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26 public holidays
Australia has 26 public holiday dates recorded for 2026, of which 6 apply nationwide. 6 of the listed dates are treated as non-working days and reduce the working-day count; 0 of those fall at a weekend. For the effect on working days see Australia business days 2026.
| Date | Day | Holiday | Deducted from working days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-01 | Thursday | New Year's Day | Yes |
| 2026-01-26 | Monday | Australia Day | Yes |
| 2026-03-02 | Monday | Labour Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-03-09 | Monday | Adelaide Cup Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-03-09 | Monday | Canberra Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-03-09 | Monday | Eight Hours Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-03-09 | Monday | Labour Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-04-03 | Friday | Good Friday | Yes |
| 2026-04-04 | Saturday | Easter Eve | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-04-05 | Sunday | Easter Sunday | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-04-06 | Monday | Easter Monday | Yes |
| 2026-04-25 | Saturday | Anzac Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-04-27 | Monday | Anzac Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-05-04 | Monday | Labour Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-05-04 | Monday | May Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-06-01 | Monday | Reconciliation Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-06-01 | Monday | Western Australia Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-06-08 | Monday | King's Birthday | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-08-03 | Monday | Picnic Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-09-25 | Friday | Friday before AFL Grand Final | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-09-28 | Monday | King's Birthday | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-10-05 | Monday | King's Birthday | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-10-05 | Monday | Labour Day | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-11-03 | Tuesday | Melbourne Cup | Regional or sector-specific only |
| 2026-12-25 | Friday | Christmas Day | Yes |
| 2026-12-28 | Monday | Boxing Day | Yes |
The federal layer is thin: the Holidays Act 1910 covers only New Year, Australia Day (26 January), Good Friday, Easter Saturday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day (25 April), the King's Birthday (second Monday in June — federal only) and Christmas/Boxing Day. Everything that makes Australian diaries interesting is set state by state, and the states race to outdo each other: the ACT claims the most (around nine to eleven depending on year) with Canberra Day and Reconciliation Day, Victoria stops for the Melbourne Cup (first Tuesday in November — a state-wide holiday, except in a few country districts that take the preceding Friday instead), Queensland's Brisbane area gets the egg-and-bean Show Day in August, and Tasmania's Eight Hours Day leads March.
Two structural rules matter for counting. Sunday shift: when a state holiday falls on Sunday, the Monday is a substitute holiday in every jurisdiction — Christmas-on-a-weekend therefore becomes a three-day block (Saturday 26 December plus Monday substitute). And Australia Day's date carries a live political argument: 26 January marks the 1788 flag-raising at Sydney Cove, and a growing council/government segment observes it as Invasion Day with alternative days of reflection, which means some employers now offer either the date or an alternative. The net effect is that Australia's holiday total cannot be stated for a person without first stating their state.
Deducted days are national public holidays (the days the dataset records as applying to the whole country). Holidays observed only in part of the country, or only in particular sectors, are listed with “Regional or sector-specific only” and are not deducted from the business-day counts.