What Are The Public Holidays in The United Kingdom in 2026?

List of Public Holidays in The United Kingdom (2026)

The UK sets public (bank) holidays separately for England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, with substitute days when a holiday falls on a weekend. Use this table as a quick reference when planning your team’s 2026 leave calendar.

Do Employers Have to Provide Paid Leave on Public Holidays?

No, UK employment law does not require employers to provide additional paid leave specifically on public (bank) holidays, but it does require a minimum amount of paid annual leave that can include those days. Under the Working Time Regulations, most full‑time workers are entitled to at least 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per leave year, which is usually 28 days for someone working five days a week. You can choose whether public holidays are included within that 5.6‑week entitlement or offered on top of it, as long as the contract is clear and the statutory minimum is met.

When a public holiday falls on a weekend, the UK typically designates a substitute weekday as the bank holiday. You are not legally obliged to close on the calendar date or the substitute date, but you must apply your contractual rules consistently. Part‑time staff must receive pro‑rated paid holiday, and you should avoid treating them less favourably by, for example, only granting paid bank holidays to staff who work Mondays. If employees work on a public holiday, there is no statutory requirement to pay a premium rate, but many employers offer enhanced pay or time off in lieu under contract or policy.

Legal Penalties for Not Providing Paid Holiday Leave

If your company fails to provide at least the statutory minimum paid holiday (which may or may not include public holidays), workers can bring claims in the Employment Tribunal. Claims typically focus on unlawful deduction from wages or failure to allow statutory leave. Tribunals can order you to repay underpaid holiday, adjust future leave, and in some cases award compensation, with look‑back periods that can extend over multiple years of underpayment.

Enforcement is shared between Employment Tribunals and, in some situations, HM Revenue & Customs, particularly where underpayment overlaps with National Minimum Wage breaches. Common employer mistakes include assuming public holidays can be unpaid, failing to pro‑rate leave correctly for part‑time or irregular‑hours staff, miscalculating holiday pay by excluding regular overtime or commission, and not updating contracts when working patterns change. Systematic non‑compliance can also damage your reputation and employee relations, increasing the risk of collective grievances and litigation.

How Do Holidays Affect Overtime Thresholds?

UK law does not set a special overtime threshold or premium rate for public holidays. Overtime rules are driven by the Working Time Regulations and National Minimum Wage legislation, not by bank holidays themselves. You must ensure that average weekly working time, including hours worked on public holidays, does not normally exceed 48 hours over the reference period unless the worker has signed a valid opt‑out. You also must ensure that total pay for all hours worked, including public holidays, does not fall below the applicable National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage.

Whether you pay a higher rate for public holiday work is a contractual issue. Many UK employers offer 1.5x or 2x pay, or provide paid time off in lieu, to stay competitive and support retention, but this is not a statutory requirement. Whatever approach you choose, document it clearly in contracts and policies, apply it consistently across comparable staff, and ensure that any enhanced rates or time‑off arrangements are reflected accurately in payroll and holiday‑pay calculations.

Stay 100% Compliant with Leave Regulations Using Playroll

Managing UK public holidays across England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland can get complicated quickly, especially when you add substitute days, part‑time patterns, and different contractual arrangements. Playroll helps you cut through that complexity so your team stays compliant without drowning in admin.

Our platform keeps track of region‑specific bank holidays and automatically applies them to each worker’s profile, so a developer in Edinburgh and a customer‑support agent in Belfast get the right public holidays for their location. Playroll calculates statutory holiday entitlement, pro‑rates leave for part‑time and irregular‑hours staff, and supports accurate holiday‑pay calculations that reflect UK case law on regular overtime and variable pay.

You can set your own rules for whether public holidays are included in or added on top of statutory leave, define enhanced public‑holiday pay or time‑off‑in‑lieu policies, and let Playroll handle the calculations and record‑keeping. That means fewer errors, clearer expectations for your team, and a stronger defence if your decisions are ever challenged.

If you are hiring in multiple countries, Playroll also standardises how you manage leave globally while respecting local rules in each jurisdiction. You get one source of truth for time off, from UK bank holidays to vacation in other markets, so you can focus on growing your business instead of decoding labour law.