祝日 | Public holiday | Shukujitsu |
| 年休 | Annual leave | Nenkyuu |
| 有休 | Paid leave | Yukyuu |
| 振替休日 | Compensated workday (a day off in the week for working a Saturday, for example) | Furikae kyuujitsu |
| 代休 | Substitute holiday | Daikyu |
| 病休 | Sick leave | Byoukyuu |
| 産休 | Maternal leave (typically 14 weeks) | Sankyuu |
| 育児休業 | Childcare leave | Ikuji kyuugyou |
| 介護休業 | Nursing leave | Kaigo kyuugyou |
| 介護休暇 | Family care leave | Kaigo kyuuka |
| 子の看護休暇 | Child nursing care leave | Ko no kango kyuuka |
How to Ask for Time Off Work
Photo: iStock/marokeReady to practice keigo (polite Japanese)? Review some essential phrases so you can take that much-deserved time off.
Open the Conversation
Now that you’ve decided what type of holiday you want, you’ll want to ask your boss for permission. First of all, you will need to find a polite way to start speaking to your boss:
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| すみません が | Excuse me | Sumimasen ga |
| ちょっとお聞きしたいのですが | I would like to ask something… | Chotto okiki shitaino desu ga |
| ご相談があります | I have something to talk to you about | Go sodan ga arimasu |
| 今お時間よろしいでしょうか。 | Do you have some time now? | Ima ojikan yoroshii deshou ka? |
Notice that a lot of these use the お- (such as お聞き) and ご- (ご相談) beginnings that are commonly found in polite Japanese. These beginnings show that you respect the difference in rank between you and your boss.
Use the Polite Request Forms 1: Itadaku
To ask for time off, use the verb いただく (itadaku), which is a very polite verb for receiving things from the listener. Here, you are basically asking to “receive” a holiday from your boss.
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| できれば今度の(月曜日)に代休日をいただきたいのですけど | If possible, I would like to have a compensatory day off next (Monday) | Dekireba kondo no (getsuyoubi) ni daikyuu-bi wo itadakitai nodesukedo |
| 本日はお休みをいただきたく存じます | I would like to take a day off today | Honjitsu wa o-yasumi wo itadakitaku zonjimasu |
| お休みをいただきたいのですが、よろしいでしょうか | I would like to take a break. Is that okay? | O-yasumi wo itadakitai nodesuga, yoroshiideshou ka |
Use the Polite Request Forms 2: Giving the Option to say no
Another useful ending for polite sentences is ～んですが (-n desu ga)/～のですが (no desu ga). It is used to soften the ending and give the listener the option of saying no. Even though you know your request for time off will almost certainly be granted, it is still polite to use these forms.
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 有給休暇の申請をしたいのですが | I would like to apply to use my paid leave | Yuukyuu kyuuka no shinsei wo shitai-no desu ga |
| 今度の(金曜日)にお休みをいただきたいんですが | I would like to ask for a holiday on the coming (Friday) | Kondo no (kinyoubi) ni o-yasumi wo itadakitai-n desu ga |
| 来月の(10日)なんですが、私用でお休みをいただきたいのですが | The (10th) of next month, I’d like to take the day off for personal reasons… | Raigetsu no (10-nichi) nan desu ga, shiyou de o-yasumi wo itadakitai no desu ga |
Give a Reason
Some people may want to give an excuse for being absent. This can help speed things up, as not all leave is the same, and your company may have different policies for sick leave, vacation leave and childcare leave.
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 体調不良 | Unwell | Taichou furyou |
| 熱がある | I have a fever | Netsu ga aru |
| 体調が悪い | Poor physical condition | Taichou ga warui |
| 病院を受診する | Visit a hospital | Byouin o jushin suru |
| 体調が改善しない | My physical condition doesn’t improve | Taichou ga kaizen shinai |
| 子供の看病のため | I’m nursing my child | Kodomo no kanbyou no tame |
| 私用 | Personal reasons | Shiyou |
Here are some examples of these excuses in use:
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 昨夜から熱があり、本日はお休みをいただきたく存じます | I have had a fever since last night and it hasn’t gone down this morning, so I would like to take the day off today | Sakuya kara netsu ga ari, honjitsu wa o-yasumi wo itadakitaku zonjimasu |
| 本日体調不良のためお休みさせて下さい | Please allow me to take a day off today as I am not feeling well | Honjitsu taichou furyou no tame o-yasumi sasete kudasai |
| (妻 / 子供) の看病のためお休みさせて下さい | Please allow me to take time off to take care of my wife/child | (Tsuma/Kodomo) no kanbyou no tame o-yasumi sasete kudasai |
| 本日は家庭の都合のためお休みさせて下さい | I will be closed today due to (family circumstances) | Honjitsu wa katei no tsugou no tame o-yasumi sasete kudasai |
Offering Someone to Take Your Place
Although it isn’t your responsibility to find someone to take your place at work, it can be nice if you already have someone else lined up:
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 直接 [colleague’s name]-さんに引継ぎを依頼します | I will directly request Mr./Ms. [colleague’s name here] to take over | Chokusetsu [colleague’ s name]-san ni hikitsugi wo irai shimasu |
Conclude Smoothly
Japanese has a lot of apologies inserted to be polite. Even though you are encouraged to take time off by labor laws, it’s expected to acknowledge that your co-workers may have to work a little harder by saying:
| Japanese | English | Romaji |
| 申し訳ございませんが、どうぞよろしくお願いいたします | I apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your understanding. | Moushiwake gozaimasen ga, douzo yoroshiku onegai itashimasu |
Overall, when arranging for a vacation, it’s a great time to start practicing your polite Japanese. Plan your leave around the 16 public holidays a year in Japan. The most consecutive holidays happen during Golden Week, Silver Week and the end-of-year holidays.
Do you have any tips or phrases that helped you with getting time off work in Japanese? Let us know in the comments!
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I disagree with you Alex, even if you have a contract, you have to ask respectfully. I agree that having to repeatedly apologize is different than it is fro m where your´e from, and where i´m from. But this is Japan, and there are a lot more rules than there are outside of Japan. You know you can´t walk and drink at the same time in Japan? If it´ś that strict public wise imagine how strict it is working wise. Anyways thats all. And for my feedback on this thuing, I think it´s amazing and that it should be shared on bigger places of social media, because others that desire to learn Japanese don´t look hard enough.
-Sincerly Top Dog
Cut the BS!
“I’m taking holiday from X to Y” is all you need to say. Ignore the guilt trip they try to put you on.
Taking leave is your legal right as per your contract, your employer is not doing you a favour by ‘allowing’ you.
Just out of curiosity….Is sick leave an option here in Japan?