Scotland Bank Holidays & Public Holidays 2026: All 9 Official Dates

Scotland has 9 public holidays (bank holidays) in 2026 — one more than England and Wales. The extra holiday is 2nd January, giving Scotland a two-day New Year break, and Scotland also observes St Andrew's Day on 30 November as a statutory public holiday. In return, Scotland does not observe Easter Monday. The Summer bank holiday also falls four weeks earlier than in the rest of the UK.

Scotland public holiday dates 2026

How Scotland's public holidays differ from England & Wales

Scotland and England share six public holidays in 2026, but diverge on four key points. Understanding these differences matters if you work for an employer based in a different nation, or if you have colleagues or family in England planning visits around a "bank holiday weekend" that you may not actually have off.

Each public holiday explained

New Year's Day — 1 January (Thursday)

Observed across all four UK nations. In Scotland, New Year — Hogmanay — is the most significant celebration in the calendar, and 1 January is the first of a two-day break unique to Scotland. The tradition of celebrating well into the early hours of 1 January and taking a second recovery day on 2 January has deep cultural roots, and the two-day statutory break reflects this.

2nd January — 2 January (Friday)

Scotland is the only UK nation to observe 2nd January as a statutory public holiday. In 2026 it falls on a Friday, which means the New Year period gives Scottish workers a four-day weekend: Thursday 1 January, Friday 2 January, Saturday 3, Sunday 4. For expats arriving from countries where public holidays are single-day affairs, the two-day New Year break is one of Scotland's most distinctive features.

Good Friday — 3 April (Friday)

Good Friday is observed across all four UK nations. Technically a common law holiday, it appears on all official government listings and is universally observed. In Scotland, Good Friday is the only Easter bank holiday — Easter Monday (6 April 2026) is not a public holiday. This means the Easter weekend in Scotland is three days rather than four, a difference that surprises many people moving from England.

Early May bank holiday — 4 May (Monday)

The first Monday of May, observed across all four UK nations. In 2026 that is 4 May. Together with the Spring bank holiday on 25 May, it gives Scotland two three-day weekends in the same month — shared with England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Spring bank holiday — 25 May (Monday)

The last Monday of May, observed across all four UK nations. In 2026 that is 25 May. Sometimes called the Whitsun holiday.

Summer bank holiday — 3 August (Monday)

This is one of the most practically important differences in the Scottish bank holiday calendar. Scotland's Summer bank holiday always falls on the first Monday of August — 3 August in 2026. England, Wales and Northern Ireland observe theirs on the last Monday of August — 31 August in 2026. The four-week gap affects tourism, school holiday timing, and staffing for businesses operating across both regions. If your English colleagues are booking their "August bank holiday" long weekend for late August, yours is four weeks earlier.

St Andrew's Day — 30 November (Monday)

Scotland's national day, honouring St Andrew the patron saint of Scotland. It became a statutory bank holiday under the St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007 and is observed in Scotland only. In 2026 it falls on a Monday, giving a three-day weekend from Saturday 28 November to Monday 30 November. Importantly, employers in Scotland are not legally required to give workers St Andrew's Day off as paid leave, but it must be included in the statutory annual leave entitlement calculation. Whether you receive it as a day off depends on your contract.

Christmas Day — 25 December (Friday)

Observed across all four UK nations. In 2026 it falls on a Friday, which with the Boxing Day substitute on Monday 28 December creates a four-day Christmas weekend.

Boxing Day (substitute) — 28 December (Monday)

A common misconception is that Scotland does not observe Boxing Day. It does. Boxing Day (26 December) falls on a Saturday in 2026, so the substitute bank holiday is Monday 28 December — the same date as in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The holiday Scotland does not observe is Easter Monday, not Boxing Day.

Local bank holidays in Scotland

Beyond the nine national public holidays, many Scottish towns and cities observe additional local bank holidays set by local authorities. These are separate from the national list and vary by council area. Historically, Scottish burghs had their own fair holidays — local market days that evolved into additional days off — and while the system has been simplified over time, some local variations remain.

Common examples include spring and autumn local holidays in cities such as Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Aberdeen, though exact dates differ by council and year. If you have just moved to Scotland and want to know whether your area observes a local bank holiday, check with your employer or your local council. Your employment contract may or may not include local holidays depending on your employer's policy.

Bank holidays and your rights at work in Scotland

The employment law framework governing bank holidays is the same in Scotland as in England and Wales. There is no automatic legal right to time off on a bank holiday — your entitlement depends on your employment contract. Employers must provide a minimum of 5.6 weeks of annual leave per year, and may include bank holidays within this figure or grant them as additional days. Both approaches are legal; your contract must specify which applies.

The St Andrew's Day position deserves particular attention. Under the St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007, employers are not legally required to give workers the day off as paid leave. The Act simply requires that it be counted within the statutory entitlement calculation. In practice, many Scottish employers do grant the day off, but if your contract does not mention it explicitly, you cannot assume you receive it automatically. For more on employment rights in the UK, see our Working in the UK section.

Scotland's bank holiday calendar is one of the more distinctive in the UK — not just because of the extra day or the national day observance, but because of the Summer bank holiday timing. Four weeks may not sound significant, but it means the entire rhythm of late summer is different north of the border: school holidays run to a different schedule, tourist peaks shift, and the long weekend that marks the end of summer for most English workers comes and goes in Scotland before August is half over.

For expats settling in Scotland, the practical priority is the same as anywhere: read your contract carefully before your first bank holiday, clarify the St Andrew's Day position with your employer if it is not specified, and be aware that if you work remotely for a company based elsewhere in the UK, your holiday calendar may not align with your Scottish neighbours'. The nine dates on this page are what the Scottish government recognises. How your employer handles them is a matter of contract.

If you are still planning your move to Scotland or the wider UK, the UK Relocation Guide covers the practical groundwork, and Visas & Immigration has every visa route explained. For things to do over a Scottish bank holiday weekend, the Lifestyle and Living sections of the Expat Directory are a good starting point.

Frequently asked questions