Public holidays in Australia 2026

Australia has 6 nationwide public holidays in 2026. That count covers only the dates observed across the whole country - states and territories add their own holidays on top, so most residents end up with noticeably more days off than this figure alone suggests.

The shape of the year

The year opens with New Year’s Day on Thursday, 1 January, and closes with St. Stephen’s Day on Monday, 28 December. Between them sits one long stretch with nothing on the calendar: 263 days pass between Easter Monday and Christmas Day, the widest gap in the 2026 schedule. Outside that gap, the six dates cluster around the usual points - the new year, Easter, and the end-of-year holiday run.

Weekday luck in 2026

Of the six nationwide holidays, three land on a Monday and two fall on a Friday, both useful for anyone hoping for a long weekend without using annual leave. None fall on a weekend in 2026, so nobody nationwide loses a public holiday to a Saturday or Sunday this year. Where a holiday does land on a weekend in other years, whether it shifts to the nearest weekday depends entirely on local rules, which vary by country and even by state - worth checking locally rather than assuming.

Dates shown are drawn from the Nager.Date open holiday dataset as of this page’s most recent review. Governments can and do adjust public holiday dates, particularly around Easter-linked and substitute observances, so treat the table below as a snapshot rather than a permanent fixture.