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How to Create a SharePoint Leave Booking and Allowance Tracking System

WPS Content Manager Sep 25, 2026 868 views

Question details

The organization needs a SharePoint system to manage leave bookings, look up employee annual leave allowances, and automatically subtract approved leave days for Microsoft Entra ID users.

How to Create a SharePoint Leave Booking and Allowance Tracking System

Product: Microsoft SharePoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Creating an internal HR tool to track employee annual leave allowances and deduct approved time off.
Observed behavior: The user needs a reliable method to structure lists and automate the calculation of remaining leave balances upon request approval.

Before you start

Ensure you have Site Owner or Full Control permissions on your SharePoint site to create new lists, and verify you have access to Microsoft Power Automate to build automated workflows.

Solution 1Recommended

Set Up an Automated Leave System with Power Automate

This is the ideal solution for automatically deducting leave balances whenever a manager approves a time-off request.

By combining two SharePoint lists and a Power Automate flow, you can create a fully automated system that reads the employee's current allowance and deducts the requested days only after approval.

Create an Employee Allowance List

In your SharePoint site, create a list named 'Leave Allowances'. Add columns for 'Employee Name' (Person or Group), 'Total Annual Leave' (Number), and 'Remaining Balance' (Number).

Create a Leave Request List

Create a second list named 'Leave Requests'. Add columns for 'Employee Name', 'Start Date', 'End Date', 'Days Requested' (Number), and 'Approval Status' (Choice: Pending, Approved, Rejected).

Build a Power Automate Flow

Open Power Automate and create an automated cloud flow. Set the trigger to 'When an item is created or modified' and link it to your 'Leave Requests' list.

Add an Approval Condition

Add a Condition step to check if the 'Approval Status' is equal to 'Approved'. Leave the 'If No' branch blank.

Update the Allowance Record

In the 'If Yes' branch, use the 'Get items' action to find the matching employee in the 'Leave Allowances' list. Then, add an 'Update item' action using an expression to subtract the 'Days Requested' from the 'Remaining Balance'.

Set Up an Automated Leave System with Power Automate

Testing your workflow: Always run a test request with your own Microsoft Entra ID account to ensure the mathematical expression correctly subtracts the days before deploying the system to the 50 users.

Solution 2

Use Calculated Columns for Manual Entry

A simpler alternative if HR prefers to manually input the amount of leave taken rather than automating the approval workflow.

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Manage Team Data Seamlessly with WPS Office

If setting up complex SharePoint lists and Power Automate flows is too time-consuming, WPS Office provides a lightweight, highly compatible alternative. You can easily manage employee leave using powerful spreadsheet templates without needing expensive enterprise licenses.

1. Download and Install: Get WPS Office for free from the official website and launch the WPS Spreadsheet application.
2. Choose a Tracker Template: Navigate to the template library and search for 'Leave Tracker' or 'Employee Attendance' to find a pre-formatted template.
3. Customize and Share: Input your employees' Entra ID names and annual allowances. Share the file via your local network or cloud drive for easy access.

Fully compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) formats for easy data migrationFree, lightweight, and fast to install on any operating systemRich library of built-in HR and leave tracking spreadsheet templatesFamiliar user interface with zero learning curve for your team

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I restrict employees to only see their own leave balances in SharePoint?

Yes. Go to the SharePoint List Settings, click on 'Advanced settings', and under 'Item-level Permissions', set 'Read access' to 'Read items that were created by the user'. Note that managers will need Full Control to see everyone's balances.

How do I exclude weekends and public holidays from the leave calculation?

This requires advanced logic in Power Automate. You will need to create an expression to calculate network days (business days) between the Start Date and End Date, or maintain a separate SharePoint list of public holidays to subtract them dynamically during the flow run.

Do I need a premium Power Automate license to build this leave tracker?

No. The standard SharePoint connectors and Office 365 Users connectors included with basic Microsoft 365 business licenses are completely sufficient to build this leave booking and calculation system.

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