Holiday entitlement & pay: what you're owed

How much you're entitled to

The legal minimum is 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year. For a five-day week that's 28 days (5 × 5.6). It's capped at 28 days — so a six-day-a-week worker still gets 28, not more. Part-timers get the same 5.6 weeks, worked out pro rata:

You work	Statutory holiday a year
5 days a week	28 days
4 days a week	22.4 days
3 days a week	16.8 days
2 days a week	11.2 days

It starts on day one You build holiday up from your first day in the job — there's no qualifying period. It applies to part-time, agency, casual and zero-hours workers too. Use the free GOV.UK holiday entitlement calculator for an exact figure for your hours.

How holiday pay is calculated

The rule is simple: a week's leave should be paid at a week's normal pay. If your hours and pay are fixed, that's just your usual wage. If your pay varies — overtime, commission, bonuses, changing hours — holiday pay is based on your average pay over the previous 52 weeks in which you worked and were paid.

Weeks where you earned nothing are skipped, and you look further back (up to 104 weeks) to find 52 paid weeks.
Regular overtime and commission should be included — leaving them out is one of the commonest ways holiday pay is underpaid.

Check your payslip If your holiday weeks are paid at basic rate only while you normally earn commission or regular overtime, you may be owed money. Raise it with your employer; underpaid holiday can be claimed as an unlawful deduction from wages. See underpaid wages.

Zero-hours, irregular & part-year workers

If your hours are irregular or you only work part of the year, the rules changed. For leave years beginning on or after 1 April 2024:

Holiday builds up at 12.07% of the hours you actually work in each pay period (rounded up to the nearest hour if it's half an hour or more).
Your employer can choose "rolled-up" holiday pay — an extra amount on top of your hourly rate, paid on each payslip and shown separately.
You're still entitled to up to the full 5.6 weeks — it's just calculated from hours worked.

Where does 12.07% come from? 5.6 weeks of holiday out of the 46.4 working weeks in a year works out at 12.07%. If you see rolled-up holiday pay on your payslip, it should be a clearly labelled line — not hidden inside your hourly rate.

Bank holidays, booking, carrying over & leaving

Question	The rule
Bank holidays	No automatic right to take them off or to extra pay. Your contract decides — and an employer can count them inside your 5.6 weeks. Check whether yours says "plus bank holidays" or "including".
Booking & refusing	You request dates; an employer can refuse specific dates with proper notice, but can't deny the entitlement itself. They can also require you to take leave at set times with notice.
Carrying over	Limited. The basic 4 weeks usually can't be carried; the extra 1.6 weeks can be carried up to a year by agreement. You can carry more if you couldn't take it due to sickness, maternity or other family leave.
When you leave	You must be paid for holiday you've built up but not taken — the one time it can be "paid in lieu".

Do this now

Work out your entitlement with the free GOV.UK holiday calculator, then compare it to what your contract and payslips actually give you. If you're short — especially on holiday pay when you earn commission or overtime — raise it in writing with your employer.

If it isn't put right, get free advice from ACAS on 0300 123 1100 or check your rights at work. You normally have 3 months less a day (6 months less 1 day if your time limit starts on or after 1 October 2026) to start an employment tribunal claim.

New for April 2026 From 6 April 2026, employers must keep records of annual leave and holiday pay (including holiday carried over) and keep them for at least 6 years — making it easier to check you've been paid correctly.

Owed holiday or holiday pay? Check what else you may be missing. Your rights at work →

Source verification Primary source: GOV.UK — Holiday entitlement; ACAS — Holiday entitlement and pay, and irregular hours / part-year workers · gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights. Last verified 15 June 2026 — the 5.6-week / 28-day entitlement, the 52-week pay reference, the 12.07% accrual and rolled-up pay for irregular-hours/part-year workers from 1 Apr 2024, and the new Apr-2026 record-keeping duty web-checked against GOV.UK + ACAS. Confidence: High — statutory holiday is 5.6 weeks (capped at 28 days), from day one, pro rata for part-time; variable holiday pay uses a 52-week average; irregular-hours and part-year workers (leave years from 1 Apr 2024) accrue at 12.07% of hours and may receive rolled-up holiday pay; untaken accrued holiday must be paid on leaving; from 6 Apr 2026 employers must keep leave/pay records for 6 years. Scope: Great Britain (Northern Ireland has equivalent rules). Information, not legal advice — use the GOV.UK calculator and ACAS (0300 123 1100) for your situation.

Holiday entitlement — common questions

How much paid holiday am I entitled to?

5.6 weeks a year — 28 days for a five-day week, capped at 28. Part-time is the same 5.6 weeks pro rata (e.g. 3 days a week = 16.8 days). It starts on day one and covers part-time, agency, casual and zero-hours workers.

How is holiday pay worked out?

You should get your normal pay. If your pay varies, it's the average of the last 52 weeks you worked and were paid — including regular overtime and commission. Paying holiday at basic rate only when you normally earn more can mean you're underpaid.

I'm on zero hours — how does it work?

For leave years from 1 April 2024, holiday builds up at 12.07% of the hours you work each pay period. Your employer can pay "rolled-up" holiday pay — an extra amount on each payslip, shown separately. You're still entitled to up to 5.6 weeks.

Do I get bank holidays off?

There's no automatic legal right to bank holidays off or extra pay for working them — it depends on your contract, and an employer can count them within your 5.6 weeks. Check whether your contract says "plus bank holidays" or "including bank holidays".

What happens to my holiday when I leave?

Your employer must pay you for any statutory holiday you've built up but not taken — the one time holiday can be paid in lieu. Carrying holiday over is otherwise limited, though you can carry more if sickness or family leave stopped you taking it.

Sources: The 5.6-week entitlement, pro-rata rules, holiday pay and the 52-week reference period · GOV.UK — Holiday entitlement. The 12.07% accrual, rolled-up holiday pay and carry-over for irregular-hours and part-year workers, plus the April 2026 record-keeping duty · ACAS — Holiday entitlement and ACAS — Irregular hours and part-year workers. SortedUK is not a regulated adviser and this is general information — use the GOV.UK calculator and ACAS for your situation. Last reviewed: 15 June 2026.

Your paid holiday — how much you're actually owed.