Do I enter time for a public holiday?

Last updated: September 10, 2026

Applies to: employees who enter their own time — US W-2 employees and Canadian T4 employees. Independent contractors are paid the rate in their own agreement and do not receive holiday time through Ascen, so this does not apply to them.

Summary: If you did not work the holiday, you generally do not enter anything. Where your assignment includes paid holiday time, it is added for you — you only enter time for a holiday you actually worked. That is also why your timesheet may not offer you a "Holiday" option to choose.

If you did not work the holiday

Leave it alone. Where paid holiday time applies to your assignment, it is generated for you rather than typed in, and it shows up on your pay stub as its own line. You do not need to open a timesheet, and you do not need to email us to have it added.

Whether you get paid holiday time at all depends on your work location and on your assignment terms — it is not automatic everywhere. US employees: see Holiday and premium pay. Canadian employees: statutory holiday entitlements and eligibility are set by your province, so see Vacation pay and statutory holidays in Canada.

If you did work the holiday

Enter the hours you actually worked, the same way you enter any other day, and submit before the weekly deadline. Any holiday or premium rate is applied to those hours for you — you do not enter a special rate or a second entry to claim it.

If you worked part of the day, enter only the hours you worked. If you need more than one entry on the same day, that is allowed — see Can I add more than one time entry for the same day?.

Why my timesheet only offers "Work"

This is expected, and it is the most common reason people write to us about a holiday. Holiday time is not something most workers add by hand, so the only type you are offered is the one you are meant to use for hours you worked. A missing "Holiday" option is not a fault on your account and it does not mean your holiday pay has been missed.

Please do not enter hours for a day you did not work in order to try to trigger holiday pay. It creates a timesheet that does not match reality, and it is not how the holiday is paid.

If you expected holiday pay and do not see it

  1. Check whether your assignment actually includes paid holiday time — it varies by work location and by assignment, and the articles above explain how to check.

  2. Look at your pay stub for the period covering the holiday. Holiday pay appears as its own earnings line, separate from your regular hours.

  3. If it should be there and is not, email support@ascen.com with the date. Do not re-enter the hours yourself — that can create a duplicate.

If the problem is that you cannot enter or submit time at all, that is a different issue — see What to do if you can't enter or submit your timesheet.

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