Annual Leave Entitlement in the UK: The Complete Guide for 2026
Understanding annual leave entitlement is one of the most common questions UK employers and employees face. Whether you're running a small business or managing HR for a growing team, getting leave entitlement right is both a legal requirement and essential for employee wellbeing.
How much annual leave are UK employees entitled to?
Under the Working Time Regulations 1998, almost all workers in the UK are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave per year. For someone working a standard 5-day week, this is 28 days. Bank holidays can be included in that total.
This is the statutory minimum — employers can offer more, but never less. Many employers choose to offer additional days as a benefit, particularly for senior roles or long-serving employees.
Can bank holidays be included in the 28 days?
Yes. There is no legal requirement to give bank holidays as additionalleave. Most employers in the UK include the 8 bank holidays within the 28-day statutory entitlement, leaving employees with 20 days of "flexible" annual leave plus 8 bank holidays.
However, this is entirely up to the employer. Some businesses offer 28 days plus bank holidays, while others include bank holidays within the 28-day total.
How to calculate annual leave for part-time employees
Part-time employees are entitled to the same 5.6 weeks of leave, but calculated pro rata based on the number of days they work per week.
The formula is simple:
Days worked per week × 5.6 = annual leave entitlement
Free Pro Rata Leave Calculator
Quickly calculate pro rata annual leave for part-time employees based on their working pattern.
Try it now| Days worked per week | Annual leave entitlement |
|---|---|
| 5 days | 28 days |
| 4 days | 22.4 days |
| 3 days | 16.8 days |
| 2 days | 11.2 days |
| 1 day | 5.6 days |
Annual leave for irregular hours and shift workers
Do not apply one formula to every shift worker. A regular-hours shift worker can still have a normal 5.6-week entitlement. For a worker who legally meets the definition of an irregular-hours worker or part-year worker, and whose leave year began on or after 1 April 2024, statutory leave accrues at 12.07% of hours worked in each pay period, subject to the statutory rounding rules and annual cap. GOV.UK explains the method and worked examples in its leave calculation guidance.
Holiday entitlement and holiday pay are related but separate calculations. For irregular-hours and part-year workers, an employer may choose rolled-up holiday pay for eligible leave years, or use the applicable reference-period method. If rolled-up pay is used, it must be shown separately on the payslip and the worker must still be able and encouraged to take leave. See the current Acas rolled-up holiday pay guidance.
Annual leave carry-over rules
The contract or workplace rules should explain ordinary carry-over. A worker with 28 days' statutory leave can normally carry over a maximum of 8 days where the employer allows it. Separate statutory protections apply when leave could not be taken because of sickness, family-related leave, or because the employer did not give a reasonable opportunity and warning to take it.
Key carry-over scenarios:
- Sickness: A regular-hours, full-year worker who could not take leave because of sickness can carry over up to 20 of the statutory 28 days. Different limits apply to irregular-hours and part-year workers.
- Family-related leave: Untaken statutory leave can carry into the next leave year when the worker could not take it because of qualifying family leave.
- No reasonable opportunity: The whole entitlement can carry over where a worker was not given a reasonable opportunity to take leave or was not told it would be lost.
Check the current exceptions on GOV.UK before applying a policy to an individual case.
When does the leave year start?
The leave year is defined in the employment contract. If no start date is specified, it defaults to:
- 1 October if employment started on or before 1 October 1998
- The first day of the job if employment started after 1 October 1998
Many UK businesses choose a calendar year from 1 January to 31 December or a financial year from 1 April to 31 March. The chosen dates should be stated clearly to workers.
Common mistakes employers make
- Not including bank holidays in the calculation — forgetting that bank holidays count towards the 28-day minimum, leading to over-entitlement.
- Getting pro-rata wrong for part-timers — using incorrect formulas or rounding down instead of up.
- Not tracking leave balances — relying on spreadsheets that quickly become outdated, causing disputes.
- Relying on a "use it or lose it" sentence — employers must give workers a reasonable opportunity to take statutory leave, encourage them to take it and warn them when it may be lost.
- Applying rolled-up pay to everyone — it is an option only for qualifying irregular-hours and part-year workers under the current rules, and it has calculation and payslip requirements.
How Leavely helps manage annual leave
Tracking annual leave entitlement manually — with spreadsheets, emails, or paper forms — is error-prone and time-consuming. Leavely automates the entire process:
- Automatic balance calculation — configured allowances, booked days and remaining leave stay in one record.
- Part-time pro-rata built in — set the work pattern and Leavely handles the maths.
- UK bank holidays pre-loaded — no manual entry needed.
- Visual leave calendar — see who's off at a glance and spot coverage gaps.
- One-click approvals — managers approve or decline in seconds.
Try Leavely free for 14 days
Automatic balances, pro-rata calculations, bank holidays, one-click approvals, and a visual leave calendar replace the spreadsheet work.