Holiday Entitlement Calculator UK Guide 2025 - Calculate Your Annual Leave

Every worker in the UK has the legal right to paid annual leave. Understanding how your holiday entitlement is calculated—whether you work full-time, part-time, or on irregular hours—ensures you receive the leave you're entitled to. This guide explains everything you need to know about UK holiday rights.

Statutory Holiday Entitlement

By law, almost all workers in the UK are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year. This applies to:

• Full-time employees
• Part-time employees (pro-rated)
• Agency workers
• Workers on zero-hours contracts
• Most casual workers

Full-Time Workers (5 Days/Week)

This is the maximum statutory entitlement—employers aren't required to give more than 28 days, even if you work 6 or 7 days per week.

Part-Time Holiday Calculation

Part-time workers get the same proportion of leave as full-time workers:

Calculating Holiday in Hours

For workers with varying hours, holiday is often calculated in hours:

Starting Mid-Year

If you start a job partway through the leave year, your entitlement is pro-rated:

Holiday Accrual

Holiday accrues (builds up) throughout the year. The monthly and weekly accrual rates are:

Bank Holidays

England & Wales Bank Holidays 2025

Carrying Over Holiday

Different rules apply to carrying over unused leave:

• Basic 4 weeks (EU-derived): Cannot be carried over unless agreed by employer
• Additional 1.6 weeks (UK statutory): Can be carried over if employer allows
• Contractual leave above 28 days: Employer's discretion

Exceptions for Carry Over

You can carry over leave if you couldn't take it due to:

• Sickness (up to 4 weeks can be carried over for 18 months)
• Maternity/paternity/adoption leave
• Employer preventing you from taking leave

Holiday Pay

You should receive your normal pay during holidays. For workers with variable pay, holiday pay is calculated as:

Holiday When Leaving a Job

When leaving employment:

• Accrued but untaken leave: Employer must pay this out
• Taken more than accrued: Employer may deduct from final pay (if contract allows)

Irregular Hours Workers

From 1 January 2024, new rules apply for calculating holiday for irregular hours and part-year workers:

This applies to workers who:

• Have no normal working hours
• Work term-time only
• Have hours that vary significantly week to week

Your Rights

• Holiday is a legal right—you can't sign it away
• You must be allowed to take at least some leave in one-week blocks
• Employers can set rules about when holiday is taken
• You can be required to take leave at certain times (e.g., company shutdown)
• Notice required: Twice the length of leave (e.g., 2 weeks' notice for 1 week off)

How Holiday Entitlement Is Calculated

Understanding the methodology behind holiday calculations helps you verify your employer is giving you the correct amount. The statutory minimum in the UK is 5.6 weeks of paid leave per year, which equates to 28 days for a full-time worker on a 5-day week. This figure is capped at 28 days regardless of how many days per week you work, meaning a 6-day worker still receives a maximum statutory entitlement of 28 days.

For part-time workers, the calculation uses a simple proportion. If you work 3 days per week, your entitlement is 3 x 5.6 = 16.8 days per year. Employers may round this up to 17 days but cannot round down. For workers whose hours vary, the 12.07% accrual method applies: for every hour worked, 12.07% of that time accrues as holiday. This percentage derives from the formula 5.6 weeks divided by (52 weeks minus 5.6 weeks) = 12.07%.

Bank holidays can be included within the 28-day statutory minimum. Many employers offer bank holidays on top of the basic entitlement, but there is no legal requirement to do so. Your contract should clearly state whether the 28 days includes or excludes bank holidays. In 2024-2025, England and Wales have 8 bank holidays, Scotland has 9, and Northern Ireland has 10.

UK Holiday Entitlement in Practice

The UK offers the lowest statutory paid leave in Western Europe. By comparison, France mandates 36 days, Germany provides 29 days on average, and Spain requires 30 days. Despite this, many UK employers offer contractual entitlement above the statutory minimum to remain competitive. According to the CIPD, the average UK employee receives 33.5 days of total leave including bank holidays.

Since April 2020, workers on irregular hours have been entitled to holiday pay calculated using a 52-week reference period (previously 12 weeks). This change particularly benefits seasonal workers, zero-hours contract employees, and those in the gig economy. The reference period looks back at the last 52 weeks in which pay was received, ignoring any weeks with no pay, to calculate a fair average for holiday pay purposes.

Carrying over unused leave is another area where UK rules have evolved. The basic statutory entitlement of 4 weeks (derived from EU law) can only be carried over in specific circumstances such as maternity leave, long-term sickness, or where the employer failed to enable the worker to take leave. The additional 1.6 weeks of UK statutory leave cannot be carried over unless the employment contract specifically allows it. Many employers now offer carry-over of 5 days as standard practice.

Frequently Asked Questions About Holiday Entitlement

Can My Employer Force Me to Take Holiday?

Yes, employers can require you to take leave at specific times, provided they give adequate notice. The notice must be at least twice the length of the leave period — so for a one-week shutdown, the employer must give two weeks' notice. This commonly occurs during Christmas closures in manufacturing, construction, and education sectors. However, the employer cannot force you to use all your entitlement during shutdowns; you must retain the ability to book some leave at times of your choosing.

Do I Accrue Holiday While on Sick Leave?

Yes, you continue to accrue statutory holiday entitlement during any period of sick leave, including long-term sickness absence. This was confirmed by the European Court of Justice in the Stringer v HMRC case and applies throughout the UK. If you are unable to take accrued holiday due to sickness, you can carry it over to the following leave year. Upon returning to work, you can request to take this accrued leave, and your employer must accommodate this within a reasonable timeframe.

How Does Holiday Work on a Zero-Hours Contract?

Zero-hours contract workers have the same holiday rights as any other worker. The most practical calculation method is the 12.07% accrual approach: for every hour worked, you accrue 0.1207 hours of paid holiday. For example, if you work 20 hours in a week, you accrue 2.41 hours of holiday that week. Since January 2024, employers can use rolled-up holiday pay, adding the 12.07% directly to your hourly rate. If your standard rate is £11.44 per hour (the National Living Wage from April 2024), rolled-up holiday pay would bring this to approximately £12.82 per hour.

UK Holiday Entitlement: Essential Facts and Statistics

The United Kingdom provides a statutory minimum of 5.6 weeks paid annual leave, which translates to 28 days for a standard five-day-week worker. While this meets the minimum requirements set by the Working Time Regulations 1998, it remains one of the lowest in Western Europe. France provides 36 days of statutory leave, Germany averages 29 days, and Sweden guarantees 25 days plus generous public holidays. Despite this, research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) shows that the average UK employee actually receives around 33.5 days when contractual entitlement and bank holidays are combined.

An important development for UK workers came in January 2024, when rolled-up holiday pay became lawful again for irregular hours and part-year workers. This allows employers to add a 12.07% uplift to each payslip instead of paying separately when holiday is taken. The change particularly benefits the estimated 1.1 million zero-hours contract workers across the UK, ensuring they receive fair holiday compensation in every pay period rather than having to track and request accrued leave.

More Questions About UK Holiday Entitlement

James Mitchell, ACCA

Chartered Accountant & Former HMRC Advisor

James is a Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) specialising in UK personal taxation and financial planning. With over 12 years in practice and a background as a former HMRC compliance officer, he brings authoritative insight to complex tax topics.