Scottish Bank Holiday World Cup 2026 

The Scottish Government has officially confirmed that Monday 15 June 2026 will be a one-off bank holiday in Scotland to mark the nation’s participation in the Men’s Football World Cup 2026.  

First Minister John Swinney proposed that the Monday following Scotland’s opening game, should be a bank holiday to give people the opportunity ‘to come together and celebrate – no matter the outcome of the match’. However, as with other bank holidays, businesses aren’t required to close on this date. 

Whether employees will be entitled to take the day off will depend on the terms of their contract of employment. As Citation partner members, we’ve provided some insight into frequently asked questions to help you manage the additional holiday.

Do employees automatically have the right to the extra bank holiday? 

There’s no automatic right to paid time off on a bank holiday, including this additional bank holiday. An employee’s entitlement will depend entirely on what their contract of employment says about holidays and bank holidays. 

There will usually be no right to take this extra bank holiday where the contract states a fixed amount of annual leave and clearly sets out how you treat bank holidays. For example, where the contract says: 

• The employee is entitled to 5.6 weeks’ holiday per year (the statutory minimum) with no separate right to take bank holidays; or 

• The employee is entitled to specified number of bank holidays per year; or 

• The employee is entitled only to specific, named bank holidays which are listed in the contract. 

In these situations, any time off on the additional bank holiday would be at your discretion. 

What contract wording would automatically give employees the right to the additional bank holiday? 

If the employee’s contract says that they are entitled to a certain number of holidays ‘plus bank holidays’ without limiting or specifying those days, then the employee would have a contractual right to this additional bank holiday.  This wording isn’t very common as usually the contract would stipulate the number of bank holidays or specify those bank holidays e.g., Christmas Day, Boxing Day etc. 

What if the employment contract states that an employee is entitled to 5.6 weeks ‘inclusive of any bank holidays’? 

If their contract says that the employee is entitled to 5.6 weeks ‘inclusive of any bank holidays’, and those bank holidays are not specified, then the employee will be entitled to take the additional bank holiday. However, their overall holiday entitlement will not increase as the additional bank holiday will be deducted from their annual holiday entitlement.  

If employees don’t have the right to this extra bank holiday, what options do employers have? 

Option 1 – close the business and give employees an extra day of holiday 

Inform employees that the business will be closed that day and that they will receive an additional, one-off paid holiday. The employer should make it clear that this is a discretionary gesture to celebrate this occasion, and it doesn’t create any ongoing rights to future extra bank holidays. 

Option 2 – close the business and require employees to use their existing holiday entitlement  

Inform employees that the business will be closed on that day and that they will be required to use one day from their existing holiday entitlement. When an employer requires employees to take holiday on a particular date, they are legally required to give at least twice as many calendar days’ notice as the number of days’ holiday to be taken. For one day’s holiday, that means a minimum of 2 calendar days’ notice. In practice, it’s better to give as much notice as possible to avoid disruption and disputes. 

Option 3 – business remains open but normal holiday capacity rules are relaxed 

Inform employees that the business will remain open but that anyone who wishes to take the day off can request it through the normal holiday process and the business will not enforce the usual capacity rules (meaning anyone who chooses can take this day off as annual leave).  

Option 4 – business remains open, but normal holiday rules apply 

Inform employees that the business will remain open and, due to specified business reasons, (for example, customer demand or operational requirements), your usual holiday process and rules on how many people can be off at the same time will apply to this bank holiday in the normal way. 

In summary, this additional bank holiday doesn’t automatically give employees a right to paid time off. Whether they’re entitled to the day off, and whether it’s extra or comes out of their existing entitlement, depends on the wording of their contract. Employers should review their contracts and holiday policies now, decide how they want to handle the day, and communicate their approach clearly and in good time to avoid confusion or resentment. 

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