Bank Holiday Pay — Your Rights Explained

Also on Bank Holidays UK: Working on a Bank Holiday — Rules, Pay & Refusal · Bank Holiday Pay Calculator — Work Out Your Entitlement · Bank Holiday Entitlement — What Your Contract Owes You

There’s no automatic right to extra pay on a UK bank holiday. Whether you get paid more — or get the day off at all — depends entirely on what your contract says.

Quick answer: UK law gives you 5.6 weeks (28 days for full-time) of paid holiday a year. Your employer can include bank holidays in that 28 days, or grant them on top — both are legal. There is NO statutory right to time-and-a-half or double pay.

What the law actually says

The Working Time Regulations 1998 set the minimum: 5.6 weeks paid leave a year. The law is silent on bank holidays specifically — they’re treated as ordinary days for entitlement purposes. So when your employer offers “the day off plus normal pay” on a bank holiday, that’s coming out of your 5.6-week allowance unless your contract says otherwise.

Common contract patterns

Arrangement	Typical sectors	Effect
Bank holidays included in 28 days	Retail, hospitality, manufacturing	You get 28 days total. Bank holidays count.
Bank holidays on top of 28 days	Office, professional services, public sector	You get 28 + 8 = 36 days total.
Time-and-a-half / double time	Healthcare rotas, transport, retail premium contracts	You work the day at enhanced pay.
Day off in lieu	Emergency services, hospitality	You work the day, get a different day off later.

What if you work the bank holiday?

You get whatever your contract specifies. If it’s silent on bank holiday premium pay, you’re entitled to ordinary pay only. Try our pay calculator for your specific situation.

Pro-rata for part-time workers

If you work fewer than five days a week, your bank holiday allowance is pro-rated. A three-day-a-week worker is entitled to 3/5 of the bank holiday allowance, even if their working days happen to miss most of the bank holidays in the year.

Frequently asked

Is the answer to ‘bank holiday pay uk’?

Bank holiday pay uk — see our quick answer above.

Where is this defined?

UK statutes and gov.uk are the primary sources. Specific rules vary by sector and contract.

What if I’m unsure of my own situation?

Speak to ACAS, your employer’s HR, or a UK solicitor if it involves money or contractual rights.