Holiday Entitlement & Accrual Calculator UK 2026/27
Work out your statutory holiday entitlement, whether you work regular hours, part-time, or irregular/casual hours.
Under the Working Time Regulations 1998, almost all workers are entitled to a statutory minimum of 5.6 weeks' paid holiday per year. For someone working a standard 5-day week, this works out at 28 days — and 28 days is also the maximum statutory entitlement, even if you work more than 5 days a week.
If you work irregular hours or only part of the year (for example casual, zero-hours, or seasonal work), your holiday is instead calculated as 12.07% of the hours you actually work, under the rules that took effect for holiday years starting on or after 1 April 2024.
How do you work?
Your Details
How many days you're contracted to work
Above the statutory minimum, if any
Optional — defaults to 1 January
If you joined partway through the holiday year
If you left, or are due to leave, partway through the holiday year
How holiday entitlement works
The legal minimum
Almost all workers are entitled to at least 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year. For someone who works 5 days a week, that is 28 days. The legal minimum is capped at 28 days, even for someone who works 6 or 7 days a week.
Bank holidays can be counted as part of the 28 days, or given on top. There is no legal right to bank holidays off on top of the minimum: it depends on the contract.
Part-time workers
Part-time workers get the same 5.6 weeks, worked out on the days they work. Multiply the number of days they work each week by 5.6. Someone who works 3 days a week is entitled to 16.8 days a year.
If full-time staff get bank holidays on top of their holiday, part-time staff should get a fair, pro rata share, whichever days of the week they work.
How to use the calculator
For workers with regular hours, enter the days they work each week, any extra contractual holiday, and the start of your holiday year. Add a start or end date if they joined or are leaving part way through the year, and the calculator works out a pro rata entitlement.
For workers with irregular hours, such as zero-hours or casual staff, enter the hours they worked in the pay period. The calculator works out the holiday they built up at 12.07% of those hours. Their average hours per working day is only used to show the result in days as well as hours. Add their gross pay to see the 12.07% uplift if you pay rolled-up holiday pay.
Irregular hours and part-year workers
For leave years starting on or after 1st April 2024, workers with irregular hours and part-year workers build up holiday at 12.07% of the hours they actually work in each pay period.
For these workers only, employers can choose to pay holiday pay as rolled-up holiday pay instead: an extra 12.07% on top of each payslip, shown as a separate item. It is not allowed for workers with regular hours.
Starters, leavers and holiday pay
- Someone who joins or leaves part way through the holiday year is entitled to a pro rata share of the year's holiday
- When someone leaves, they must be paid for holiday they have built up and not taken
- If they have taken more holiday than they built up, you can only take the money back from their final pay if their contract or a written agreement allows it
- For the first 4 weeks of statutory holiday each year, holiday pay must reflect normal pay, including regular overtime and commission
Frequently asked questions
How much statutory holiday is a worker entitled to?
At least 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year. For a 5-day week, that is 28 days. The legal minimum is capped at 28 days, even for people who work more than 5 days a week. Employers can give more holiday under the contract.
Does holiday entitlement include bank holidays?
It can. The 28 days can include bank holidays, or bank holidays can be given on top. There is no automatic legal right to bank holidays off on top of the minimum, so it depends on the contract.
How much holiday does a part-time worker get?
Multiply the number of days they work each week by 5.6. Someone who works 3 days a week gets 16.8 days a year, and someone who works 4 days gets 22.4 days. Part-time workers must not be treated less favourably than comparable full-time workers.
How is holiday worked out for irregular hours or zero-hours workers?
For leave years starting on or after 1st April 2024, irregular hours and part-year workers build up holiday at 12.07% of the hours they actually work in each pay period, rather than a fixed number of days.
What is rolled-up holiday pay?
Rolled-up holiday pay means adding 12.07% to each payslip instead of paying holiday pay when the holiday is taken. It is allowed only for irregular hours and part-year workers whose leave year started on or after 1st April 2024, and it must be shown as a separate item on the payslip. It is not allowed for workers with regular hours.
How much holiday does someone get if they start or leave part way through the year?
A pro rata share of the year's entitlement, based on the part of the holiday year they work. When someone leaves, they must be paid for any holiday they have built up and not taken.
How much notice does a worker need to give to book holiday?
Unless the contract says otherwise, at least twice as long as the holiday, plus 1 day. For a week off (5 days), that is 11 days' notice. Employers can set their own rules, such as a booking deadline, in the contract or holiday policy.
Can an employer refuse a holiday request?
Yes, but unless the contract says otherwise they must give notice at least as long as the holiday requested, plus 1 day. Employers can also require staff to take holiday on particular days, such as a Christmas shutdown, with notice of at least twice the length of the holiday, plus 1 day. Workers must still have a real chance to take all their holiday during the year.
Can unused holiday be carried over to the next year?
Usually statutory holiday must be taken in the year it is due, but there are exceptions. If sickness stopped a worker taking it, they can carry over up to 4 weeks (20 days for a 5-day week), to be used within 18 months; irregular hours and part-year workers can carry over all of it. If maternity or other family leave stopped them, they can carry over all their statutory holiday into the next year. Holiday can also carry over if the employer did not give a reasonable chance to take it, encourage them to take it and warn them in good time that it would be lost. Extra holiday above the legal minimum follows the contract.
Do workers build up holiday while off sick or on maternity leave?
Yes. Statutory holiday continues to build up during sick leave and during maternity and other family leave.
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