Dates & holidays

South African public holidays

Check statutory public holidays and known proclaimed additions, including the Sunday-to-Monday rule. Spot long weekends for a Monday-to-Friday work week.

2026 holidays

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Long-weekend notes assume a Monday-to-Friday work week.

New Year's Day01 Jan 2026 · Thursday
Human Rights Day21 Mar 2026 · SaturdayFalls on Saturday — the Act does not add a Monday holiday.
Good Friday03 Apr 2026 · FridayStarts a long weekend.
Family Day06 Apr 2026 · MondayEnds a long weekend.
Freedom Day27 Apr 2026 · MondayEnds a long weekend.
Workers' Day01 May 2026 · FridayStarts a long weekend.
Youth Day16 Jun 2026 · Tuesday
National Women's Day09 Aug 2026 · SundayFalls on Sunday — the Act also makes Monday a public holiday.
National Women's Day (observed)10 Aug 2026 · MondayEnds a long weekend.Moved from Sunday
Heritage Day24 Sept 2026 · Thursday
Local Government Elections04 Nov 2026 · Wednesday
Day of Reconciliation16 Dec 2026 · Wednesday
Christmas Day25 Dec 2026 · FridayStarts a long weekend.
Day of Goodwill26 Dec 2026 · SaturdayFalls on Saturday — the Act does not add a Monday holiday.

Date	Day	Holiday
01 Jan 2026	Thursday	New Year's Day
21 Mar 2026	Saturday	Human Rights DayFalls on Saturday — the Act does not add a Monday holiday.
03 Apr 2026	Friday	Good FridayStarts a long weekend.
06 Apr 2026	Monday	Family DayEnds a long weekend.
27 Apr 2026	Monday	Freedom DayEnds a long weekend.
01 May 2026	Friday	Workers' DayStarts a long weekend.
16 Jun 2026	Tuesday	Youth Day
09 Aug 2026	Sunday	National Women's DayFalls on Sunday — the Act also makes Monday a public holiday.
10 Aug 2026	Monday	National Women's Day (observed)Moved from SundayEnds a long weekend.
24 Sept 2026	Thursday	Heritage Day
04 Nov 2026	Wednesday	Local Government Elections
16 Dec 2026	Wednesday	Day of Reconciliation
25 Dec 2026	Friday	Christmas DayStarts a long weekend.
26 Dec 2026	Saturday	Day of GoodwillFalls on Saturday — the Act does not add a Monday holiday.

Next public holidayLocal Government Elections04 Nov 2026 · in 21 days

Falls on a: Wednesday

Public Holidays Act 36 of 1994

Where this comes from, and what it doesn't cover

Statutory dates plus known proclaimed additions, checked through 22 Sept 2026. The list includes the declared holiday on 4 November 2026. It does not promise a complete history of one-off holidays.

The ten holidays with fixed dates come from the Public Holidays Act 36 of 1994, and so does the rule that makes the Monday a holiday too when one falls on a Sunday. Good Friday and Family Day move with Easter, so we work those out using the same rule the Christian calendar uses. The Act started on 1 January 1995, so the year picker starts there. A Saturday public holiday does not create an extra Monday holiday under this Act.

What this doesn't work out on its own: the President can declare an extra public holiday, usually an election day. There's no rule behind those, so we can't predict one before it's announced — but once the government has officially declared a date, we add it here as its own checked entry. If there's an election coming and it isn't listed above yet, check the government's own holidays page.

South African public holidays

2026 holidays

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