If you’re someone who loves nothing more than maxing out your annual leave by booking days off around Bank Holidays, then listen up: there’s a major change set to come into force next year.
Official public holidays in the UK, Ireland, and other Commonwealth nations are, unfortunately, few and far between, with only five left on the cards for 2026.
Workers can look forward to an extra couple of days off in May (4 and 25); one on August 31; on 25 December, AKA Christmas Day, and a Boxing Day ‘substitute day’ on 28 December.
According to the UK government, if a bank holiday is on a weekend, then a ‘substitute’ weekday usually becomes a bank holiday.
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This is usually the following Monday. It may be a Tuesday if two holiday days land on a Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
If you’ve already strategically booked your annual leave around the 2026 Bank Holiday dates, then you’ll probably already be thinking about multiplying your OOO days in 2027.
And there’s good news, because if you play your cards right, you could bag a phenomenal 10-day Christmas break without having to use up all of your precious AL.
Bank holiday 2027 changes
According to the UK government’s website, the first Bank Holiday of 2027 will take place on New Year’s Day (1 January).
Good Friday and Easter Monday will fall on the 26 and 29 March, respectively, while 3 and 31 May have also been earmarked as official days off.
30 August is when the Summer bank holiday will fall.
Like every year, Christmas Day and Boxing Day are classed as bank holidays. However, they fall on a Saturday and a Sunday in 2027.
This means not only will you be off for 25 and 26 December, but the 27 and 28 December are classed as substitute weekdays.
What's more, New Year’s Day 2028 falls on a Saturday, meaning you get the 1 and 2 off if you don’t work weekends, and Monday 3 January too as it is classed as a substitute day.
For those willing to sacrifice three days holiday, make sure you book the 29, 30, and 31 December off to get you ten days off work in total.
You could even book off the 4 January to take your relaxing one step further.
It’s noted that your employer does not have to give you paid leave on bank pr public holidays, and that they may affect how and when your benefits are paid.
Ella Scott