Answers · UK 2025/26
How much is holiday pay in the UK?
Workers in the UK are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year (28 days including bank holidays for full-time workers). For someone earning £600 per week that equals £3,360 in annual holiday pay entitlement.
Full answer
Under the Working Time Regulations 1998, every worker in the UK is entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave per year. For a full-time employee working five days a week, that equals 28 days — which can include the 8 UK bank holidays, although your employer can decide whether bank holidays count toward or are additional to your 5.6 weeks. Holiday pay must reflect your "normal remuneration." For workers with fixed hours and pay, that simply means your usual weekly wage. For workers with variable pay — irregular hours, overtime, commission, or shift allowances — holiday pay must be calculated using the 52-week average of actual earnings in weeks you worked, ignoring unpaid weeks. This rule, introduced under the Good Work Plan from April 2020, prevents employers from using a short reference period that excludes high-earning periods. **Example:** If you earned a total of £31,200 over the 52 weeks before your holiday (i.e. an average of £600 per working week), one week's holiday pay is £600, and 5.6 weeks = £3,360 per year in holiday entitlement. Part-time workers receive the same 5.6 weeks pro-rata — so someone working 3 days a week gets 3 × 5.6 = 16.8 days. Workers on irregular or zero-hours contracts accrue holiday at 12.07% of hours worked (for leave years starting on or after April 2024). Agency workers and those on irregular schedules may instead have leave paid as a rolled-up 12.07% uplift. Holiday pay disputes are handled by an Employment Tribunal; claims can be backdated up to two years.
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This answer is informational only and does not constitute financial, tax or legal advice. Figures are for the 2025/26 UK tax year. See our methodology and sources.