How UK bank holidays work
- England and Wales have 8 bank holidays: New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, the early May bank holiday, the spring bank holiday, the summer bank holiday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
- Scotland has 9: it adds 2 January and St Andrew's Day (30 November), has no Easter Monday, and takes its summer bank holiday on the first Monday of August instead of the last. Northern Ireland has 10: the England and Wales list plus St Patrick's Day (17 March) and the Battle of the Boyne (12 July).
- When a bank holiday falls on a weekend, a substitute weekday is given, usually the following Monday. In 2027 Christmas Day and Boxing Day are a Saturday and a Sunday, so Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December are the days off.
- Extra one-off bank holidays are sometimes proclaimed; the list for Scotland includes one on 15 June 2026.
- A bank holiday is not in itself a right to a day off. Workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid leave a year, which an employer can count bank holidays towards, so whether an office closes is up to the employer.
2027 bank holidays
England and Wales
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Fri, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Mar 26 | 1 day |
| Easter Monday | Mon, Mar 29 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 3 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 31 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 30 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 27 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Tue, Dec 28 | 1 day |
253 working days, Monday to Friday.
Scotland
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Fri, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| 2nd January (substitute day) | Mon, Jan 4 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Mar 26 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 3 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 31 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 2 | 1 day |
| St Andrew's Day | Tue, Nov 30 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 27 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Tue, Dec 28 | 1 day |
252 working days, Monday to Friday.
Northern Ireland
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Fri, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| St Patrick's Day | Wed, Mar 17 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Mar 26 | 1 day |
| Easter Monday | Mon, Mar 29 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 3 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 31 | 1 day |
| Battle of the Boyne (Orangemen's Day) | Mon, Jul 12 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 30 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 27 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Tue, Dec 28 | 1 day |
251 working days, Monday to Friday.
Source: GOV.UK: UK bank holidays (bank-holidays.json) · list updated 2026-09-09 · checked 2026-10-03
2026 bank holidays
England and Wales
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Thu, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Apr 3 | 1 day |
| Easter Monday | Mon, Apr 6 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 4 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 25 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 31 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day | Fri, Dec 25 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 28 | 1 day |
253 working days, Monday to Friday.
Scotland
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Thu, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| 2nd January | Fri, Jan 2 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Apr 3 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 4 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 25 | 1 day |
| World Cup bank holiday | Mon, Jun 15 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 3 | 1 day |
| St Andrew's Day | Mon, Nov 30 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day | Fri, Dec 25 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 28 | 1 day |
251 working days, Monday to Friday.
Northern Ireland
| Bank holiday | Date | Length |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Thu, Jan 1 | 1 day |
| St Patrick's Day | Tue, Mar 17 | 1 day |
| Good Friday | Fri, Apr 3 | 1 day |
| Easter Monday | Mon, Apr 6 | 1 day |
| Early May bank holiday | Mon, May 4 | 1 day |
| Spring bank holiday | Mon, May 25 | 1 day |
| Battle of the Boyne (substitute day) | Mon, Jul 13 | 1 day |
| Summer bank holiday | Mon, Aug 31 | 1 day |
| Christmas Day | Fri, Dec 25 | 1 day |
| Boxing Day (substitute day) | Mon, Dec 28 | 1 day |
251 working days, Monday to Friday.
Source: GOV.UK: UK bank holidays (bank-holidays.json) · list updated 2026-09-09 · checked 2026-10-03
Days that differ from mainland China
Only New Year's Day is a holiday in both the UK and mainland China every year; others line up by chance, as when the early May bank holiday fell inside the mainland's Labour Day break in 2026. Spring Festival, Labour Day and the National Day week are working days in the UK, and Easter and the summer bank holiday are working days in the mainland. The table compares mainland China with England and Wales.
In 2027 both sides work on the same 237 days. On 27 other days only one side is at work: 11 when mainland China works and United Kingdom (England & Wales) does not, 16 the other way round.
| Date | China (mainland) | United Kingdom (England & Wales) |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Jan 31 | Makeup workday | Weekend |
| Fri, Feb 5 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Mon, Feb 8 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Tue, Feb 9 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Wed, Feb 10 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Thu, Feb 11 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Fri, Feb 12 | Spring Festival | Working day |
| Sun, Feb 14 | Makeup workday | Weekend |
| Fri, Mar 26 | Working day | Good Friday |
| Mon, Mar 29 | Working day | Easter Monday |
| Mon, Apr 5 | Qingming Festival | Working day |
| Tue, May 4 | Labour Day | Working day |
| Wed, May 5 | Labour Day | Working day |
| Sat, May 8 | Makeup workday | Weekend |
| Mon, May 31 | Working day | Spring bank holiday |
| Wed, Jun 9 | Dragon Boat Festival | Working day |
| Mon, Aug 30 | Working day | Summer bank holiday |
| Wed, Sep 15 | Mid-Autumn Festival | Working day |
| Sun, Sep 26 | Makeup workday | Weekend |
| Fri, Oct 1 | National Day | Working day |
| Mon, Oct 4 | National Day | Working day |
| Tue, Oct 5 | National Day | Working day |
| Wed, Oct 6 | National Day | Working day |
| Thu, Oct 7 | National Day | Working day |
| Sat, Oct 9 | Makeup workday | Weekend |
| Mon, Dec 27 | Working day | Christmas Day (substitute day) |
| Tue, Dec 28 | Working day | Boxing Day (substitute day) |
Weekends both sides take off are left out. Computed from the two official calendars on this site.
Planning work between the UK and China
- London is 8 hours behind Beijing in winter and 7 in summer. With a 09:00–18:00 day on both sides, the shared time is one hour in winter (17:00–18:00 in Beijing, 09:00–10:00 in London) and two hours in summer.
- British Summer Time runs from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October. The US changes its clocks on different dates, so in those weeks the gap between London and New York shifts too; the team overlap page has a worked example.
- UK offices close on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, and the days up to New Year are a common time for leave; mainland offices work through to New Year's Day.
- Easter moves every year, between late March and late April. England, Wales and Northern Ireland get a four-day weekend from Good Friday to Easter Monday; Scotland has only Good Friday.
- If you work with offices in more than one UK nation, check each list: Scotland and Northern Ireland have days England does not, and Scotland's summer bank holiday is at the start of August rather than the end.
2028: not listed yet
GOV.UK usually lists bank holidays for the current year and the next. We add a year once it appears there; until then, dates in that year show as not published.
What these dates don't cover
- Company closures. Some employers close between Christmas and New Year, or ask staff to take leave then.
- Local holidays, such as the days some Scottish towns and cities keep in addition to the national list.
- Weekend and shift work. The calendar assumes a Monday-to-Friday week.
Questions
- Is Easter Monday a holiday everywhere in the UK?
- In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, yes. In Scotland it is not a bank holiday, though some employers give it.
- What is a substitute day?
- When a bank holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the next weekday that is not already a holiday is given instead. In 2026 Boxing Day is a Saturday, so Monday 28 December is the day off.
- Does the UK have makeup workdays like mainland China?
- No. No weekend is ever turned into a working day.
- Why does the calculator use England and Wales?
- It covers most of the UK's population. Scotland's and Northern Ireland's lists are above, and the team overlap tool has all three.
Compare England and Wales with your team's other countries: shared working days and hours →