Scottish bank and public holidays

2022 bank and public holidays (upcoming)

Date	Day	Holiday
30 November	Wednesday	St Andrew's Day
26 December	Monday	Boxing Day
27 December	Tuesday	Christmas Day (substitute day)

Scottish bank holidays are set by Scottish Ministers and are the same across the whole of Scotland. Public or local holidays, on the other hand, are determined by local authorities and can differ between areas. The list of bank holidays below is not a comprehensive list of local holidays – check local authority websites for a list of local holidays.

Not everyone is entitled to paid leave on bank or public holidays. If in doubt, check the position with your employer.

If a bank holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, a substitute weekday becomes a bank holiday (usually the following Monday).

Additional information about bank holidays

Banks in Scotland do not always close on Scottish bank holidays. For business reasons, Scottish banks tend to close on the same day as those in England and Wales.

There is no law requiring banks or any other businesses to close on bank holidays.

His Majesty the King can appoint special days as bank holidays in any year.

Check your local authority website for information on public or local holidays as well as school holidays.

St Andrew's Day bank holiday

St Andrew's Day was declared a bank holiday by the Scottish Parliament in 2006, although banks are not required to close if they do not wish to. If 30 November occurs on a weekend, the bank holiday is moved to the following Monday.

Employers are not required by law to give employees a holiday on the St Andrew's Day bank holiday.

For further information please see the St. Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007.

Past bank and public holidays

Bank/public holiday	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022
New Year's Day (or in lieu of 1 Jan)	01 Jan	01 Jan	03 Jan*	01 Jan	1 Jan	1 Jan	1 Jan	3 Jan*
2 January (or in lieu of 2 Jan)	02 Jan	04 Jan*	02 Jan	02 Jan	2 Jan	2 Jan	4 Jan*	4 Jan*
Good Friday	03 Apr	25 March	14 Apr	30 March	19 April	10 April	2 April	15 Apr
Early May Bank Holiday	04 May	02 May	01 May	7 May	6 May	8 May	3 May	2 May
Spring Bank Holiday	25 May	30 May	29 May	28 May	27 May	25 May	31 May	2 June
Platinum Jubilee Bank Holiday	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	3 June
Summer Bank Holiday	03 Aug	01 Aug	07 Aug	06 Aug	5 Aug	3 Aug	2 Aug	1 Aug
State Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	19 Sep
St Andrew's Day	30 Nov	30 Nov	30 Nov	30 Nov	2 Dec	30 Nov	30 Nov
Christmas Day (or in lieu of 25 Dec)	25 Dec	26 Dec*	25 Dec	25 Dec	25 Dec	25 Dec	27 Dec
Boxing Day (or in lieu of 26 Dec)	28 Dec*	27 Dec*	26 Dec	26 Dec	26 Dec	28 Dec*	28 Dec

* = substitute day