How to Calculate Your Holiday Entitlement in the UK (2026 Guide)

What is Statutory Holiday Entitlement in the UK?

Let me start with the basics. In the UK, almost every worker is legally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year. This is your statutory minimum—your baseline right that no employer can take away from you.

Now, before you get your calculator out, let’s break down what this actually means in practice.

The Legal Foundation

This entitlement comes from the Working Time Regulations 1998, which implemented European Union law into UK legislation. Even after Brexit, these rights remain protected under UK law so you can rest assured your holiday entitlement hasn’t changed.

The 5.6 weeks figure wasn’t picked randomly. Here’s how Parliament arrived at it:

• 4 weeks come from the EU Working Time Directive
• 1.6 weeks (8 days) were added by the UK to cover the 8 typical bank holidays
• Total: 5.6 weeks = 28 days for someone working 5 days a week

Who Qualifies?

Here’s the refreshing part: eligibility is remarkably straightforward. You qualify for statutory holiday entitlement if you’re classed as a “worker” under UK law. This includes:

• Full-time employees
• Part-time employees
• Workers on zero-hours contracts
• Agency workers
• Casual workers
• Workers on probation periods

The only people who don’t qualify are genuinely self employed individuals who work for themselves, not for an employer. If you’re in any doubt, ask yourself: “Do I have a contract with someone to personally do work for them?” If yes, you’re almost certainly entitled to holiday pay.

Basic Holiday Calculation for Full-Time Workers

If you work a standard 5-day week (Monday to Friday), the calculation is beautifully simple:

Twenty-eight days. That’s 4 weeks plus 8 extra days—roughly equivalent to your standard bank holidays.

What If You Work 6 Days a Week?

Now here’s where it gets interesting. The 5.6 weeks applies regardless of how many days you work. So if you work 6 days a week:

Notice how this works: the person working 6 days gets more holiday days, but the same amount of holiday weeks (5.6 weeks). This ensures fairness regardless of your working pattern.

Hours vs. Days: Does It Matter?

Some employers calculate holiday in hours rather than days. This is perfectly legal and often makes sense for shift workers. The principle remains the same—you multiply your normal working pattern by 5.6.

Working Pattern	Hours per Week	Holiday Entitlement (Hours)
Full-time (37.5 hrs/week)	37.5	37.5 × 5.6 = 210 hours
Full-time (40 hrs/week)	40	40 × 5.6 = 224 hours
Part-time (20 hrs/week)	20	20 × 5.6 = 112 hours

Part-Time Workers: Pro-Rata Calculations

This is where many workers—and unfortunately, many employers get confused. Part time workers have exactly the same right to paid holiday as full-timers, just calculated proportionally to their hours.

The Golden Rule

The calculation follows the same principle: multiply your working pattern by 5.6. Let me show you how this plays out in practice.

Why Part-Time Workers Sometimes Feel Short-Changed (But Aren’t)

Here’s a common source of frustration I’ve seen: Lisa (working 3 days) gets 17 days holiday, while her colleague Tom (working 5 days) gets 28 days. “That’s not fair!” Lisa might think.

But actually, it is fair. Here’s why:

• Lisa works 3 days: 17 days ÷ 3 = 5.6 weeks off
• Tom works 5 days: 28 days ÷ 5 = 5.6 weeks off

They both get exactly the same amount of time off—5.6 weeks. The number of days differs because they work different patterns, but the amount of weeks is identical.

Calculating for Irregular Part-Time Patterns

What if your part-time hours vary? Perhaps you work 15 hours some weeks, 22 hours other weeks? In this case, it’s better to calculate in hours:

Bank Holidays: The Great Confusion

This is hands-down the most misunderstood aspect of UK holiday entitlement. Let me clear this up once and for all.

The Legal Position

There is NO automatic legal right to take bank holidays off work, and there’s no law saying bank holidays must be paid.

Surprised? Most people are. Here’s what the law actually says:

• You’re entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year
• Your employer decides when you can take it (within reason)
• Your employer can require you to work on bank holidays
• Your employer can require you to take holiday on bank holidays

Two Common Scenarios

Scenario A: Bank Holidays Included (Most Common)

Your contract says you get “28 days including bank holidays.” This means:

• You get 28 days total
• 8 of those days are typically bank holidays
• 20 days left for you to book when you choose
• If your employer makes you work a bank holiday, you lose one of your 28 days unless they give it back to you

Scenario B: Bank Holidays Separate (Less Common, Better for You)

Your contract says “28 days plus bank holidays.” This means:

• You get 28 days to book whenever you want
• PLUS 8 bank holidays (or equivalent) off
• Total: 36 days off per year

Always check your contract to see which arrangement you have. The key phrase to look for is whether bank holidays are “inclusive” or “in addition to” your annual leave.

Working Bank Holidays: What Are Your Rights?

Many sectors require staff to work on bank holidays—retail, hospitality, healthcare, emergency services, and others. If you work a bank holiday:

Situation	Your Rights
Required to work bank holiday	Employer must give you a day off elsewhere OR count it as holiday used (if BH included in your 28 days)
Extra pay for bank holidays?	No automatic legal right—depends on your contract
Time off in lieu (TOIL)	Common practice but not legally required unless in your contract

Irregular Hours and Zero-Hours Contracts

From April 2024, the rules for calculating holiday for irregular hours workers changed significantly. If you work irregular hours or you’re on a zero-hours contract, pay attention—this affects you.

The New Accrual Method (April 2024 Onwards)

Previously, irregular hours workers struggled to calculate holiday because their hours changed so much. The government introduced a simpler system:

You accrue holiday at a rate of 12.07% of the hours you actually work.

Where does 12.07% come from? It’s a mathematical way of ensuring you get 5.6 weeks holiday:

How It Works in Practice

Holiday Pay Calculation

When irregular hours workers take holiday, they should be paid their average hourly rate over the past 52 weeks (or the number of weeks they’ve worked if less than 52).

This ensures you’re not financially worse off for taking holiday, even though your hours and pay vary.

How Holiday Accrues During the Year

You don’t get your full holiday entitlement on day one of your job. Holiday builds up (accrues) throughout the year.

Standard Accrual Rate

If you work consistent hours, holiday typically accrues like this:

So if you’re 3 months into a new job, you’ve accrued approximately 7 days of holiday (2.33 × 3 = 7 days).

Your First Year

During your first year of employment, you might not have enough accrued leave to take a week off. Your employer can:

• Let you “borrow” holiday you haven’t yet accrued (you’d owe it back if you left)
• Only let you take the holiday you’ve actually built up
• Give you your full entitlement upfront (generous but rare)

Check your contract or ask HR about their policy.

Leave Year vs. Calendar Year

Your “holiday year” might not run January to December. Common arrangements include:

• Calendar year: 1 January – 31 December
• Tax year: 6 April – 5 April
• Company year: Often from company founding date or financial year
• Your start date: Some employers run your holiday year from when you joined

This matters because your 5.6 weeks applies to each holiday year, not each calendar year necessarily.

What Happens When You Leave Your Job?

Whether you resign, get made redundant, or your contract ends, you need to understand how holiday works when you leave a job. Get this wrong and you could lose out on money you’re owed.

Unused Holiday: You Get Paid

If you have unused holiday when you leave, your employer must pay you for it. This is a legal requirement—they can’t just forfeit your accrued leave.

The calculation is:

Taken Too Much Holiday: You Might Owe Money

Here’s the flip side: if you’ve taken more holiday than you’d accrued by your leaving date, your employer can deduct the “overpaid” holiday from your final pay.

But they can only do this if:

• Your contract explicitly allows it, AND
• They gave you written notice before you left

If neither of these conditions is met, they generally can’t chase you for the money.

Notice Periods and Holiday

A common question: “Can my employer make me take my remaining holiday during my notice period?”

Short answer: Yes, usually.

Your employer can require you to take holiday during your notice period, as long as they give you notice (typically twice as many days’ notice as the holiday you’re being told to take—e.g., 4 days’ notice for 2 days’ holiday).

Common Mistakes Employers Make (And How to Spot Them)

Unfortunately, not all employers get holiday entitlement right. Here are the most common errors I’ve seen, and what you should do if you spot them.

1. “You Don’t Get Holiday During Your Probation”

This is wrong. You start accruing holiday from day one of employment, even during probation. Some employers might restrict when you can take holiday during probation, but you’re still building it up.

2. “Part-Timers Only Get X Days”

If the “X days” doesn’t work out to 5.6 weeks of your working pattern, this is likely discriminatory. Part-time workers must be treated proportionally to full-time workers.

Example of discrimination: Full-timers get 28 days, but part-timers (working 3 days/week) are given 10 days. The part-timer should get 16.8 days (3 × 5.6 weeks).

3. “Use It or Lose It” Policies

While employers can set your holiday year and may require you to take holiday at certain times, they cannot:

• Refuse to let you take your statutory 5.6 weeks
• Automatically forfeit unused statutory holiday at year-end (though they can for additional contractual holiday beyond 5.6 weeks)
• Pay you in lieu of taking holiday (except when you leave)

4. Incorrect Holiday Pay Rates

Your holiday pay should be at your normal rate, including:

• Regular overtime (if it’s compulsory or you do it regularly)
• Regular commission
• Regular bonuses linked to performance

Many employers forget to include these, paying only basic salary for holiday. This is unlawful following several employment tribunal cases.

Your Rights if Holiday is Denied

Your employer must allow you to take your statutory 5.6 weeks each year. If they’re preventing this, here’s what you should know.

Can Employers Refuse Holiday Requests?

Yes, employers can refuse specific holiday requests, but they must:

• Give you notice of refusal (typically twice the length of the holiday you requested)
• Have a reasonable business reason
• Still allow you to take your full entitlement at some point in the year

Employers cannot simply block all holiday or prevent you from taking your statutory 5.6 weeks annually.

Steps to Take

If you’re being denied holiday:

Step 1: Request in Writing
Email your holiday request and keep a copy. This creates a paper trail.

Step 2: Escalate Internally
If your manager refuses, escalate to HR or senior management, explaining that you’re concerned about losing your statutory entitlement.

Step 3: Contact ACAS
ACAS offers free, impartial advice. They can help mediate between you and your employer.

Step 4: Consider Employment Tribunal
As a last resort, you can bring a claim to an employment tribunal. You usually must contact ACAS first for “early conciliation” before doing this.

Frequently Asked Questions