England, Wales and Northern Ireland get three bank holidays over Christmas this year: Friday 25 December, Monday 28 December (Boxing Day, moved from the Saturday) and Friday 1 January. Scotland gets four - the same three plus Monday 4 January. Which leaves just three normal working days between Christmas and New Year: 29, 30 and 31 December.
What are the Christmas bank holidays in 2026?
Here they all are in one place, with the two "eves" thrown in because that's what people always ask about next:
| Day | Date | England and Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas Eve | Thu 24 Dec 2026 | Working day | Working day | Working day |
| Christmas Day | Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Bank holiday | Bank holiday | Bank holiday |
| Boxing Day (substitute) | Mon 28 Dec 2026 | Bank holiday | Bank holiday | Bank holiday |
| New Year's Eve | Thu 31 Dec 2026 | Working day | Working day | Working day |
| New Year's Day | Fri 1 Jan 2027 | Bank holiday | Bank holiday | Bank holiday |
| 2 January (substitute) | Mon 4 Jan 2027 | Working day | Bank holiday | Working day |
If you want the rest of the year too, we've got every UK bank holiday in UK bank holidays 2026 and 2027.
Why is the Boxing Day bank holiday on Monday 28 December?
Because Boxing Day's on a Saturday this year, and when a bank holiday lands on a weekend the day off moves to the next weekday. That Monday is the bank holiday for everything that matters - pay, contracts, time off. It isn't an extra day, it just moves.
It catches people out every few years. In our experience you'll get at least one person who thinks Boxing Day "doesn't count" this year and at least one who thinks they're getting the 26th and the 28th. Neither's right, so it's worth a line in your Christmas email.
Is Christmas Eve a bank holiday?
No. Christmas Eve (Thursday 24 December this year) is a normal working day everywhere in the UK. Lots of businesses close early or give it as a day off as a thank you, but nobody has a right to it unless their contract says so.
If you are closing early, pick a time and tell people. "We'll probably knock off early" is how you end up with half the team gone by 12 and the other half sat there until 5 wondering if they're allowed to leave. Ask us how we know.
Book Time Off does morning and afternoon half days, so if someone's taking Christmas Eve afternoon it comes off as half a day, not a whole one. And because the UK bank holidays come straight from the GOV.UK feed, substitute days like Monday 28 December are already on the calendar and never come off anyone's allowance. We got fed up of fixing that by hand.
→ Start free trialIs New Year's Eve a bank holiday?
No, New Year's Eve (Thursday 31 December) is a normal working day all over the UK too. It's one of the most asked-for days off of the whole year though, so if you're staying open, sort out your cover for it early.
Christmas bank holidays in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland gets an extra one on 2 January. Northern Ireland has exactly the same Christmas bank holidays as England and Wales.
In Scotland, 2 January 2027 is a Saturday, so the bank holiday moves to Monday 4 January - Scottish staff (and the banks up there) are off that day. Northern Ireland gets Christmas Day, the Boxing Day substitute on the 28th and New Year's Day, same as everyone else.
If you've got people in more than one part of the UK, make sure the right bank holidays are against the right people. A Scottish team back on Tuesday 5 January while the English team's back on the Monday is completely normal, it just needs saying.
Are staff entitled to Christmas bank holidays off?
Not automatically, which surprises a lot of people. There's no legal right to a day off (or extra pay) on Christmas Day or any other bank holiday. What staff do have is 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year, and most contracts either count the bank holidays as part of that or give them on top.
So "28 days including bank holidays" means the eight bank holidays are part of the 28 - if someone works Christmas Day, they get the day back to use another time. "20 days plus bank holidays" is the same thing, just written differently. "25 days plus bank holidays" is the more generous one, with the bank holidays on top.
And if anyone asks about double time for working Christmas Day - there's no legal right to that either. It's down to the contract, or what you've always done.
Do part-time workers get Christmas bank holidays?
Yes, but pro rata - not just whichever bank holidays happen to land on their working days. This year that matters more than usual. Christmas Day and New Year's Day are both Fridays and the Boxing Day substitute is a Monday, so someone who works Tuesday to Thursday would get none of them if you only gave the days they'd normally work. That's not fair on them.
The fair way is to give part-timers a pro-rata share of the bank holidays as part of their allowance, to use whenever. There's a worked example in calculating part-time bank holiday entitlement if you want to check your sums.
The 2026 leave hack: 16 days off for 7 days' leave
Book Monday 21 to Thursday 24 December and Tuesday 29 to Thursday 31 December - seven days of holiday - and you're off from Saturday 19 December right through to Sunday 3 January. Sixteen days in a row. Your staff will have spotted this already, trust us, which is exactly why you want your Christmas rules out early.
| Book | Holiday used | Days off in a row |
|---|---|---|
| 29 to 31 December | 3 | 10 (Fri 25 Dec to Sun 3 Jan) |
| 21 to 24 December | 4 | 10 (Sat 19 Dec to Mon 28 Dec) |
| 21 to 24 and 29 to 31 December | 7 | 16 (Sat 19 Dec to Sun 3 Jan) |
In Scotland, tack Monday 4 January on the end of any of those. Great for staff. Bit of a headache for you if three people in the same team spot it on the same afternoon.
We've had three people ask for the same days between Christmas and New Year within about a week of each other. It's always the same days too, because everyone's doing the same maths. If you're staying open, work out how many you can have off and how you'll choose before the requests come in - not after, like we did.
In Book Time Off you set how many people can be off at once in each department. Once a team's hit the limit for the 29th, nobody else in it can book that day - you can still override it as an admin if there's a good reason. It won't decide who's most deserving for you, but it does stop you accidentally saying yes to everyone.
→ Start free trialFor the rest of it - deadlines, who gets first pick and the email we send round - have a look at how to manage Christmas holiday requests.
Christmas bank holidays 2027
Next year's a funny one. Christmas Day and Boxing Day both fall at the weekend, so the bank holidays move to Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December. New Year's Day 2028 is a Saturday too, so that moves to Monday 3 January. In Scotland, 2 January 2028 is a Sunday, so it moves to Tuesday 4 January.
Which means booking just Wednesday 29 to Friday 31 December 2027 - three days - gets you ten days off, from Saturday 25 December to Monday 3 January. If you're planning that far ahead (fair play), the full dates are in UK bank holidays 2027 and 2028.
The legal bit, if you need it
You don't need this to get Christmas sorted, but here's what the rules actually say if anyone asks.
- Bank holiday dates are published by the government each year, including substitute days when a bank holiday falls at the weekend (GOV.UK).
- There's no legal right to bank holidays off or to extra pay for working them - it depends on the contract (ACAS).
- Statutory holiday is 5.6 weeks a year, and employers can include bank holidays in it (GOV.UK).
- Part-time workers shouldn't be treated less favourably than comparable full-timers, which is why bank holidays are usually given pro rata (ACAS).
Sources
| GOV.UK | UK bank holidays · Christmas 2026 and 2027 dates and substitute days for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Checked October 2026. |
| ACAS | Bank holidays and Christmas · No automatic right to bank holidays off; part-time workers. Checked October 2026. |
| GOV.UK | Holiday entitlement · 5.6 weeks' statutory holiday. Checked October 2026. |
FAQs
This is practical, general information for UK employers. If you've got a dispute brewing or something unusual in a contract, talk to ACAS (it's free) or an employment solicitor.