Statutory Holidays and Vacation Pay in British Columbia: A Complete Guide

British Columbia has 11 statutory holidays a year, and an employee qualifies for statutory holiday pay after being employed for 30 calendar days and having worked or earned wages on 15 of the 30 days before the holiday, a different test from the one Ontario uses.

Information last verified on 2026-09-24. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

This article covers statutory holidays and vacation entitlement under British Columbia's Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c 113, for employees covered by that Act. It does not cover federally regulated workplaces such as banks, airlines, and telecommunications carriers, which follow the Canada Labour Code instead; see Federally Regulated Employees in Canada for that separate regime. For the general rules that apply across BC employment beyond holidays and vacation, see Employment Standards in Canada. For how the rules compare across all of Canada, see Statutory Holidays in Canada.

The 11 Statutory Holidays in British Columbia

BC recognizes 11 statutory holidays a year. For 2026, the government's dated table lists them as: New Year's Day, Family Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, B.C. Day, Labour Day, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day, and Christmas Day.

That is two more than Ontario's 9-holiday list: BC has three statutory days Ontario lacks and lacks one Ontario has (Boxing Day). BC's B.C. Day, the province's August civic holiday, is statutory here, while Ontario's equivalent Civic Holiday is not. Remembrance Day is statutory in BC but not in Ontario. National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is also on BC's statutory list (ESA s.1, definition of statutory holiday) but not on Ontario's.

What Is Not a Statutory Holiday in BC

The BC government's own page states plainly: "Easter Sunday, Easter Monday and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays in B.C." An employer may still choose to give a paid day off for any of these, but there is no statutory entitlement to it, and no statutory premium for working that day.

A reader coming from Ontario, where Boxing Day is statutory, should not assume the same rule applies here. Each province sets its own list, and BC's list and Ontario's list genuinely differ on several specific days.

Who Qualifies for Statutory Holiday Pay

BC's qualifying test is not the rule many people expect. The government's guidance states the rule directly: "Employees receive statutory holiday pay if they: Have been employed for 30 calendar days and Have worked or earned wages (like paid vacation days or another statutory holiday) on 15 of the 30 days before a statutory holiday."

The same page goes out of its way to correct a common misconception: "Some people think employees only need to work the day before and the day after to qualify for statutory holiday pay. This isn't the case in B.C." That last-shift-before, first-shift-after approach is how Ontario's rule works, not BC's.

Some categories of employees are excluded from statutory holiday entitlement under the Employment Standards Regulation, including certain managers, fishers, farm workers, high technology professionals, and commission-based car, truck, and silviculture workers who instead receive a percentage in lieu on every paycheque.

How Statutory Holiday Pay Is Calculated

The formula is total wages earned divided by the number of days actually worked, using the 30 calendar days before the statutory holiday: "Total wages divided by number of days worked equals statutory holiday pay (an average day's pay). Base your calculation on days worked during the 30 calendar days before the statutory holiday. Include all wages. Don't include overtime."

Wages counted in that total include regular wages, salary, commission, statutory holiday pay, paid vacation, and paid sick days required by the Act. Days counted as worked include paid vacation days, other paid statutory holidays, and paid sick days, even though no work was physically performed on those days.

This is a different calculation from Ontario, which divides wages plus vacation pay from the four work weeks before the holiday by 20. Do not assume the two provinces use the same math; they do not.

An employee who does not meet the 30-day and 15-of-30 test simply receives regular pay for working the holiday, with no statutory holiday pay added.

Working on a Statutory Holiday: Premium Pay

When a qualifying employee works on a statutory holiday, BC pays premium pay for the hours worked in addition to, not instead of, statutory holiday pay: "Employees are paid time-and-a-half for hours worked on a statutory holiday, double-time for hours worked over 12 hours." The government's worked example confirms the stacking: an employee with a $150 average day's pay who works 14 hours on the holiday gets time and a half for the first 12 hours, double time for the last 2, and the $150 statutory holiday pay on top of that.

This stacked structure is different from Alberta, where the employer chooses between a premium-pay option and a substitute-day option, and from Ontario, where the substitute day is the default and the premium-pay option requires the employee's agreement. In BC, statutory holiday pay is not something an employee trades away by working; it is paid regardless, with the worked-hours premium layered on top.

When a Holiday Falls on a Day Off or During Vacation

If a statutory holiday lands on a day the employee was not scheduled to work, the employee should still receive statutory holiday pay for that day if they otherwise qualify.

If the holiday falls during a scheduled vacation, BC's rule is narrower than some other provinces: "If a statutory holiday falls on an employee's scheduled vacation day, the employee may qualify for statutory holiday pay. They do not get an additional day off." According to the Ministry's guidance, there is no automatic substitute day off in this situation in BC.

Substituting Another Day for a Statutory Holiday

An employer may substitute a different day for a statutory holiday under section 48 of the Employment Standards Act if the employer and the employee, or a majority of the affected employees, agree to the substitution; the employer must keep records of those agreements for 4 years. Once substituted, that other day must be treated the same as the original statutory holiday for pay purposes.

Vacation Time in BC

Vacation time accrues from the start of employment, but the entitlement to take time off builds over the first year: "Employees earn vacation time during the first year they're employed. After 12 months, they get 2 weeks of annual vacation. After 5 years, they get 3 weeks of annual vacation."

Vacation must generally be used within 12 months of being earned; an employee cannot simply skip taking time off and keep only the pay. Vacation is normally scheduled in blocks of a week or more unless the employee asks for shorter periods, and an employer can cancel scheduled vacation because of a shortage of employees, or require employees to take vacation if there is not enough work, within that 12-month window.

Vacation Pay: The 4% and 6% Rules

Vacation pay in BC is a percentage of the previous year's wages: "Vacation pay is at least 4 percent of all wages paid in the previous year. After the employee completes 5 years of employment, the employer must pay vacation pay of at least 6 percent of all wages earned in the previous year."

The wage base for that calculation includes regular wages, salary, and commissions, statutory holiday pay, paid sick days required by the Act, and previously paid vacation pay. That last item is a BC-specific detail: vacation pay already paid out becomes part of the wage base the following year, which is not how every province defines it.

Timing matters too. Unlike a province that defaults to paying vacation pay as a lump sum, BC's default is different: "Vacation pay must be paid at least 7 days before an employee starts their annual vacation time. If the employee and employer agree in writing, it can be paid out on every pay cheque instead."

Vacation Pay When Employment Ends

When a job ends, any vacation pay still owed must be paid at the time the Act sets for final wages: within 48 hours if the employer ends the employment, or within 6 days if the employee ends it (ESA ss.58(3) and 18). The government's guidance states: "When employment ends, employees must be paid all remaining vacation pay. All vacation pay that is owed to an employee must be paid on their last pay cheque. If an employee works for less than a year, they need to be paid 4 percent annual vacation pay."

There is one narrow exception worth knowing: "Employees who are employed for 5 calendar days or less are not entitled to be paid annual vacation pay." Outside that narrow window, the 4% minimum applies from day one, even to an employee who never reaches a full year of service. For the broader rules on what an employer owes on a final paycheque beyond vacation pay, see Final Paycheque Deadlines in Canada. For how holiday and vacation premiums interact with weekly overtime, see Overtime and Hours of Work in Canada.

Disclaimer: This article provides general information about statutory holidays and vacation entitlement under British Columbia's Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c 113, current as of September 2026. It is not legal advice and does not cover every industry exception in the Employment Standards Regulation. Consult the Province of British Columbia or a lawyer licensed in British Columbia for advice on your specific situation.