UK Bank Holidays 2026 (England & Wales)
There are 8 bank holidays in England and Wales in 2026, 10 in Scotland and 10 in Northern Ireland.
Next bank holiday: Friday 25 December (Christmas Day)
8 bank holidays in 2026
| Date | Day | Holiday |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday | New Year's Day | |
| Friday | Good Friday | |
| Monday | Easter Monday | |
| Monday | Early May bank holiday | |
| Monday | Spring bank holiday | |
| Monday | Summer bank holiday | |
| Friday | Christmas Day Next | |
| Monday | Boxing Day Substitute day |
Planning staff leave around these dates?
OfficeSimplify adds them to your team's calendar. When someone books leave, it counts the right working days, taking bank holidays into account the way you've set them up.
How the UK nations differ in 2026
England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland all have New Year's Day, Good Friday, the early May bank holiday, the spring bank holiday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. The table shows where they differ.
| Holiday | England & Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd January | – | – | |
| St Patrick's Day | – | – | |
| Easter Monday | – | ||
| World Cup bank holiday | – | – | |
| Battle of the Boyne | – | – | |
| Summer bank holiday | |||
| St Andrew's Day | – | – | |
| Total | 8 | 10 | 10 |
Staff in Scotland or Northern Ireland too? OfficeSimplify gives each office the right bank holidays for where it is.
Try it free for 30 daysWhy England and Wales have 8 bank holidays
England and Wales share the same bank holidays. Four come from the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971: Easter Monday, the spring and summer bank holidays, and Boxing Day. New Year's Day and the early May bank holiday are added each year by royal proclamation. Good Friday and Christmas Day are common law holidays.
Wales has no extra bank holidays. St David's Day on 1 March is a normal working day unless an employer chooses to give it.
The spring bank holiday is usually the last Monday in May and the summer bank holiday is always the last Monday in August. Scotland keeps its summer bank holiday at the start of August instead.
When a bank holiday falls on a weekend, a substitute weekday is given, usually the following Monday. In 2026, Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, so the bank holiday moves to Monday 28 December.
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Bank holiday questions
When is Easter 2026?
Easter Sunday was 5 April 2026. Easter Sunday isn't a bank holiday, but Good Friday (Friday 3 April 2026) and Easter Monday (Monday 6 April 2026) were. In Scotland, Easter Monday isn't a bank holiday.
When are the May bank holidays in 2026?
The early May bank holiday was Monday 4 May 2026 and the spring bank holiday was Monday 25 May 2026, across the UK.
When is the August bank holiday 2026?
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the summer bank holiday was Monday 31 August 2026, the last Monday in August. In Scotland the summer bank holiday was Monday 3 August 2026, the first Monday in August.
When are the Christmas bank holidays in 2026?
Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, so the Christmas bank holidays are Christmas Day on Friday 25 December 2026 and Monday 28 December 2026, across the UK.
Are bank holidays the same across the UK?
No. Bank holidays vary between England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Scotland has some different dates, and Northern Ireland has extra bank holidays. In 2026, England and Wales has 8 bank holidays. Scotland has 10: it adds 2nd January, the World Cup bank holiday and St Andrew's Day, has no Easter Monday and has its summer bank holiday on Monday 3 August 2026. Northern Ireland has 10: it adds St Patrick's Day and the Battle of the Boyne (Orangemen's Day).
What are UK bank holidays?
Bank holidays are public holidays in the UK, when banks and many workplaces close. In England and Wales there are usually 8 bank holidays a year, in Scotland 9 and in Northern Ireland 10. The government sometimes adds one for a special event, such as a coronation or a jubilee.
Do employers have to give bank holidays off?
No. In the UK there's no legal right to time off on bank holidays. Full-time staff are entitled to 28 days' paid annual leave, and employers can count bank holidays as part of it or give them on top. What matters is that everyone gets their full 28 days, or the pro-rata equivalent for part-time staff.
How are bank holidays calculated for part-time staff?
Part-time staff have no legal right to bank holidays off, and neither do full-time staff. But the Part-Time Workers Regulations say part-time staff mustn't be treated less favourably. So if full-time staff get bank holidays on top of their annual leave, part-time staff should get a pro-rata share. Someone working 3 days a week would get 3/5 of them: 4.8 days out of 8 in England and Wales. That applies whether or not they usually work on the days the bank holidays fall.
Do bank holidays count towards annual leave?
It depends on the employment contract. Many employers give bank holidays on top of annual leave, and some include them in it. A contract that says "20 days plus bank holidays" gives them on top. One that says "28 days including bank holidays" counts them as part of the 28.
Do shift workers get extra pay for working a bank holiday?
Not by law in the UK. Staff who work a bank holiday get their normal pay unless their contract says otherwise. Many employers pay time-and-a-half or give a day off in lieu.
Works in Slack and Microsoft Teams
Handle bank holidays and leave where your team already works
- Loads the right public holidays for each office, in the UK and worldwide
- Counts the right working days for each person, taking bank holidays into account the way you've set them up
- Shows who's already off, so you can spot clashes before approving leave
- Staff request leave and managers approve it in Microsoft Teams or Slack, as well as on the web