Question 1

What is a public holiday?

Accepted Answer

A public holiday is a day set aside in law on which normal working obligations are lifted for at least part of the workforce. Who is covered varies by country: in the United States the federal list binds federal employers, while across most of Europe a public holiday applies to everyone.

Question 2

How many federal holidays does the United States have?

Accepted Answer

There are 11 federal holidays in the United States, set out in 5 U.S.C. § 6103: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Juneteenth is the newest, and the first added since Martin Luther King Jr. Day. States set their own holidays on top of these.

Question 3

What happens when a public holiday falls on a weekend?

Accepted Answer

In the United States a federal holiday falling on a Saturday is observed on the Friday before, and one falling on a Sunday on the Monday after. The rule applies only to holidays fixed to a calendar date; Labor Day and Thanksgiving are tied to a weekday and never move.

Question 4

What is the difference between a public holiday and a bank holiday?

Accepted Answer

They are usually the same day under two names. “Bank holiday” is the British and Irish term, inherited from the legislation that first closed the banks on named days; “public holiday” and “national holiday” are the words used almost everywhere else.

Question 5

Where do these holiday dates come from?

Accepted Answer

Every date is calculated from the law that governs the holiday, then checked against the responsible government body’s published list. A rule such as “the fourth Thursday in November” is applied in code rather than transcribed year by year, which removes the commonest source of error on calendar sites. Each holiday page carries its legal basis and the sources it was checked against, each with the date it was last verified.

Question 6

Are private employers required to give paid public holidays in the United States?

Accepted Answer

No. The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require private employers to provide paid holidays or paid time off, so pay depends on the employer’s own policy or a collective agreement. The federal list is a legal entitlement for federal employees only.

Question 7

How many years ahead can I look up?

Accepted Answer

Eight years — two back, the current year and five ahead, which is 2024 to 2031 as this page was built. Because each date is generated from its rule rather than stored in a table, every year in that window is complete and internally consistent, and the window moves forward on its own.

Question 8

How often is this site updated?

Accepted Answer

Dates are generated from the rule that governs each holiday whenever the site is built, so a published year is never stale relative to that rule. When a legislature adds, renames or moves a holiday, the change is made once in the rule and every affected year corrects itself.

Date	Day	Holiday	Type
September 7, 2026	Mon	Labor Day 2026 in 29 days	Federal Holiday
October 12, 2026	Mon	Columbus Day 2026 in 64 days	Federal Holiday
November 11, 2026	Wed	Veterans Day 2026 in 94 days	Federal Holiday
November 26, 2026	Thu	Thanksgiving Day 2026 in 109 days	Federal Holiday
December 25, 2026	Fri	Christmas Day 2026 in 138 days	Federal Holiday
January 1, 2027	Fri	New Year’s Day 2027 in 145 days	Federal Holiday
January 18, 2027	Mon	Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2027 in 162 days	Federal Holiday
February 15, 2027	Mon	Presidents’ Day 2027 in 190 days	Federal Holiday

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