Break calculator
Enter when you arrive and when you leave. The calculator tells you how much break the law requires and what is left as working time.
Your entries
In minutes; the calculator compares it with the mandatory break.
Result
Working more than six hours in a row without a break is not permitted. The break must therefore start no later than14:00 . Splitting it is allowed as long as each segment lasts at least 15 minutes.
More than eight hours is permitted, but only with compensation: over six calendar months or 24 weeks it has to average eight hours per working day again (section 3 ArbZG).
Calculation
- Time on site = 17:00 − 08:00 = 9:00 h
- Tier under section 4 ArbZG → minimum break 30 min
- Working time = 9:00 h − 30 min = 8:30 h
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How it is calculated
What section 4 ArbZG requires
The length of the break depends on working time, that is, the time excluding breaks:
- Up to six hours: no mandatory break
- More than six and up to nine hours: at least 30 minutes
- More than nine hours: at least 45 minutes
- Divisible into segments of at least 15 minutes each
- Never longer than six hours at a stretch without a break
Why 30 minutes is enough at 9:30 on site
Here is the error in reasoning that many calculators make: the break tier depends on working time, not on time on site. Someone on site from 8:00 to 17:30 is there for nine and a half hours, but after deducting a 30-minute break exactly nine hours of working time remain, and for nine hours the law requires only 30 minutes.
Only beyond that does it tip: from more than nine and a half hours on site, 30 minutes are no longer enough, because the remaining working time exceeds the nine-hour limit. Then 45 minutes are due.
The second limit: six hours at a stretch
Regardless of the total duration, nobody may work longer than six hours without an interruption. This rule is often overlooked because it has nothing to do with the length of the break but with when it falls. The calculator therefore names the latest point at which the break has to start.
Calculating once takes a minute. MetronHR carries these accounts forward continuously, for every employee, and shows the balance at the month end.
Further reading:Section 4 ArbZG · Section 3 ArbZG
The calculator covers the basic statutory rules. Collective agreements, works agreements and employment contracts may contain more favourable arrangements, and for a specific case it is better to ask someone with a licence to practise.
Frequently asked questions
What we get asked about this most often.
At least 30 minutes. The 45-minute tier only applies at more than nine hours of working time.
No. Rest breaks do not count as working time and are generally not paid. Anything different can be set out in the employment contract or a collective agreement.
No. A break at the start or the end of working time is not an interruption of work. Besides, nobody may work longer than six hours at a stretch anyway.
For employees under 18, the German Youth Employment Protection Act applies with longer breaks: at least 30 minutes for more than four and a half up to six hours, and at least 60 minutes for more than six hours. The calculator does not model these rules.
Question not answered here? Every step is explained in the help centre.
Calculating once is good. Never having to calculate again is better.
MetronHR keeps holiday accounts, carries overtime forward and checks breaks automatically as time is recorded. Try it free for 14 days.
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Related
Further reading
Break rules: what the Working Hours Act prescribes
Matching template
A timesheet and working time record as an Excel template or a printable PDF