Guide
Agency Worker Holiday Pay
The agency is your employer for holiday purposes — even though you work at a client site.
Who is responsible
For statutory holiday, your agency is the employer. It must give you 5.6 weeks of holiday a year, pro-rated for the hours you work, and it must pay you for that holiday. The client you work for has no direct obligation to provide it.
This matters when things go wrong: a complaint about holiday entitlement goes to the agency, not the hirer. If the agency has disappeared or is unresponsive, the hirer can be jointly liable in some circumstances, but start with the agency in writing.
How entitlement is calculated
If you work a regular pattern, entitlement is 5.6 weeks of your normal week. If your hours vary — the common case — holiday accrues as a percentage of hours worked at 12.07% for irregular-hours workers.
Agency work is often genuinely irregular, so accrual is normal. What is not acceptable is no accrual at all, or accrual that never converts into paid leave.
"Holiday is included in your rate"
This claim is only lawful for irregular-hours and part-year workers, and only since April 2024. Even then, the holiday element must be shown separately on your payslip and must genuinely sit on top of the rate for the work — not be carved out of it.
If your assignment rate is described as "rolled up" but your payslip shows one figure, ask for the breakdown. An arrangement that pays the same total with a holiday label attached is not compliant.
Assignment length and the 12-week rule
The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 give equal treatment on working time and pay after 12 weeks in the same role. Statutory holiday entitlement, however, exists from day one under the Working Time Regulations — it does not wait for 12 weeks.
So a short assignment still accrues holiday. If an agency tells you that you need 12 weeks before holiday applies, that is wrong.
What to do if holiday is missing
Ask the agency in writing for your holiday balance, the accrual method used, and the dates of any holiday paid. If the answer is unsatisfactory, ACAS can advise, and unpaid statutory holiday is recoverable as an unlawful deduction from wages at an employment tribunal.
Holiday between assignments
Only hours actually worked generate holiday. Gaps between assignments do not accrue, and a week with no work adds nothing to your balance. That is normal for genuinely irregular work — the entitlement follows the work, not the calendar.
A short assignment still accrues, though. A two-day booking produces 12.07% of those hours, and repeated short bookings add up across the year. If an agency says holiday only starts after a minimum number of weeks or hours, ask for the basis in writing — there is no qualifying period for statutory holiday.
Umbrella companies and who pays
If you are paid through an umbrella company, your employment relationship for holiday purposes is generally with the umbrella company, not the agency or the hirer. It should pay your holiday and show the holiday element separately if rolled-up pay is used.
This creates a common gap: the agency quotes a rate 'including holiday', the umbrella pays a single figure, and nobody can show the holiday separately. Ask the umbrella for the holiday breakdown in writing. If it cannot produce one, escalate to the agency that engaged you.
Agency Worker Holiday Pay — FAQs
Does the client I work for pay my holiday?
No. Your agency is the employer for holiday purposes and is responsible for paying it.
Do I accrue holiday on a one-week assignment?
Yes. Statutory holiday accrues from day one; there is no qualifying period.
Can an agency pay holiday as part of my hourly rate?
Only for irregular-hours and part-year workers, and only if it is shown separately on your payslip.
What if my agency says I am self-employed?
Your actual working arrangements decide status, not the label. If you are supervised, integrated and paid by the agency, you are likely a worker.
Related guides
Work out your own figure with the holiday entitlement calculator or check what you should be paid with the holiday pay calculator.
Review and sources
Reviewed October 2026 against the Working Time Regulations 1998, GOV.UK holiday entitlement guidance and ACAS. Figures are the statutory minimum in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; contractual terms may be more generous. Not legal advice — see the editorial policy and contact page.