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Free Pro-Rata Holiday Calculator

Holiday Calculator UK — Full-Time & Pro Rata Entitlement

A free holiday entitlement calculator for full-time staff, part-time workers and mid-year starters. Work out annual leave in days or hours, pro rata where it applies, with UK statutory minimums built in — no spreadsheets needed.

Used by hundreds of UK businesses
  • Free to use
  • No sign-up required
  • UK statutory rates built in
Automate with TimeTallyAdd a start date, a leaving date or a part-time week and TimeTally works out each person's allowance and keeps their balance. £3 per employee a month.Every allowance worked out · £3 per employee

  1. Full-time holiday

    For 5 days a week, bank holidays included. The legal minimum is 28.

  2. The days they work

    The days they work

    Irregular hours or part of the year only? Since April 2024 they build up 12.07% of the hours worked: use the zero-hours holiday calculator.

  3. The part of the leave year

    Leave year starts

    No dates: the whole leave year counts.

Pro rata
17days
Full-time
28days
Exact
16.8days

(28 ÷ 5) × 3 = 16.8 days, rounded up to 17

Want to track pro-rata holiday automatically for your whole team? See TimeTally — from £3/employee/month

Your answer, a day at a time

Where the 17 days come from

Full time is 28 days, one tile for each. Working 3 of 5 days keeps 3/5 of every tile: 16.8 days. They work the whole leave year, so nothing else comes off. Rounded up to the half day, never down: 17 days.

  1. Full time5 days a week, the whole year28 days
  2. Their week× 3 of 5 days16.8 days
  3. Their part of the year× the whole year16.8 days
  4. Rounded upto the half day, never down17 days

How much holiday is a part-time worker entitled to?

Almost every UK worker is entitled to at least 5.6 weeks' paid holiday a year, capped at 28 days. A part-time worker on regular hours gets the same 5.6 weeks pro rata: multiply the days they work each week by 5.6. Someone who works 3 days a week gets at least 16.8 days a year, and someone who starts part way through the leave year gets the share of that left in the year.

Worked example: 3 days a week, starting 1 July 2026, leave year 1 January to 31 December

  1. Full-year entitlement: 3 days × 5.6 weeks = 16.8 days.
  2. Days left in the leave year from 1 July: 184 of 365.
  3. 16.8 × 184 ÷ 365 = 8.47 days.
  4. Round up to the nearest half day (never down): 8.5 days.

Holiday for the rest of 2026: 8.5 days, then 16.8 days (17 if rounded up) in each full year after.

From the calculator to every employee

Stop calculating manually — track pro-rata leave automatically

This calculator gives you the numbers. TimeTally tracks holiday entitlement, leave requests, and approvals automatically — so you never need to calculate it manually again. From £3/employee/month.

The same sum, in TimeTally

Pro-rata for each person, in one place

Turn on Part-time and TimeTally reads their working week: 3 of 5 days takes a 28-day year to 16.8, rounded up to 17 days. Add a start date and their first year is pro-rated from it; add a leaving date and it stops on their last day, with what's left to pay in their final pay. Term-time staff? Part-year takes the weeks they work out of 46.4, the same 12.07%.

  • Part-time from their working week
  • Start and leaving dates
  • Part-year weeks
  • In days or hours
See leave tracking
  • TimeTally team holiday calendar showing all employee leave in one view

    See all team holiday at a glance

    Every approved holiday, bank holiday, and leave request sits on one calendar. Spot clashes before they become a problem — no more cross-referencing spreadsheets.

    • Full team calendar
    • Colour-coded
    • Who's off, day by day
    • Bank holidays
  • TimeTally app on iPhone showing employee booking annual leaveLive BalanceUpdates instantlyNotify ManagerInstantly

    Employees book leave from their phone

    Staff submit leave requests via the iPhone or Android app. Entitlement balances update automatically. No emails, no forms, no back-and-forth.

    • Leave request submitted in seconds
    • Entitlement balance updated automatically
    • Employee sees remaining days in real time
    • Manager notified instantly
  • TimeTally payroll export showing leave data sent to Xero and QuickBooksXero & QuickBooksDirect integrationCSV ExportAny payroll software

    Holiday data flows straight to payroll

    Approved leave is included in your payroll export automatically. Direct integration with Xero and QuickBooks — no manual adjustments, no missed deductions.

    • Direct Xero & QuickBooks integration
    • CSV export for any payroll software
    • Approved leave included automatically
    • Clean audit trail for every deduction
  • TimeTally leave request approval dashboard

    Approve or decline requests in one tap

    All leave requests land in your dashboard. Approve with a single tap, or reject with a reason. Every decision is timestamped — no more "I never got that request" disputes.

    • All requests in one place
    • One-tap approve
    • Audit trail
    • Auto-notify employee
Automate this with TimeTally

TimeTally does this for you

Select any feature for the detail.

  • Employees see their current balance and their projected future balance — accounting for leave already booked but not yet taken. Optionally let staff see who else in their department has booked time off, so they can plan around colleagues. Managers can manually adjust any employee's balance at any time — ideal when setting up mid-year from a previous system.

  • Pick the accrual method that fits each employee: upfront (full entitlement from day one), monthly accrual (earned gradually each month), daily accrual (builds day by day), or hours worked (earned per hour worked at a rate you set, 12.07% by default). All calculations are handled automatically — no spreadsheets needed.

  • TimeTally comes with annual leave, sick leave, maternity, paternity and bank holidays set up. Need something else, like compassionate leave? Create unlimited custom leave types with any name. For each type you control: whether it's paid or unpaid, whether it deducts from the annual leave balance or has its own separate pot, and who it's turned off for.

  • Decide exactly what happens at year end: toggle carryover on or off, set a maximum number of days that can carry, and optionally add an expiry date so carried-over days must be used within e.g. 3 months. You can also allow employees to book leave before they've earned it (negative balance), with an optional cap to limit exposure.

  • Set each employee's contracted hours per day of the week (or use a company default). TimeTally uses this to deduct the right amount of leave — a half-day Tuesday only costs half a Tuesday's hours — and to pay the correct amount for each day taken. Pro-rata entitlements for new starters and leavers are calculated automatically from their start date.

  • Employees can request leave in hours, half days, or full days from the app or website — no training required. Managers can book leave on behalf of any employee. Public holidays are added automatically for the country you choose. Set a custom leave year start date (e.g. 7th April) and balances reset automatically. Easy to set up even when migrating from another system mid-year.

  • Managers can approve any leave request in one tap. Rejections include an optional reason so employees know why, and they can send a new request. Employees can also ask to change or cancel approved leave, and you approve or turn it down. Any booked leave can be deleted if plans change, and the days go back on the balance — all with a full audit trail.

  • Leave sits in the main team calendar alongside timesheets and rota shifts — one view of the whole business. If you use time tracking, overtime converts to TOIL automatically at a rate you define. Leave analytics give managers a clear picture of absence patterns, entitlement usage, and remaining balances across the whole team.

Meet TimeTally

Stop doing this manually
for every employee

TimeTally automatically calculates pro-rata holiday entitlement for part-time staff and mid-year starters — no spreadsheets required. Explore all features or see how it works.

  • Automatic calculations

    Pro-rata entitlement calculated automatically based on each employee's working pattern and start date, and to a leaving date when someone leaves.

  • One-tap approvals

    Managers approve or reject holiday requests from any device, with a team calendar showing who's off and when.

  • Statutory calculations included

    UK statutory entitlement, bank holiday handling, and pro-rata adjustments for part-timers and mid-year starters — all handled automatically.

See what we offer

£3/employee/month

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See what we offer

Your staff get the free TimeTally app for iPhone and Android.

Pro-rata holiday: the rules behind the numbers

Pro-rata calculations apply to part-time workers, mid-year starters, and leavers. Here's how the law requires you to handle each scenario.

The Pro-Rata Formula for Part-Time Workers

Part-time employees are entitled to the same proportion of holiday as a full-time equivalent. The formula is: (Days worked per week ÷ Full-time days per week) × Full-time entitlement. A worker doing 3 days a week at a company where full-time is 5 days receives 3 ÷ 5 × 28 = 16.8 days. The result can be rounded up, never down — rounding down breaches the Working Time Regulations 1998. The 28-day statutory minimum can include bank holidays, so if bank holidays are given as separate days off, the calculation should adjust accordingly.

Pro-Rata in the First Year of Employment

Employees who start mid-way through a leave year are entitled to a pro-rated share of the annual entitlement for the remainder of that leave year. The calculation is: (Remaining days in leave year ÷ Total days in leave year) × Full annual entitlement. Employers can lawfully restrict when leave is taken in the first year but cannot reduce the accrual rate. An employee who starts on 1 October in a January–December leave year is entitled to approximately 7 days (3 months out of 12 × 28 days) for that partial year.

Hours-Based vs. Days-Based Calculations

Where employees work irregular hours or variable shift patterns, expressing holiday entitlement in hours rather than days is more accurate and legally sound. The hours-based approach: annual hours entitlement = days entitlement × average working day length. A worker entitled to 28 days who works a 7.5-hour day is entitled to 28 × 7.5 = 210 hours. This approach removes ambiguity for workers whose 'days' vary in length, and is the recommended method where any member of the team works shifts of different durations.

Bank Holidays and Part-Time Workers

Part-time workers must not be treated less favourably than full-time comparators in relation to bank holidays. If a bank holiday falls on a day the part-time worker does not normally work, they are still entitled to a proportionate allowance of bank holiday time — either as additional days off or incorporated within their overall entitlement. A part-time worker who never works Mondays should not lose all 8 UK bank holidays simply because they fall on Mondays. Failing to make an adjustment can constitute indirect discrimination.

Rounding Rules: Always Up, Never Down

When a pro-rata calculation produces a fraction of a day or hour, the fraction can be given as part of a day, or rounded up to the nearest half-day or full day, depending on your policy. Rounding down is not permitted under the Working Time Regulations — it creates an under-entitlement, which is a breach of statutory rights. For example, 16.8 days can stay 16.8 days or be rounded up to 17 days (17 is also the next half-day). This applies to statutory entitlement only — employers can round down contractual entitlement above the statutory floor, but rarely do.

Pro-Rata on Termination: Payment in Lieu

On termination, employees are entitled to payment in lieu of any accrued but untaken holiday entitlement. The payment must be based on actual pay received, not contracted pay — relevant particularly where overtime, commission, or irregular payments have been received. The 2014 Bear Scotland ruling and subsequent case law confirmed that 'normal remuneration' for holiday pay purposes includes regular overtime, standard commission, and standby allowances. Underpaying holiday on termination by using basic salary only is a common and costly error.

Contractual Leave Above the Statutory Minimum

Employers who offer more than the statutory 28 days (e.g. 30 or 33 days inclusive of bank holidays) must pro-rate the contractual entitlement in the same way as the statutory minimum. A part-time worker on 3 days per week at a company offering 33 days' total entitlement should receive 3 ÷ 5 × 33 = 19.8 days (rounded up to 20). Applying pro-rata only to the statutory minimum while giving all full-time workers the additional days in full would treat the part-time worker less favourably and breach the Part-Time Workers Regulations 2000.

Leave Year vs. Anniversary Year for Pro-Rata

Employers operating a fixed leave year (e.g. April to March) must pro-rate entitlement for any employee who joins, leaves, or changes hours during the year. Those on anniversary-year schemes (where each employee's entitlement resets on their start date anniversary) receive a full year's entitlement from their start date, because their first leave year begins that day — only the final, partial year of a leaver is pro-rated. Both systems are lawful; the fixed leave year is simpler to administer for payroll and planning.

“TimeTally has been excellent for our business. The app is simple to use, reliable, and makes managing holidays, absences, and staff records straightforward. The system has saved us a significant amount of administration time and gives both managers and employees clear visibility of leave balances and requests. Highly recommended for any business looking for an easy-to-use workforce management solution.”

CLI ManchesterJordan Ingoe, CLI Manchester

Pro Rata Holiday FAQ

Everything you need to know about pro-rata holiday calculations for part-time workers and mid-year starters.

How do you calculate pro rata holiday for part-time workers?

Divide the full-time entitlement by 5 (full-time days), then multiply by the number of days the part-time worker works per week. For example, if full-time entitlement is 28 days and the employee works 3 days per week: (28 ÷ 5) × 3 = 16.8 days. This can be rounded up to 17 days at the employer's discretion.

How do you calculate holiday for mid-year starters?

First calculate the full annual entitlement (pro rata if part-time), then multiply by the proportion of the leave year remaining. For example, if someone starts 6 months into a 12-month leave year with 28 days entitlement: 28 × (6 ÷ 12) = 14 days for that first year. Use our calculator above for any start date and leave year combination.

What is the UK statutory minimum holiday entitlement?

All workers in the UK are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave per year under the Working Time Regulations 1998. For a 5-day-per-week worker, this is 28 days. The statutory entitlement is capped at 28 days — workers doing 6 or 7 days per week still only get 28 statutory days, though employers may offer more contractually.

Do bank holidays count towards the 28-day statutory minimum?

Yes, employers can include the 8 UK bank holidays within the 28-day statutory minimum. This means a full-time worker would get 20 days of holiday plus 8 bank holidays, totalling 28. However, many employers offer bank holidays on top of the statutory minimum as a contractual benefit. Bank holidays should be pro-rated for part-time workers.

Can I round up pro rata holiday entitlement?

Yes, and it is generally recommended. Employers should always round up rather than down to avoid giving less than the statutory minimum. For example, if a calculation gives 16.8 days, you should round up to 17 days. Many employers round up to the nearest half day, which is what GOV.UK does in its own worked examples. Never round down: that would leave the employee with less than their statutory minimum.

How is pro rata calculated for someone leaving mid-year?

Calculate the entitlement they have accrued up to their last working day: (calendar days from the start of the leave year to their leave date ÷ total days in leave year) × full annual entitlement. If they have taken more than their accrued entitlement, the employer may be able to deduct the excess from final pay — but only if the contract expressly allows this.

How do zero-hours workers accrue holiday?

For leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, irregular-hours and part-year workers (including most zero-hours workers) accrue holiday at 12.07% of the hours they work in each pay period. For example, 30 hours worked in a week is 30 × 12.07% = 3.62 hours, which the regulations round to 4 hours of paid leave (part-hours under 30 minutes round down, 30 minutes or more round up). Before that change, the 2022 Supreme Court ruling in Harpur Trust v Brazel meant part-year workers had to get the full 5.6 weeks however few hours they worked, and the 12.07% shortcut could not be used.

Does pro rata apply to contractual holiday above the statutory minimum?

Yes. If an employer offers more than 28 days (for example, 30 days full-time), the pro-rata calculation should be applied to the full contractual entitlement, not just the 28-day statutory minimum. So a part-time worker on 3 days per week with a 30-day full-time entitlement would receive (30 ÷ 5) × 3 = 18 days.

What leave year should I use for pro rata calculations?

The leave year can start on any date — common choices are 1 January, 1 April, 6 April (UK tax year), or the employee's start date. Use the leave year defined in your employment contracts or leave policy. Our calculator allows you to set any leave year start date.

How does TimeTally handle pro rata calculations?

TimeTally automatically calculates pro-rata entitlement based on each employee's working pattern and start date. Set the employee's days per week and their start date, and TimeTally works out the correct entitlement for the leave year. It handles custom leave years, UK statutory rules, and part-time workers — no manual calculations required.

Still have a question? See all FAQs →

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Sources

Last checked against GOV.UK: 2 October 2026

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales. Contracts can give more than the statutory minimum, never less. This calculator is a guide, not legal advice.

All UK statutory rates for 2026/27 in one table

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