Remaining Leave Calculator
Track your remaining annual leave balance throughout the UK leave year. Enter your total entitlement, days already taken, and days booked ahead to see how many days you have left and how to spread them evenly across the remaining months of your leave year.
How Remaining Leave Calculator Works
Track your remaining annual leave balance for the UK leave year. See days taken, booked, remaining, and a suggested monthly usage rate. Enter your values into the form above and the calculator processes them instantly in your browser — no data is sent to any server.
Managing Your UK Annual Leave Entitlement
Annual leave is one of the most valuable benefits of employment in the United Kingdom, yet many workers fail to use their full entitlement each year. Under UK employment law, all full-time workers are entitled to a minimum of 28 days of paid annual leave per year, which can include the eight public bank holidays. This statutory minimum is set by the Working Time Regulations 1998 and applies to all workers, including agency workers and those on zero-hours contracts, although part-time workers receive a pro-rata entitlement based on the number of days they work per week. Many employers offer more than the statutory minimum as part of their benefits package, with some providing 30, 33, or even 35 days of annual leave including bank holidays. Regardless of your specific entitlement, tracking your remaining leave throughout the year is essential to avoid losing unused days at the end of your leave year.
The leave year in the UK varies depending on your employer and sector. Many organisations run their leave year from January to December, aligning with the calendar year. Others, particularly those in the public sector and education, start their leave year in April to align with the financial year or in September to align with the academic year. Your employment contract or staff handbook should specify when your leave year begins and ends. Understanding your leave year dates is crucial because most employers operate a use-it-or-lose-it policy, meaning any unused annual leave is forfeited at the end of the leave year. Some employers allow a limited number of days to be carried over into the next year, typically between two and five days, but this is not a statutory requirement and depends entirely on your employer's policy.
Remaining Leave Formulas
Remaining Leave: Annual Entitlement − Days Taken − Days Booked
Months Left: Months remaining until leave year ends
Suggested Per Month: Remaining Leave ÷ Months Left
Where:
- Annual Entitlement = Your total annual leave days for the year (statutory minimum is 28 including bank holidays)
- Days Taken = Leave days already used this year
- Days Booked = Leave days already approved but not yet taken
- Months Left = Calculated from today's date to the end of your leave year
Why Tracking Leave Matters
Failing to track your annual leave can lead to several problems. The most common issue is reaching the end of your leave year with a large number of unused days and having to either take them all at once or lose them entirely. This can cause staffing difficulties for your employer and stress for you as you try to squeeze in holidays at the last minute. Conversely, some workers book too much leave early in the year and find themselves with no days left for the latter months, leading to burnout and frustration. By using a remaining leave calculator and reviewing your balance regularly, you can plan a sensible spread of holidays throughout the year, ensuring you get adequate rest and recovery in every season while avoiding the year-end scramble.
Part-Time Workers and Pro-Rata Leave
Part-time workers in the UK are entitled to the same amount of annual leave as full-time workers, calculated on a pro-rata basis. For example, if a full-time worker receives 28 days of annual leave and works five days per week, a part-time worker who works three days per week would be entitled to 16.8 days (28 divided by 5, multiplied by 3). When using this calculator, part-time workers should enter their pro-rata entitlement rather than the full-time equivalent. Bank holidays can complicate the calculation for part-time workers, as they may or may not fall on regular working days. Some employers give part-time workers a bank holiday entitlement proportional to their working hours regardless of which days they work, while others only grant bank holidays that fall on the employee's normal working days.
Example Calculation
Employee with 28 Days Entitlement, January Leave Year
An employee has 28 days of annual leave. Their leave year runs from January to December. As of June, they have taken 10 days and have 3 days booked for July.
- Remaining = 28 − 10 − 3 = 15 days
- Months left = 6 (July to December)
- Suggested per month = 15 ÷ 6 = 2.5 days per month
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the statutory minimum annual leave in the UK?
The statutory minimum annual leave entitlement in the UK is 5.6 weeks for a full-time worker, which equates to 28 days for someone working five days a week. This can include the eight public bank holidays, so many employers offer 20 days of annual leave plus eight bank holidays. Part-time workers receive a pro-rata entitlement based on the number of days they work. For example, someone working three days per week is entitled to 16.8 days of paid leave (3 multiplied by 5.6). Employers can choose to offer more than the statutory minimum as part of their benefits package, and many do.
When does the UK leave year start and end?
There is no single leave year that applies to all UK workers. Your leave year depends on your employer and should be specified in your employment contract. Common leave year start dates include 1 January (aligned with the calendar year), 1 April (aligned with the UK financial year, common in public sector organisations), and 1 September (aligned with the academic year, common in education). If your contract does not specify a leave year, it defaults to the anniversary of your start date. Understanding your leave year dates is important because unused leave is typically forfeited at the end of the leave year.
Can I carry over unused annual leave to the next year?
Carry-over of unused annual leave depends on your employer policy. There is no statutory right to carry over the basic 20 days of annual leave (the 5.6-week entitlement minus the 1.6-week additional entitlement). However, the additional 1.6 weeks (8 days for a full-time worker) can be carried over if agreed with your employer through a written agreement or workplace policy. In practice, many employers allow employees to carry over a limited number of days, typically between two and five, to provide flexibility. Special rules apply if you were unable to take leave due to sickness, maternity or parental leave, in which case statutory carry-over rights may apply.
How do bank holidays affect my annual leave balance?
In the UK, there is no statutory right to take bank holidays off or to receive extra pay for working on them. Your 28-day statutory minimum annual leave entitlement can include the eight bank holidays. Many employers choose to give workers bank holidays off in addition to their annual leave, effectively providing 20 days of discretionary leave plus 8 bank holidays. Others include bank holidays within the 28-day total. Check your employment contract to understand how bank holidays are treated in your entitlement. When using this calculator, enter your total entitlement including any bank holidays that form part of your leave allowance.
What happens to unused leave if I leave my job?
When you leave your job, you are entitled to be paid for any annual leave you have accrued but not taken during your final leave year. This is calculated on a pro-rata basis from the start of your leave year up to your leaving date. For example, if your leave year runs from January and you leave at the end of June, you have accrued half your annual entitlement. If you have taken fewer days than your accrued amount, your employer must pay you for the difference. Conversely, if you have taken more leave than you have accrued by your leaving date, your employer may deduct the overpayment from your final pay, though this depends on your employment contract terms.