NHS Annual Leave Calculator 2026/27 — Entitlement in Days & Hours
Under Agenda for Change you get 27 days when you join, 29 days after 5 years and 33 days after 10 years — plus 8 bank holidays. Part-time? Your entitlement is the same, worked out in hours. Enter your service and hours below for your exact figures.
Last updated November 2026 · Figures checked in November 2026. Next scheduled check: the April 2027 uprating.
Calculate your annual leave
Starter tier (under 5 years' service)
| Annual leave | 202.5 hours |
| Bank holidays | 60 hours |
| Total entitlement | 262.5 hours |
If you are rostered to work a bank holiday, you receive the time back or an enhancement under your trust's arrangements — your hours entitlement above already includes those days.
The entitlement table — full-time staff
| Reckonable service | Annual leave | Bank holidays | Total days | Total hours (England) | Total hours (Scotland) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On appointment (0–4 years) | 27 days | 8 days | 35 days | 262.5 hours | 252 hours |
| After 5 years | 29 days | 8 days | 37 days | 277.5 hours | 266.4 hours |
| After 10 years | 33 days | 8 days | 41 days | 307.5 hours | 295.2 hours |
England full-time = 37.5 hours (7.5-hour day); Scotland = 36 hours (7.2-hour day). Source: NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook, Section 13 — the same tiers apply in both nations. Wales operates the same structure with one additional day at each tier.
Part-time leave, explained properly
The most common mistake — made by staff and calculators alike — is cutting the days. The handbook doesn't do that: your entitlement is converted to hours, so a bank holiday that falls on your non-working day is still in your pot. At 22.5 hours a week in England with under 5 years' service, your entitlement is 157.5 hours — the same 7 working weeks a full-timer gets. Use the calculator above with your own hours.
Reckonable service — the rule that saves your leave
Your tier is set by reckonable service: all your NHS service, including with previous NHS employers, even with breaks in between. Moving trusts does not reset you to 27 days. Increases take effect from the month after your 5- or 10-year anniversary. If your leave balance looks wrong after a move, this rule is usually why — take it to your HR department with your service history.
Worked example — part-time, 22.5 hours a week
On appointment, full-time leave is 27 days plus 8 bank holidays — 262.5 hours on a 37.5-hour week. Work 22.5 hours a week and your entitlement is the same fraction of it: 262.5 × 22.5 ÷ 37.5 = 157.5 hours a year, the equivalent of 21 seven-and-a-half-hour shifts. After 5 years of service the full-time figure rises to 277.5 hours (166.5 hours at 22.5 hours a week), and after 10 years to 307.5 hours (184.5 hours part-time). Part-time leave is always recorded in hours, so a bank holiday that falls on your working day comes out of the same pot — the calculator above works it out for your hours and service.
Assumptions, stated plainly: a full-time week is 37.5 hours in England and 36 hours in Scotland; entitlement follows Section 13 of the NHS Terms and Conditions, by length of NHS service.
Annual leave — frequently asked questions
How many days annual leave do NHS staff get?
Under Agenda for Change, full-time staff get 27 days on appointment, 29 days after 5 years' reckonable service and 33 days after 10 years — plus 8 bank holidays on top of each figure.
How is part-time NHS annual leave worked out?
Part-time staff get the same entitlement pro-rata, recorded in hours: your total days (leave plus bank holidays) multiplied by your day length and your proportion of full-time hours. At 22.5 hours a week with under 5 years' service, that is 157.5 hours a year.
Does previous NHS service count towards annual leave?
Yes. Entitlement is based on reckonable service, which includes previous NHS employment even with breaks between employers — you do not restart at 27 days when you move trusts.
When does my annual leave increase?
Your entitlement rises to 29 days after 5 years' reckonable service and 33 days after 10 years, taking effect from the month following your service anniversary.
Is NHS annual leave the same in Scotland?
The day tiers are the same — 27, 29 and 33 days plus public holidays. Because the Scottish full-time week is 36 hours rather than 37.5, the entitlement in hours is slightly lower: 252 hours in total at the starter tier.
How every figure on this site is calculated and checked: our methodology.