When you approve unpaid leave for a fixed-rate contractor on Deel, the pay deduction is calculated and applied automatically. No manual invoice adjustment is needed.

This article explains how the calculation works, what you and your contractor will see, and what to do if you need to adjust the amount.

Before you begin

You must be:

A client admin with permission to manage and approve Time Off requests
Working with a contractor on a Fixed-Rate independent contractor contract

Note: Automatic pay deductions apply to Fixed-Rate IC contracts only.
PAYG and Milestone contractors are paid for time worked or completed milestones - Time Off does not affect their payments.

Automatic Pay Deductions for Unpaid Leave - Fixed-Rate Contractors

Note: Use Steps 1–2 if you are submitting the time off request on the contractor's behalf. Use Steps 3–4 if a contractor has submitted a request awaiting your approval.

Step 1 – Open the contractor's profile and submit a time off request

Go to the contractor's profile and add a new time off request by clicking on the top right button.
Set the leave type to Unpaid and specify the time frame of the request.
Deel calculates the deduction automatically and displays the amount before you confirm.

Step 2 – Review, adjust, and submit the deduction

Review the calculated deduction amount displayed on screen.
Edit the amount if you need to grant an exception.
Submit the request. The deduction is applied to the correct payment cycle(s) automatically.

Note: The contractor sees an estimated deduction during submission. The confirmed amount appears on their invoice once approved.
View all scheduled deductions in Payments and Expenses on the contractor's profile.

Step 3 – Open and review the pending time off request

Open the pending time off request from your notifications or the Time Off tab.
Review the calculated deduction amount Deel displays before approving.
Approve the request. The deduction is applied to the corresponding payment cycle(s) automatically.

Step 4 – Edit the deduction from Payments and Expenses

Go to Payments and Expenses on the contractor's profile after approving.
Locate the scheduled deduction for the relevant payment cycle.
Edit the deduction amount and save.

Frequently Asked Questions

[ACCORDION] What if I want to grant paid leave as an exception?

If you are submitting on the contractor's behalf, edit the deduction amount to zero before confirming in Step 2.

If you are reviewing a contractor-submitted request, approve first and then set the deduction to zero from the Payments and Expenses screen.

[ACCORDION] What happens if the time off request is cancelled after approval?

The corresponding deduction is cancelled automatically. If the payment for the period has already been processed, a warning appears and you may need to adjust upcoming invoices manually.

[ACCORDION] What if the contractor changes their leave dates?

The deduction is recalculated based on the updated dates. If the original payment cycle has already been paid, you will be prompted to handle any remaining adjustments manually.

[ACCORDION] Where can I see scheduled deductions?

Go to the Payments and Expenses screen on the contractor's profile. Any deductions applied to future payment cycles appear there as scheduled items.