Paid annual leave is a legal right in the UK, not a perk. The rules are set out in the Working Time Regulations 1998, and they apply to all workers — employees, agency workers, zero-hours contract workers, and most casual workers. Only genuinely self-employed people fall outside the regulations.
Statutory minimum entitlement
Full-time workers are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks' paid holiday per year. For someone working five days a week, that's 28 days. This can include bank holidays — your employer can count the eight bank holidays as part of your 28-day entitlement, leaving 20 days to be taken at other times. Or they can offer bank holidays on top of the 28 days. Check your contract.
The 28-day figure is both a minimum and a statutory cap — there's no legal entitlement to more than 28 days, though many employers offer more. The 5.6 weeks calculation doesn't go above 28 days even if you work more than five days a week.
Part-time workers
Part-time workers get the same 5.6 weeks, pro-rated to their working pattern. Someone working three days a week is entitled to 16.8 days (3 × 5.6). Someone working four days a week gets 22.4 days. Your employer can round up but isn't required to.
If your hours vary (zero-hours contracts, irregular schedules), holiday entitlement is calculated based on the hours you actually work. The simplest method is 12.07% of hours worked — for every hour you work, you accrue roughly 7 minutes of holiday. Some employers handle this by adding 12.07% to your hourly rate as "rolled-up holiday pay," though the legal status of this has been debated.
When your holiday year starts
Your employer sets the holiday year — it might run January to December, April to March, or from your start date. In your first year, entitlement is accrued monthly — you earn 1/12th of your annual entitlement for each month worked. After the first year, you're entitled to the full amount from the start of the holiday year.
Can your employer tell you when to take holiday?
Yes, with reasonable notice. Your employer can require you to take holiday on specific days — for example, during a Christmas shutdown — provided they give notice equal to twice the length of the holiday. To require you to take five days off, they need to give 10 days' notice.
Equally, if you request holiday, your employer can refuse it with notice equal to the length of the requested holiday. They might have legitimate business reasons — peak trading periods, too many people already off. But they can't systematically prevent you from taking your entitlement.
Carrying holiday over
The rules on carrying over unused holiday are more nuanced than many employers realise. The basic position under the Working Time Regulations is that the first four weeks of entitlement (20 days for full-time workers) must generally be taken in the year they're earned. The additional 1.6 weeks (8 days) can be carried over if the employer allows it.
However, if you're unable to take holiday due to sickness, maternity leave, or because your employer prevented you from taking it, you can carry it over. Recent case law has clarified that employers must actively encourage workers to take their holiday and inform them it will be lost if not taken — otherwise, the right to carry over is preserved.
Holiday during notice period
When you resign or are dismissed, you're entitled to payment for any accrued but untaken holiday. Your employer can require you to take outstanding holiday during your notice period, with proper notice. If you have more accrued holiday than there are days in your notice period, the excess must be paid out.
Holiday pay should be calculated at your normal rate of pay, including regular overtime, commission, and allowances that are normally paid. This has been the subject of significant case law — if your pay regularly includes variable elements, these should be reflected in your holiday pay.
Holiday pay calculations
For workers with fixed hours and pay, holiday pay is straightforward — your normal weekly pay. For workers with variable hours or pay, it's based on average earnings over a 52-week reference period (ignoring weeks where no pay was earned). This calculation should include regular overtime, commission, and other variable elements that form part of normal remuneration.
What to do if your rights are denied
If your employer doesn't give you your statutory holiday entitlement, refuses reasonable holiday requests without good reason, or doesn't pay holiday pay correctly, you have options. Start by raising it informally, then formally through your employer's grievance procedure. If that doesn't resolve it, you can bring a claim to an employment tribunal. ACAS provides free advice and early conciliation before tribunal proceedings. Citizens Advice can also help you understand your rights.