How to Create a Time-Off Request Form with Google Forms

Morgan Hopkins, Customer Success Manager

Last Updated: Mar 9, 2026

Managing time-off requests through email is a recipe for lost messages, scheduling conflicts, and frustrated employees wondering if their request was ever received. Google Forms gives you a free, structured way to collect time-off requests — and with the Form Approvals add-on, you can add the manager approval step that turns it into a complete leave management workflow.

Building the Time-Off Request Form

Here's a recommended form structure that captures everything a manager needs to approve or reject a time-off request:

Section 1: Employee Information

• Full name (short answer, required)
• Department (dropdown, required)
• Manager's email (short answer with email validation, required)

Section 2: Leave Details

• Type of leave (dropdown: Annual Leave, Sick Leave, Personal Leave, Bereavement, Jury Duty, Other)
• Start date (date picker, required)
• End date (date picker, required)
• Total days requested (short answer with number validation)
• Full day or half day (multiple choice: Full Day, Morning Half, Afternoon Half)

Section 3: Coverage

• Reason for leave (paragraph — optional, depending on your policy)
• Coverage plan (paragraph — who will cover responsibilities during absence)
• Any urgent items the manager should know about (paragraph, optional)

Setting Up the Form

1. Go to forms.google.com and create a new form titled "Time-Off Request"
2. Add the fields above, using sections to organize them logically
3. Set up date validation so the end date cannot be before the start date
4. Go to Settings > Responses and enable Collect email addresses — this ensures the employee is notified when their request is approved or rejected
5. Link responses to a Google Sheet to create your leave request log

Prefer to skip the manual setup? The AI Form + Workflow Builder can generate a time-off request form with manager approval in seconds — just describe your leave policy.

Adding Manager Approval

A time-off request form without an approval step is just a notification — the manager gets no easy way to formally approve or reject, and the employee has no way to know if their leave was approved. This is where Form Approvals comes in:

1. Install the Form Approvals add-on from the Google Workspace Marketplace
2. Open the add-on from the puzzle piece icon in your form
3. Add the "Manager's email" field as a dynamic recipient
4. Click Save — your time-off approval workflow is live

The Workflow in Action

1. An employee submits a time-off request through the Google Form
2. The employee receives an immediate confirmation email
3. The manager receives an email with all the leave details — dates, duration, type, coverage plan — along with Approve and Reject buttons
4. The manager reviews and clicks Approve or Reject, optionally adding a comment
5. The employee receives an email with the decision
6. The Google Sheet is updated with the approval status, manager's name, timestamp, and comments

Building a Leave Tracker from the Data

Your linked Google Sheet becomes a complete leave record. With the response data plus the approval status columns added by Form Approvals, you can:

• Track approved leave by employee, department, or time period
• Calculate total leave days taken vs. remaining for each employee
• Spot patterns — e.g., departments with high leave requests during certain months
• Create a simple dashboard using Google Sheets charts or array formulas

Tips for Time-Off Workflows

• Set up reminders so managers respond to leave requests within a reasonable timeframe — employees shouldn't be left waiting
• Share the Google Sheet (read-only) with HR so they have visibility into approved leave across the organization
• Use the Form Approvals dashboard to monitor pending requests and follow up on delays
• Consider using form branching to show different fields based on leave type — for example, sick leave might require a doctor's note upload

Get Started

Build your time-off approval workflow in minutes. Free to start with 20 responses per month, no credit card required. View pricing or get started today.