There are three public holidays over Christmas 2026: Friday 25 December (Christmas Day), Saturday 26 December (St Stephen's Day) and Friday 1 January 2027 (New Year's Day). St Stephen's Day isn't moved to Monday 28 December - instead, staff get a paid day off within a month, an extra day of annual leave or an extra day's pay, and the employer decides which. Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve are normal working days.
What are the Christmas bank holidays in Ireland in 2026?
Here they are in one place, with the two "eves" thrown in because that's what people always ask about next. (Officially they're public holidays, but everyone calls them bank holidays, us included.)
| Day | Date | Public holiday? |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas Eve | Thursday 24 December 2026 | No - normal working day |
| Christmas Day | Friday 25 December 2026 | Yes |
| St Stephen's Day | Saturday 26 December 2026 | Yes - stays on the Saturday |
| Monday after St Stephen's Day | Monday 28 December 2026 | No - unless you give it as the day off for St Stephen's Day |
| New Year's Eve | Thursday 31 December 2026 | No - normal working day |
| New Year's Day | Friday 1 January 2027 | Yes |
The next one after that is St Brigid's Day on Monday 1 February 2027. Every public holiday for the next three years is in our public holidays in Ireland 2026 to 2028 guide.
Is St Stephen's Day moved to Monday 28 December?
No - and this is the one that catches people out, especially anyone who's worked in the UK, where it does move. In Ireland, a public holiday that falls at the weekend stays where it is. There's no automatic day off on the Monday.
Plenty of businesses do give Monday 28 December off, mind, but that's them choosing it as the benefit for St Stephen's Day (more on that below), not because the law moved the holiday. Banks and some public offices may well be shut that Monday too, so check before you plan anything that needs them. In our experience you'll get at least one person on the team who's sure the Monday's a bank holiday. Worth a line in your Christmas email.
What do staff get for St Stephen's Day on a Saturday?
Full-time staff are still entitled to a benefit for it, even though it's on a Saturday. You choose which one:
- A paid day off within a month of the public holiday - Monday 28 December is the popular choice.
- An extra day of annual leave.
- An extra day's pay.
Our advice is to decide early and tell everyone. Staff can ask you at least 21 days before the public holiday which one they're getting, and if you haven't told them at least 14 days before, they're entitled to the day itself as a paid day off - which isn't much use when it's a Saturday, so it tends to turn into a row. Decide in October, put it in the Christmas email, done.
Book Time Off has Ireland's public holidays built in - Christmas Day, St Stephen's Day, New Year's Day and the rest - and never takes them off anyone's allowance. It shows St Stephen's Day on the Saturday, the same as the law does. Honest note: it won't pick the St Stephen's Day benefit for you. But if you go for an extra day of annual leave, you can add it to each person's allowance, or book Monday the 28th off for the whole team in one group booking.
→ Start free trialIs Christmas Eve a bank holiday in Ireland?
No. Christmas Eve (Thursday 24 December this year) is a normal working day. Lots of businesses close early or give it as a day off as a thank you, but nobody has a right to it unless their contract says so.
If you are closing early, pick a time and tell people. "We'll probably knock off early" is how you end up with half the team gone by 12 and the other half sat there until 5 wondering if they're allowed to leave. Ask us how we know.
Is New Year's Eve a bank holiday in Ireland?
No, New Year's Eve (Thursday 31 December) is a normal working day too. It's one of the most asked-for days off of the whole year though, so if you're staying open, sort out your cover for it early.
Do part-time staff get the Christmas public holidays?
Yes, once they've worked at least 40 hours in the five weeks before the public holiday (time on annual leave counts towards that). Full-time staff are entitled straight away, with no qualifying period.
If the public holiday lands on a day they'd normally work, they get the same choice of benefit as everyone else - usually the day off. If it lands on a day they don't normally work, they're entitled to one-fifth of their normal weekly pay instead. So someone who works Monday to Wednesday doesn't get Christmas Day "for free" and miss out - they're owed a fifth of a week's pay for it. That's easy to forget in December, so it's worth a quick check before payroll runs.
Are public holidays part of annual leave in Ireland?
No - and this is a real difference from the UK. In Ireland, the 10 public holidays are completely separate from the statutory four weeks of annual leave. So Christmas Day and St Stephen's Day don't come out of anyone's 20 days, and you can't count them towards it. If you're closing over Christmas, only the normal working days you're closed on come out of annual leave.
The 2026 leave hack: 16 days off for 7 days' leave
Book Monday 21 to Thursday 24 December and Tuesday 29 to Thursday 31 December, get Monday 28 December as the St Stephen's Day day off, and you're off from Saturday 19 December right through to Sunday 3 January. Sixteen days for seven days of annual leave. If the 28th isn't given as the St Stephen's Day benefit, it's eight days. Your staff will have spotted this already, trust us.
| Book | Annual leave used | Days off in a row |
|---|---|---|
| 29 to 31 December (28th given for St Stephen's Day) | 3 | 10 (Fri 25 Dec to Sun 3 Jan) |
| 28 to 31 December | 4 | 10 (Fri 25 Dec to Sun 3 Jan) |
| 21 to 24 December | 4 | 9 (Sat 19 Dec to Sun 27 Dec) |
| 21 to 24 and 29 to 31 December (28th given) | 7 | 16 (Sat 19 Dec to Sun 3 Jan) |
We've had three people ask for the same days between Christmas and New Year within about a week of each other. It's always the same days too, because everyone's doing the same maths. If you're staying open, work out how many you can have off and how you'll choose before the requests come in - not after, like we did.
In Book Time Off you set how many people can be off at once in each department. Once a team's hit the limit for the 29th, nobody else in it can book that day - you can still override it as an admin if there's a good reason. It won't decide who's most deserving for you, but it does stop you accidentally saying yes to everyone.
→ Start free trialFor the rest of it - deadlines, who gets first pick and the email we send round - have a look at how to manage Christmas annual leave requests.
Christmas bank holidays 2027
Next year's even more awkward. Christmas Day 2027 is a Saturday, St Stephen's Day is a Sunday and New Year's Day 2028 is a Saturday too. None of them move. So that's three public holidays at the weekend, and full-time staff are owed a benefit for every one of them - a paid day off within a month, an extra day of leave or an extra day's pay.
If you're planning that far ahead (fair play), decide early which way you'll go. Giving Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December 2027 and Monday 3 January 2028 as the days off is the tidy answer, and it's what a lot of businesses will do.
The legal bit, if you need it
You don't need this to get Christmas sorted, but here's what the rules actually say if anyone asks.
- Christmas Day, St Stephen's Day and New Year's Day are three of Ireland's 10 public holidays (Citizens Information).
- For each public holiday, staff get a paid day off on the day, a paid day off within a month, an extra day of annual leave or an extra day's pay - whichever the employer decides. If it falls on a day the business is closed, like a Saturday, there's no automatic right to the next working day off (WRC).
- Staff can ask at least 21 days before which benefit applies; if they haven't been told at least 14 days before, they get the day itself off (Citizens Information).
- Part-time staff qualify after 40 hours in the previous five weeks. If the holiday falls on a day they don't normally work, they get one-fifth of their weekly pay (Citizens Information).
- The rules are in section 21 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (Irish Statute Book).
Sources
| Citizens Information | Public holidays · The 10 public holidays, part-time workers, the 21-day and 14-day rule. Checked October 2026. |
| WRC | Public holidays · The four benefit options and weekend public holidays. Checked October 2026. |
| WRC | Public holidays during the Christmas period · Christmas Day and St Stephen's Day entitlements. Checked October 2026. |
| Irish Statute Book | Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, section 21 · Entitlement in respect of public holidays. Checked October 2026. |
FAQs
This is practical, general information for employers in Ireland. If you've got a dispute brewing or something unusual in a contract, check with the Workplace Relations Commission (its information service is free) or an employment solicitor.