All UK Bank Holidays & Public Holidays 2026: Every Date for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
The complete official list of UK public holidays (bank holidays) for 2026 — verified against gov.uk. Every date for all four nations, with nation differences, substitute days and what they mean for expats at work.
The UK has no single national public holiday calendar. Bank holidays — the UK's official public holidays — are set separately for England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, with each nation observing some dates the others do not. In 2026 there are 8 public holidays in England and Wales, 9 in Scotland, and 10 in Northern Ireland.
If you have just moved to the UK: a "bank holiday" is the local term for what most countries call a national public holiday or national day off. The term comes from the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971, which set the legal framework still in use today. Your employment contract should state whether bank holidays are included within your statutory annual leave entitlement of 5.6 weeks, or are granted as additional days on top.
England & Wales
8 public holidays in 2026
| Date | Day | Public holiday |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Thursday | New Year's Day Past |
| 3 April 2026 | Friday | Good Friday Past |
| 6 April 2026 | Monday | Easter Monday Past |
| 4 May 2026 | Monday | Early May bank holiday |
| 25 May 2026 | Monday | Spring bank holiday |
| 31 August 2026 | Monday | Summer bank holiday |
| 25 December 2026 | Friday | Christmas Day |
| 28 December 2026 | Monday | Boxing Day Substitute |
England and Wales share an identical bank holiday calendar. Boxing Day (26 December) falls on a Saturday in 2026, so the observed public holiday moves to Monday 28 December. St George's Day (23 April) and St David's Day (1 March) are not public holidays in England and Wales respectively, despite being national days.
England and Wales have fewer statutory public holidays than any other nation in the UK, and fewer than most countries in the European Union. Germany has between 9 and 13 depending on the state; France has 11; Spain has 12 at the national level. For expats arriving from these countries, the difference is noticeable. Making the most of bank holiday long weekends — particularly the two consecutive May bank holidays — becomes a useful part of managing work-life balance in the UK.
Scotland
9 public holidays in 2026
| Date | Day | Public holiday |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Thursday | New Year's Day Past |
| 2 January 2026 | Friday | 2nd January Past Scotland only |
| 3 April 2026 | Friday | Good Friday Past |
| 4 May 2026 | Monday | Early May bank holiday |
| 25 May 2026 | Monday | Spring bank holiday |
| 3 August 2026 | Monday | Summer bank holiday |
| 30 November 2026 | Monday | St Andrew's Day Scotland only |
| 25 December 2026 | Friday | Christmas Day |
| 28 December 2026 | Monday | Boxing Day Substitute |
Scotland's bank holiday calendar differs from England and Wales in four important ways. First, Scotland observes 2nd January as a separate public holiday, giving a two-day New Year break rather than one. Second, Easter Monday is not a bank holiday in Scotland — Good Friday is observed but the Monday is a working day. Third, Scotland's Summer Bank Holiday falls on the first Monday of August (3 August 2026), four weeks earlier than England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Fourth, St Andrew's Day on 30 November is a public holiday in Scotland only, established by the St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007.
Note for expats employed in Scotland: employers in Scotland are not legally required to give workers the day off on St Andrew's Day, but it must be counted within the statutory annual leave entitlement calculation. Your contract should specify which bank holidays you receive. If your employer is based in England but you work remotely from Scotland, your contract's bank holiday list — not your location — determines which dates you get off.
Northern Ireland
10 public holidays in 2026
| Date | Day | Public holiday |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Thursday | New Year's Day Past |
| 17 March 2026 | Tuesday | St Patrick's Day NI only |
| 3 April 2026 | Friday | Good Friday Past |
| 6 April 2026 | Monday | Easter Monday Past |
| 4 May 2026 | Monday | Early May bank holiday |
| 25 May 2026 | Monday | Spring bank holiday |
| 13 July 2026 | Monday | Battle of the Boyne Substitute NI only |
| 31 August 2026 | Monday | Summer bank holiday |
| 25 December 2026 | Friday | Christmas Day |
| 28 December 2026 | Monday | Boxing Day Substitute |
Northern Ireland has the most public holidays of any UK nation at 10, observing all of England and Wales's 8 plus two additional days that reflect its distinct cultural and civic calendar. St Patrick's Day (17 March) marks Ireland's patron saint and is a public holiday in Northern Ireland only — it is a working day in Great Britain. The Battle of the Boyne (12 July) commemorates the 1690 battle and is also known as Orangemen's Day or the Twelfth. In 2026, 12 July falls on a Sunday, so the public holiday is observed on Monday 13 July.
What is different between the four nations
Six public holidays are observed across all four nations in 2026: New Year's Day, Good Friday, the Early May bank holiday, the Spring bank holiday, Christmas Day, and the Boxing Day substitute. Every other date on the calendar differs by at least one nation.
The three most practically significant differences for expats are these. Scotland's Summer Bank Holiday is four weeks earlier than everyone else's — if you have friends or family visiting from England for a "bank holiday weekend" in August, you may be working. Easter Monday gives England, Wales and Northern Ireland a four-day weekend; Scotland does not. And if you work for a company headquartered in a different nation from the one you live in, your contract's bank holiday list governs which dates you receive, not the nation where you sit.
Bank holidays and your rights at work
There is no automatic legal right to time off on a bank holiday in the UK. Your right to take bank holidays off — and whether you are paid for them — is determined by your employment contract, not by the fact that it is a public holiday. This surprises many expats who arrive from countries where public holiday entitlement is written into employment law or the constitution.
The UK's statutory minimum annual leave entitlement is 5.6 weeks per year for full-time workers. Employers may structure this in two ways: either include bank holidays within the 5.6 weeks (in which case you use annual leave days for each bank holiday) or grant bank holidays on top of the 5.6 weeks as additional paid days. Both approaches are legal. Your contract must state which applies. A contract that says "25 days annual leave plus bank holidays" means bank holidays are additional. A contract that says "33 days annual leave" almost certainly includes bank holidays — verify this with your employer or HR before assuming.
There is also no statutory right to enhanced pay for working on a bank holiday. Double time, time off in lieu, and similar arrangements are contractual benefits, not legal requirements. Check your contract or staff handbook for your employer's specific policy. For guidance on your broader employment rights as an expat in the UK, our Working in the UK section covers employment status, work contracts, and right-to-work checks in full.
The UK's bank holiday system is one of those things that looks straightforward from the outside — a handful of dates, mostly around Easter and Christmas — and turns out to have more complexity underneath once you start working here. The four-nation structure, the substitute day rules, the gap between having a day listed as a bank holiday and actually being entitled to it off: none of this is obviously explained when you first arrive.
What is worth holding onto is that the official dates are stable and published well in advance at gov.uk. The variables are on the employment side — how your contract handles those dates. Getting clarity on that in your first weeks at a new UK employer is genuinely useful, and a conversation worth having with HR before a bank holiday comes and goes without you knowing where you stood.
If you are still in the early stages of your relocation or planning your move, the UK Relocation Guide covers the practical groundwork, and our Visas & Immigration section has everything you need on UK visa routes. For those already settled in and looking for things to do over a bank holiday weekend, the Lifestyle and Living sections of our Expat Directory are a good starting point.
Frequently asked questions
The number varies by nation. England and Wales have 8 bank holidays in 2026, Scotland has 9, and Northern Ireland has 10. All four nations share New Year's Day, Good Friday, the Early May bank holiday, the Spring bank holiday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Scotland additionally observes 2nd January and St Andrew's Day; Northern Ireland additionally observes St Patrick's Day and the Battle of the Boyne substitute.
England and Wales have 8 bank holidays in 2026: 1 January (New Year's Day), 3 April (Good Friday), 6 April (Easter Monday), 4 May (Early May bank holiday), 25 May (Spring bank holiday), 31 August (Summer bank holiday), 25 December (Christmas Day), and 28 December (Boxing Day substitute, as 26 December falls on a Saturday).
Scotland has 9 bank holidays in 2026: 1 January (New Year's Day), 2 January (2nd January), 3 April (Good Friday), 4 May (Early May bank holiday), 25 May (Spring bank holiday), 3 August (Summer bank holiday — first Monday in August), 30 November (St Andrew's Day), 25 December (Christmas Day), and 28 December (Boxing Day substitute). Scotland does not observe Easter Monday.
Northern Ireland has 10 bank holidays in 2026: 1 January (New Year's Day), 17 March (St Patrick's Day), 3 April (Good Friday), 6 April (Easter Monday), 4 May (Early May bank holiday), 25 May (Spring bank holiday), 13 July (Battle of the Boyne substitute, as 12 July falls on a Sunday), 31 August (Summer bank holiday), 25 December (Christmas Day), and 28 December (Boxing Day substitute).
Boxing Day (26 December 2026) falls on a Saturday, so the bank holiday is observed on Monday 28 December 2026. This substitute day applies in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland. Christmas Day itself falls on Friday 25 December and does not require a substitute, so the Christmas and Boxing Day bank holidays in 2026 are Friday 25 December and Monday 28 December.
Scotland's Summer Bank Holiday falls on the first Monday of August, while England, Wales and Northern Ireland observe it on the last Monday of August. In 2026 this means Scotland's is 3 August and the rest of the UK's is 31 August — a four-week gap. This distinction has existed since the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 and its schedules. It has practical implications for tourism, school holiday timing, and staffing for companies operating across both regions.
No. St George's Day (23 April) is England's national day but is not a bank holiday. Similarly, St David's Day (1 March) is not a bank holiday in Wales. England and Wales have fewer national day observances as public holidays than Scotland or Northern Ireland. Scotland has St Andrew's Day and Northern Ireland has St Patrick's Day, both as statutory bank holidays.
There is no statutory right to enhanced pay for working on a bank holiday in the UK. Whether you receive extra pay — such as double time or time off in lieu — depends entirely on your employment contract. Your employer is only legally required to ensure your total pay for the year does not fall below the National Minimum Wage. Always check your contract or staff handbook for your employer's specific bank holiday working policy.
The Battle of the Boyne bank holiday commemorates the Battle of the Boyne fought on 12 July 1690, when William III defeated James II. It is observed in Northern Ireland only and is also known as Orangemen's Day or the Twelfth. In 2026, 12 July falls on a Sunday, so the public holiday is observed on Monday 13 July. It is not a bank holiday in England, Wales, or Scotland.
Yes, in everyday use the terms are interchangeable. Technically, bank holidays are days designated under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971, while Good Friday and Christmas Day are common law holidays that predate the Act. In practice all of these days appear on the official gov.uk bank holiday list and are treated identically by employers, banks and public services. If you are from outside the UK, "bank holiday" means "national public holiday."
Yes. Despite the common misconception, Scotland does observe Boxing Day as a bank holiday. In 2026, Boxing Day falls on Saturday 26 December, so the substitute bank holiday is Monday 28 December — the same date as England, Wales and Northern Ireland. What Scotland does not observe is Easter Monday. See our Christmas bank holidays guide for full Christmas and Boxing Day details across all nations.
England and Wales get six three-day weekends from bank holidays in 2026: New Year (1 January, already passed), Easter (3–6 April, a four-day weekend), Early May (2–4 May), Spring (23–25 May), Summer (29–31 August), and Christmas/Boxing Day (25–28 December, a four-day weekend). Scotland gets a different set, including a long weekend for St Andrew's Day (28–30 November).