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United Kingdom

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.

2024 Holidays

This calendar contains all of this year’s public holidays for the UK.

DateDayHolidayCountries
1 JanMonNew Year's Day National
2 JanTueNew Year Holiday Scotland
17 MarSunSaint Patrick's Day Northern Ireland
18 MarMonSaint Patrick's Day Holiday Northern Ireland
29 MarFriGood Friday National
1 AprMonEaster Monday National except Scotland
6 MayMonMay Day National
27 MayMonLate May Bank Holiday National
12 JulFriBattle of the Boyne Northern Ireland
5 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday Scotland
26 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday National except Scotland
30 NovSatSt Andrew's Day Scotland
2 DecMonSt Andrew's Day Holiday Scotland
25 DecWedChristmas Day National
26 DecThuBoxing Day National

2025 Holidays

This calendar contains all of next year’s public holidays for the UK.

DateDayHolidayCountries
1 JanWedNew Year's Day National
2 JanThuNew Year Holiday Scotland
17 MarMonSaint Patrick's Day Northern Ireland
18 AprFriGood Friday National
21 AprMonEaster Monday National except Scotland
5 MayMonMay Day National
26 MayMonLate May Bank Holiday National
12 JulSatBattle of the Boyne Northern Ireland
14 JulMonBattle of the Boyne Holiday Northern Ireland
4 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday Scotland
25 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday National except Scotland
30 NovSunSt Andrew's Day Scotland
1 DecMonSt Andrew's Day Holiday Scotland
25 DecThuChristmas Day National
26 DecFriBoxing Day National

2026 Holidays

This calendar contains all 2026 public holidays across the UK.

DateDayHolidayCountries
1 JanThuNew Year's Day National
2 JanFriNew Year Holiday Scotland
17 MarTueSaint Patrick's Day Northern Ireland
3 AprFriGood Friday National
6 AprMonEaster Monday National except Scotland
4 MayMonMay Day National
25 MayMonLate May Bank Holiday National
12 JulSunBattle of the Boyne Northern Ireland
13 JulMonBattle of the Boyne Holiday Northern Ireland
3 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday Scotland
31 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday National except Scotland
30 NovMonSt Andrew's Day Scotland
25 DecFriChristmas Day National
26 DecSatBoxing Day National
28 DecMonBoxing Day Holiday National

2027 Holidays

This calendar contains all 2027 public holidays across the UK.

DateDayHolidayCountries
1 JanFriNew Year's Day National
4 JanMonNew Year Holiday Scotland
17 MarWedSaint Patrick's Day Northern Ireland
26 MarFriGood Friday National
29 MarMonEaster Monday National except Scotland
3 MayMonMay Day National
31 MayMonLate May Bank Holiday National
12 JulMonBattle of the Boyne Northern Ireland
2 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday Scotland
30 AugMonAugust Bank Holiday National except Scotland
30 NovTueSt Andrew's Day Scotland
25 DecSatChristmas Day National
26 DecSunBoxing Day National
27 DecMonChristmas Holiday National
28 DecTueBoxing Day Holiday National

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.