WTD Pay is the payslip line most NHS bank workers receive as rolled-up statutory holiday pay — a 12.07% supplement added to every bank hour worked, representing the 5.6 weeks of annual leave owed under the Working Time Regulations 1998. Substantive NHS staff do not get WTD Pay; from May 2022 they receive “AfC Average” instead.
What Does “WTD Pay” Mean on an NHS Payslip?
WTD Pay is a separate earnings line on an NHS payslip that pays statutory holiday pay to bank workers as a lump sum, rather than paying it when leave is taken. NHS Professionals confirms that for Direct Engagement bank members “your holiday is paid to you on a weekly basis” and shows on the payslip as “WTD Pay” (https://www.nhsponline.nhs.uk/articles/Knowledge/I-m-on-a-Direct-Engagement-agreement-how-will-my-holiday-be-paid). The Royal United Hospitals payslip guide lists “WTD” as “Working Time Directive” among its common payslip abbreviations (https://www.ruh.nhs.uk/careers/documents/doctors/guide_to_payslip.pdf).
“WTD” stands for Working Time Directive. Imperial Staff Bank states the line appears “every week on your payslip as a separate line labelled ‘WTD Pay’. It will be shown on your payslip as a lump sum, and will not be broken down into hours” (https://www.imperialstaffbank.reed.com/holiday-pay/).
Because the line never appears with an hours figure, a reader looking at a payslip sees three WTD-related labels. The table below decodes each:
| Payslip line | Meaning | What to do |
| WTD Pay | Rolled-up holiday pay for the current period | Nothing — it is your statutory entitlement |
| WTD Pay Arrs | An arrears payment catching up WTD Pay owed from an earlier period | Check it matches the backdated hours; “ARRS” is the standard ESR arrears code (https://www.ruh.nhs.uk/careers/documents/doctors/guide_to_payslip.pdf) |
| WTD Pay NP | WTD Pay flagged as non-pensionable | Expected — “NP” means it does not build your NHS pension (https://www.ruh.nhs.uk/careers/documents/doctors/guide_to_payslip.pdf) |
Who Gets WTD Pay on an NHS Payslip — And Why Am I Seeing It?
NHS bank workers and zero-hours workers receive WTD Pay. Substantive (contracted) staff on Agenda for Change terms do not. NHS Professionals — the body that runs the bank for much of the NHS — confirms WTD Pay appears for Direct Engagement bank members (https://www.nhsponline.nhs.uk/articles/Knowledge/I-m-on-a-Direct-Engagement-agreement-how-will-my-holiday-be-paid). NHSBands frames bank workers as the primary audience, noting the 12.07% addition is “listed on your payslip as WTD or Annual Leave Pay” (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide).
Many bank workers also hold a substantive contract with the same Trust. A substantive nurse who picks up bank shifts can receive both payments: AfC Average on the substantive salary (covering lost enhancements during their contractual annual leave) and WTD Pay on the bank earnings. The two cover different pay streams and do not duplicate each other.
On my own bank payslip the WTD Pay line sits directly beneath the unsocial-hours enhancement, as a single lump sum with no hours figure beside it. The amount varies each week because it tracks whatever bank hours I actually worked in that period.
The eligibility split, in full:
| Worker type | Receives WTD Pay? | Why |
| Bank-only worker | Yes | No fixed annual leave; holiday paid rolled-up as earned |
| Substantive staff (AfC) | No | Moved to AfC Average from 1 April 2022 |
| Substantive staff who also work bank | Yes on bank earnings only | Bank hours earn WTD Pay; substantive leave earns AfC Average |
How Is WTD Pay Calculated?
WTD Pay is calculated as 12.07% of gross bank earnings in the pay period. The method, in three steps:
- Take your gross bank pay for the period (basic + enhancements, before tax).
- Multiply it by 0.1207.
- The result is the WTD Pay line on your payslip.
A £100 bank shift therefore produces a £12.07 WTD Pay line. A shift that grosses £200 produces £24.14.
The 12.07% figure is derived from statutory leave. Grant Thornton sets out the arithmetic: “52 weeks in a year less 5.6 weeks statutory holiday gives 46.4 working weeks. 5.6 weeks divided by 46.4 weeks is 12.07%” (https://www.grantthornton.co.uk/insights/new-ruling-reestablishes-rolled-up-holiday-pay/). NHSBands applies the same basis to NHS bank staff: “This figure is calculated based on the 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave required by the Working Time Directive” (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide).
Some Trusts quote bank rates in two ways, which is a frequent source of confusion:
| Rate basis | What it means | Worked example |
| Excluding WTD | The hourly rate does not include the 12.07%; it is added as a separate WTD Pay line | Band 5 day duty £17.68/hour; a £17.68 shift → £17.68 pay + £2.13 WTD Pay (Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust: https://www.mtwcareers.com/temporary-staff/) |
| Including WTD | The 12.07% is already bundled into the quoted rate | Band 5 day duty £19.89/hour inclusive of WTD (https://www.mtwcareers.com/temporary-staff/) |
Both bases pay the same total. “Including WTD” simply folds the 12.07% into the headline figure.
Two percentages circulate. The 12.07% figure reflects the current statutory method: 5.6 weeks ÷ 46.4 weeks (https://www.grantthornton.co.uk/insights/new-ruling-reestablishes-rolled-up-holiday-pay/). The 12.5% figure is a legacy AfC-era rate that some Trusts still show in transitional communications — Derbyshire Community Health Services references “the 12.5% WTD” being replaced by AfC Average (https://dchs.nhs.uk/my_dchs/show-me/staff-news-my-download/understanding-changes-around-wtd-working-time-directive-pay-annual-leavebank-holiday-and-using-eroster). If your Trust shows 12.5%, it is using the older convention; the live bank-pay calculation for irregular-hours workers is 12.07%.
A larger WTD Pay figure — such as a £441 line — reflects bank hours built up over several weeks or a quarter, not a single shift. Some bank workers receive WTD Pay weekly; others see it arrive as a periodic accrual. The total is the same across the year.
Is WTD Pay the Same as Holiday Pay and Annual Leave?
Yes. WTD Pay is statutory holiday pay, delivered rolled-up alongside earnings rather than paid out when leave is taken. Imperial Staff Bank states plainly that for bank workers “your holiday pay is paid to you upfront, and rolled up in your weekly payments” (https://www.imperialstaffbank.reed.com/holiday-pay/). NHSBands describes it as “the 12.07% Holiday Pay Addition (WTD)” based on the statutory 5.6 weeks (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide).
Because the payment is made as you earn, any actual time off you take as a bank worker is unpaid — the holiday element has already been paid.
Why Don’t Substantive Staff Get WTD Pay, and What Is “AfC Average”?
Substantive NHS staff do not receive WTD Pay because they were moved to a different payment called AfC Average on 1 April 2022. Derbyshire Community Health Services states: “From 1 April 2022 the way in which WTD payments are made has changed in response to the ruling in the Flowers v East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust case. The 12.5% WTD is being replaced with the AfC average payment” (https://dchs.nhs.uk/my_dchs/show-me/staff-news-my-download/understanding-changes-around-wtd-working-time-directive-pay-annual-leavebank-holiday-and-using-eroster).
AfC Average exists to compensate substantive staff for enhancements they lose while on annual leave. ESNEFT explains: “The purpose of the WTD payment was to ensure that staff were compensated for losses of certain enhancements which they were unable to claim when they were on annual leave” and that “Employees will no longer receive ‘WTD’ element payments from May 2022, this will be replaced by ‘AFC Average’ which will be paid one month in arrears… only after they have taken annual leave. This is not payable on bank holiday leave” (https://employeehelpdesk.esneft.nhs.uk/portal/en-gb/kb/articles/duifferen).
| WTD Pay | AfC Average | |
| Who gets it | Bank workers, zero-hours workers | Substantive AfC staff |
| Basis | 12.07% of bank earnings | 52-week average of enhancements + qualifying overtime + additional hours |
| When paid | Each period, as earned | One month in arrears, after leave is taken |
| Payable on bank-holiday leave | n/a (no leave booked) | No (https://dchs.nhs.uk/…) |
Is WTD Pay Taxable and Pensionable?
WTD Pay is taxable and subject to National Insurance, but non-pensionable. It is not a tax-free bonus.
For Income Tax, NHSBands confirms bank work is usually treated as a second job: “HMRC almost always views the bank work as a second job” and the BR code “deducts a flat 20% income tax from every penny you earn on the bank” because the £12,570 personal allowance is assigned to the main job (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide). The D0 code deducts 40% where combined income exceeds the higher-rate threshold of £50,270 (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide).
For National Insurance, NHSBands sets the threshold: “You only start paying National Insurance when you earn over £242 per week, the Primary Threshold” (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide). NI is calculated per pay period, not cumulatively across jobs.
On pension, the WTD Pay line carries the NP (non-pensionable) code, so it does not build your NHS pension. The Royal United Hospitals payslip guide lists “NP” as “Non-Pensionable” (https://www.ruh.nhs.uk/careers/documents/doctors/guide_to_payslip.pdf). NHSBands adds the wider rule: “If you already work 37.5 hours in a substantive role, any bank shifts you work are considered non-pensionable overtime” (https://www.nhsbands.co.uk/nhs-bank-shifts-guide).
| Question | Answer |
| Is WTD Pay taxed? | Yes — Income Tax (BR/D0) and NI |
| Does it build NHS pension? | No — flagged NP |
| Does it count towards the 37.5h pension cap? | No — it is non-pensionable pay, not pensionable hours |
My WTD Pay Looks Wrong or Is Missing — What Should I Do?
First confirm your contract type and the rate basis your Trust uses. A “missing” WTD Pay line is correct if you are substantive staff — you receive AfC Average, not WTD Pay. If you are a bank worker and the line is absent or lower than 12.07% of your gross bank pay, raise it with your Trust payroll.
Before querying, check three things:
- Confirm the rate basis — “including WTD” rates do not show a separate WTD line because the 12.07% is already inside the hourly figure.
- Check whether you worked bank hours in the relevant period; WTD Pay tracks hours worked, not hours contracted.
- Compare the line to 12.07% of your gross bank pay for the period using the three-step method above.
For unresolved holiday-pay disputes, the standard escalation is Trust payroll first, then ACAS early conciliation. Doctors can also approach the BMA for support. ACAS is the recognised public body for pre-tribunal dispute resolution on holiday-pay claims.
Rolled-up holiday pay itself is lawful for NHS bank workers from 1 April 2024, because bank workers meet the definition of irregular-hours workers. BrightHR confirms: “This method is only permitted for irregular-hours and part-year workers in leave years beginning on or after 1 April 2024” (https://www.brighthr.com/articles/leave-and-absence/rolled-up-holiday-pay/). Two things remain true under that legal status: the payment is still your statutory holiday entitlement, not a bonus; and any leave you actually take remains unpaid, because the entitlement has already been paid as you earned.
WTD Pay: Frequently Asked Questions
What does WTD mean on an NHS payslip?
WTD stands for Working Time Directive. The “WTD Pay” line is rolled-up statutory holiday pay added to the earnings of NHS bank workers, representing their 5.6 weeks of annual leave under the Working Time Regulations 1998.
How is WTD Pay calculated?
Multiply your gross bank pay for the period by 12.07%. The 12.07% comes from 5.6 weeks of statutory leave ÷ 46.4 working weeks. A £100 bank shift therefore produces a £12.07 WTD Pay line.
Do substantive NHS staff get WTD Pay?
No. Substantive staff on Agenda for Change terms were moved to “AfC Average” from 1 April 2022, following the Flowers case. They do not have a WTD Pay line.
Is WTD Pay taxable?
Yes. WTD Pay is subject to Income Tax and National Insurance, but it is non-pensionable — shown on payslips with an “NP” code — so it does not build your NHS pension.
What is the difference between “including WTD” and “excluding WTD” rates?
“Including WTD” bank rates already bundle the 12.07% holiday pay into the hourly figure; “excluding WTD” rates add it as a separate WTD Pay line. Both pay the same total.
My WTD Pay looks wrong — what should I do?
First confirm your contract type and the rate basis (including vs excluding WTD). If it still appears incorrect, raise it with your Trust payroll; for unresolved holiday-pay disputes, ACAS early conciliation is the standard next step.