Public Holidays Around the World: A Country-by-Country Guide

Public holidays — the officially designated days off work mandated by government — vary enormously from country to country. If you've ever wondered how many public holidays the United States has compared to India, or why the UK says "bank holiday" while everyone else says "public holiday," this guide covers it all. From Cambodia's record 28 days to Mexico's lean 7, we explore how holiday systems work across every major region of the world.

Which Country Has the Most Public Holidays?

Cambodia leads the world with approximately 28 official public holidays per year — more than any other country. Cambodian holidays blend Buddhist traditions, national commemorations, and royal celebrations. Many Cambodians look forward to multi-day stretches such as Khmer New Year (three days in April) and Pchum Ben, the festival of the dead.

India operates a layered holiday system that can add up to 21 or more days depending on how you count. The central government declares three national public holidays (Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti) plus a set of "restricted holidays" from which employees choose a certain number. State governments then add their own official holidays, and the combination varies significantly by region and religion. During major festivals like Diwali, Holi, Eid, and Christmas, millions of workers receive additional days off.

Colombia has 18 official public holidays, many of them shifted to the nearest Monday by law to encourage long weekends. The Colombian system also moves several Catholic feast days — Epiphany, St. Joseph's Day, St. Peter and Paul — to the nearest Monday, creating predictable long-weekend clusters throughout the year.

The Philippines also counts 18 public holidays split between "regular" (mandatory paid) holidays and "special non-working" days, the latter carrying slightly different legal obligations for employers. Philippine holidays reflect a Catholic majority alongside significant Muslim and indigenous cultural influences.

Japan has 16 national holidays (syukujitsu), one of the highest counts in Asia. Japan's system includes a notable feature: when a holiday falls on Sunday, the following Monday is observed as a substitute holiday. Additionally, when a single working day falls between two public holidays, that day itself becomes a holiday (known as a "sandwiched day" or kokumin no kyujitsu) — a rule that makes Golden Week in late April and early May an especially long break.

Which Country Has the Fewest Public Holidays?

Mexico has just 7 mandatory federal public holidays under the Federal Labour Law — one of the lowest counts among major economies. These include New Year's Day, Constitution Day, Benito Juárez's Birthday, Labour Day, Independence Day, Revolution Day, and Christmas. However, many Mexicans receive additional holidays through collective bargaining agreements, and local customs often mean more days off in practice.

The United Kingdom has 8 bank holidays in England and Wales (Scotland and Northern Ireland have slightly different sets). This relatively low number surprises many international visitors, given the UK's long history and diverse cultural heritage. The UK does, however, have strong statutory annual leave entitlements — 28 days minimum — which offset the lower holiday count.

The Netherlands offers approximately 8 official public holidays nationally, though employers often add additional days such as Carnival or local feast days depending on region and industry.

The United States has 10 federal public holidays, though these only automatically apply to federal employees. Private sector employers are not legally required to give any holidays off, and practice varies enormously by industry, company, and state. Some US states add their own official holidays, but the baseline federal count is among the lowest in the developed world.

How Public Holidays Work in Different Regions

Europe

Europe's holiday landscape is shaped by the EU Working Time Directive, which guarantees workers at least four weeks of paid annual leave — but says little about public holidays specifically. The number of public holidays varies widely across EU member states, from Germany's 9–13 (depending on the federal state) to Poland's 13 and Greece's 12.

Religious heritage plays a major role. Germany illustrates this well: because Germany is a federal state, public holidays are partly determined by individual Länder (states). Catholic-majority Bavaria has 13 public holidays while predominantly Protestant states like Hamburg or Bremen have just 9. Catholic feast days such as Corpus Christi, Assumption, and All Saints' Day appear only in the southern and western states with larger Catholic populations.

Protestant-majority Scandinavian countries (Sweden, Denmark, Norway) tend to have fewer purely religious holidays, with Christmas and Easter being the major exceptions. Finland, with its Lutheran majority, has around 12 public holidays. The UK, also historically Protestant, has the fewest among major European nations.

Americas

The United States operates a federal versus state system. Federal holidays apply automatically to federal government employees and banks, but states and private employers set their own rules. Some US states recognize additional holidays — for example, Cesar Chavez Day in California and Texas, or Patriots' Day in Massachusetts and Maine.

Canada's system is similarly provincial. Victoria Day, for instance, is celebrated in most provinces but not in Quebec, which instead observes National Patriots' Day. Boxing Day (December 26) is a public holiday in Ontario but not federally mandated everywhere. The result is a patchwork where the same Canadian worker's holiday entitlement depends significantly on their province.

Latin America reflects strong Catholic influence, with most countries observing Christmas, Good Friday, and a selection of Catholic feast days as public holidays alongside national independence days and civic commemorations. Colombia, as noted, is one of the most holiday-generous. Brazil has 12 national holidays, with individual municipalities allowed to add local feast days, meaning workers in some cities effectively have 15 or more official days off.

Asia-Pacific

Japan's holiday density (16 national holidays plus substitute and sandwiched days) makes it one of the most holiday-rich countries in Asia, despite a cultural reputation for long working hours. The paradox reflects Japan's formal versus informal work culture: holidays are taken, but pressure to work long hours on non-holiday days is significant.

Australia's holiday system is heavily state-based. The national system provides around 8 federal public holidays, but each state and territory adds its own — the most notable being the Melbourne Cup Day public holiday, which applies only to the Melbourne metropolitan area in Victoria. Australia Day (January 26) is observed nationally but has become a subject of debate about its appropriateness given its historical significance for Indigenous Australians.

India's religious diversity creates a holiday system unlike anywhere else. With significant Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain populations, a truly comprehensive national holiday calendar would be enormous. The federal government's solution — restricted holidays from which employees choose — allows for personalization while maintaining a manageable mandatory minimum. Use the HolidaySync Holiday Calendar to explore India's holiday structure in detail.

Africa and the Middle East

Islamic holidays are a major feature across Africa and the Middle East. Eid al-Fitr (end of Ramadan) and Eid al-Adha (feast of sacrifice) are observed as public holidays across Muslim-majority nations, with the number of days varying by country — from one day in Turkey to three or more in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt. Because the Islamic calendar is lunar, these holidays shift approximately 11 days earlier each year relative to the Gregorian calendar.

Sub-Saharan African countries often blend national independence commemorations, Christian holidays (Christmas, Good Friday, Easter Monday), and local traditional holidays. South Africa has 12 public holidays, including Heritage Day (September 24), Freedom Day (April 27), and Youth Day (June 16) — all dates tied to the country's apartheid-era and post-apartheid history. See country-specific details on the HolidaySync country page.

Religious vs. Secular Public Holidays

Most countries mix religious and secular public holidays, though the balance varies. Countries with explicit state churches (like England, where the Church of England is established) naturally include religious holidays in official calendars. Countries with strong secularist traditions — France is the paradigmatic example — have officially separated church and state since 1905, yet France still observes 11 public holidays, of which at least 6 have Catholic origins (Easter Monday, Ascension, Whit Monday, Assumption, All Saints' Day, Christmas).

This reflects a broader pattern: religious holidays, once embedded in a culture, are very difficult to remove. They have become cultural rather than purely religious occasions. Christmas in Japan — a largely non-Christian country — is celebrated as a secular commercial and romantic holiday. Good Friday in Germany, a constitutionally secular state, is a public holiday accompanied by restrictions on dancing and entertainment in some Länder.

Meanwhile, newer secular holidays continue to be added to national calendars. International Workers' Day (May 1) is a public holiday in over 80 countries. International Women's Day (March 8) is a public holiday in Russia, Ukraine, and several other countries. The trend suggests that public holiday calendars evolve to reflect both historical heritage and contemporary civic values.

Bank Holidays vs. Public Holidays

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the official term for days when banks and many businesses are legally required to close is "bank holiday." The term originates from the Bank Holidays Act 1871, which designated certain days when the Bank of England would close, effectively making them days off for much of the commercial world that relied on bank transactions.

Today, "bank holiday" in common British usage simply means a public holiday — a day off for most workers. The legal and operational difference between a "bank holiday" and a "public holiday" in the UK is minimal, though technically the two categories are defined separately under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.

In all other English-speaking countries and internationally, the standard term is "public holiday" (or "national holiday"), and "bank holiday" is recognized as British English. When using HolidaySync's United Kingdom holiday page, all bank holidays are listed under the standard public holiday format.

What Happens When a Public Holiday Falls on a Weekend?

Different countries have different rules for what happens when a designated public holiday coincides with Saturday or Sunday:

United States: If a federal holiday falls on Saturday, it is typically observed on the preceding Friday. If it falls on Sunday, it is observed on the following Monday. This ensures federal employees always receive the day off on a weekday.

United Kingdom: The UK similarly moves bank holidays to the nearest weekday. When Christmas Day falls on a Sunday, for example, both December 26 and December 27 become bank holidays (Boxing Day substitutes for December 25, and an extra day covers the displaced 26th).

Australia: Substitution rules vary by state but generally follow a similar Monday-substitution model. When ANZAC Day falls on a Sunday in some states, the following Monday is observed instead.

Germany: Germany does not typically provide substitute holidays when a public holiday falls on a weekend. German workers simply lose that holiday if it coincides with their regular day off — which is one reason the effective number of working-day holidays varies from year to year.

Japan: As noted above, Japan's system converts Sunday holidays to Monday substitutes, and creates additional "sandwiched" holidays when a single working day falls between two public holidays.

Which Holidays Are Celebrated in Nearly Every Country?

New Year's Day (January 1) is the closest thing to a universal public holiday. Virtually every country that uses the Gregorian calendar observes January 1 as an official public holiday, making it the most globally observed day off. Even countries that also observe other new year celebrations (Chinese New Year, Islamic New Year, Hindu New Year) still recognize January 1.

Christmas (December 25) is a public holiday in all predominantly Christian countries and in many others that have adopted it as a cultural rather than religious occasion. Japan (not majority-Christian) does not make Christmas a public holiday, but observes many Christmas commercial traditions. Israel, Saudi Arabia, and some other non-Christian-majority countries also do not recognize Christmas as a public holiday.

Labour Day / May Day (May 1) is a public holiday in over 80 countries, making it the most widely observed secular public holiday. The United States and Canada are notable exceptions — they observe Labour Day on the first Monday of September rather than May 1, a deliberate historical choice to distance American labor celebrations from the international socialist tradition associated with May Day.