UK Public Holidays

Discover upcoming public holiday dates for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and start planning to make the most of your time off! Scroll down to view each year’s calendar or select from the shortcut menu below.

These holidays, also called bank holidays, are observed throughout the United Kingdom and are required holidays when most businesses and non-essential services close down. The holidays were first officially observed when the 1871 Bank Holidays Act designated specific public holidays in England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

Today, the main statute that defines holidays is the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971. This Act gives His Majesty the King the authority to grant one-time national holidays if he sees purpose.

2025 Holidays

Date	Day	Holiday	Countries
1 Jan	Wed	New Year's Day	National
2 Jan	Thu	New Year Holiday	Scotland
17 Mar	Mon	Saint Patrick's Day	Northern Ireland
18 Apr	Fri	Good Friday	National
21 Apr	Mon	Easter Monday	National except Scotland
5 May	Mon	May Day	National
26 May	Mon	Late May Bank Holiday	National
12 Jul	Sat	Battle of the Boyne	Northern Ireland
14 Jul	Mon	Battle of the Boyne Holiday	Northern Ireland
4 Aug	Mon	August Bank Holiday	Scotland
25 Aug	Mon	August Bank Holiday	National except Scotland
30 Nov	Sun	St Andrew's Day	Scotland
1 Dec	Mon	St Andrew's Day Holiday	Scotland
25 Dec	Thu	Christmas Day	National
26 Dec	Fri	Boxing Day	National
Visit gov.uk for the original release.

2026 Holidays

Date	Day	Holiday	Countries
1 Jan	Thu	New Year's Day	National
2 Jan	Fri	New Year Holiday	Scotland
17 Mar	Tue	Saint Patrick's Day	Northern Ireland
3 Apr	Fri	Good Friday	National
6 Apr	Mon	Easter Monday	National except Scotland
4 May	Mon	May Day	National
25 May	Mon	Late May Bank Holiday	National
12 Jul	Sun	Battle of the Boyne	Northern Ireland
13 Jul	Mon	Battle of the Boyne Holiday	Northern Ireland
3 Aug	Mon	August Bank Holiday	Scotland
31 Aug	Mon	August Bank Holiday	National except Scotland
30 Nov	Mon	St Andrew's Day	Scotland
25 Dec	Fri	Christmas Day	National
26 Dec	Sat	Boxing Day	National
28 Dec	Mon	Boxing Day Holiday	National
Visit gov.uk for the original release.

2027 Holidays

Date	Day	Holiday	Countries
1 Jan	Fri	New Year's Day	National
4 Jan	Mon	New Year Holiday	Scotland
17 Mar	Wed	Saint Patrick's Day	Northern Ireland
26 Mar	Fri	Good Friday	National
29 Mar	Mon	Easter Monday	National except Scotland
3 May	Mon	May Day	National
31 May	Mon	Late May Bank Holiday	National
12 Jul	Mon	Battle of the Boyne	Northern Ireland
30 Aug	Mon	August Bank Holiday	National
30 Nov	Tue	St Andrew's Day	Scotland
25 Dec	Sat	Christmas Day	National
26 Dec	Sun	Boxing Day	National
27 Dec	Mon	Christmas Holiday	National
28 Dec	Tue	Boxing Day Holiday	National
Visit gov.uk for the original release.

Workers don’t have an automatic right to paid leave on bank and public holidays in the UK, though most full-time workers receive a paid day off work, and casual workers receive pay at higher penalty rates. Labor laws in the United Kingdom provide the employers with the option to give a paid day off in lieu for public holidays, most employers opt for the premium pay to keep businesses operational on other dates.

If a public holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the holiday is normally postponed to the following week day, which is then referred to as a “substitute public holiday” or an “observed holiday”.

In Scotland, public holidays in Scotland are generally determined at the local level. National and country-level holidays may be substituted with local holidays, and additional local holidays also occur throughout the year.