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Short answer

In 2026 the festive public holidays in Malta are Tuesday 8 December (Immaculate Conception), Sunday 13 December (Republic Day), Friday 25 December (Christmas Day) and Friday 1 January 2027 (New Year's Day). Christmas Eve, 26 December and New Year's Eve aren't public holidays. Republic Day being on a Sunday doesn't mean it's lost: an extra day (8 hours for a full-timer) goes onto everyone's 2026 leave.

Christmas public holidays in Malta 2026

Here's the whole festive stretch, including the days people assume are holidays and aren't.

DateDayWhat it is
8 December 2026TuesdayFeast of the Immaculate Conception · public holiday
13 December 2026SundayRepublic Day · public holiday, falls on a Sunday (see below)
24 December 2026ThursdayChristmas Eve · normal working day
25 December 2026FridayChristmas Day · public holiday
26 December 2026SaturdayNormal day (not a public holiday in Malta)
31 December 2026ThursdayNew Year's Eve · normal working day
1 January 2027FridayNew Year's Day · public holiday

All 14 of Malta's public holidays for the next three years are in our public holidays in Malta 2026 to 2028 guide, with a calendar file you can download.

Why we built this bit
Malta's public holidays are built in

In Book Time Off, Malta's public holidays are already on the team calendar and wallchart, marked as non-working days and never taken off anyone's allowance. So nobody books leave for Christmas Day by mistake, and nobody's leave balance is a day out because someone counted the 8th. One honest note: the extra day for Republic Day on a Sunday isn't added for you - you set your default allowance for the year (or tweak individual people) once, and it's done.

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Is Christmas Eve a public holiday in Malta?

No. Christmas Eve, 26 December and New Year's Eve are all normal working days in Malta. Lots of businesses close early on the 24th or shut between Christmas and New Year anyway, but that's a choice, not the law.

If you do let people go early on Christmas Eve as a thank you, say so in writing and say it's a one-off for this year. Otherwise, you'll find it's become "what we always do" by next December. And if you want staff to use leave for it instead, that's a half day each.

Republic Day falls on a Sunday: what staff get

This is where Malta is different from most of Europe. When a public holiday lands on a Saturday or Sunday, it isn't lost. Instead, an equivalent day is added to each employee's annual leave for that year - 8 hours for someone on a standard 40-hour week.

In 2026 three public holidays fall on a weekend: Sette Giugno (Sunday 7 June), the Assumption (Saturday 15 August) and Republic Day (Sunday 13 December). So a full-timer's leave for 2026 is 216 hours, or 27 eight-hour days, not the usual 192.

The December one is the one that trips people up. By the 13th most people have already planned their year's leave around 26 days, and suddenly there's one more. Our best advice is to tell the team in your October Christmas email that it's there, so they can use it over Christmas instead of discovering it in January.

The best days to book off over Christmas

The way the dates fall this year is kind to anyone who wants a proper break. If you're planning your own time off (or wondering which days everyone's going to ask for), here's the maths.

Book these daysLeave usedDays off in a row
Monday 7 December1 day4 (Sat 5 to Tue 8 December)
24 and 28 to 31 December5 days11 (Thu 24 December to Sun 3 January)
21 to 24 and 28 to 31 December8 days16 (Sat 19 December to Sun 3 January)

Which is exactly why everyone will ask for the same days. Christmas week is the bit to plan, not the bit to react to. We've written up how we handle it in how to plan staff leave over Christmas in Malta.

Stop the bridge days emptying the office
Cap how many are off at once

Every year someone tries to use Monday 7 December to turn the 8th into a four-day weekend, and so does everyone else. In Book Time Off you set a max absent limit per department, so once two people are booked, the third request is blocked before it's ever made. You can also block out dates altogether - say, the week before Christmas if that's your busiest. No awkward "sorry, someone beat you to it" conversation, because the calendar says it first.

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Working on Christmas Day or New Year's Day

If your team works a public holiday (shops, hospitality, care), they're entitled to be compensated for it, either with extra pay or another day off. The exact rate is often set by your sector's Wage Regulation Order or the employment contract, so check yours before you put the rota together.

For most small businesses the practical bit is simpler: decide who's working the 25th and the 1st early, write it down and rotate it so it's not the same people every year.

Part-time staff

Leave in Malta is worked out in hours, so part-timers get the public holidays (and the weekend top-ups) pro rata to their hours. Someone on 20 hours a week gets half a full-timer's 216 hours for 2026, which is 108.

Looking ahead: Christmas 2027

Christmas 2027 falls very differently. The Immaculate Conception is a Wednesday and Republic Day is a Monday, so there's a long weekend on 11 to 13 December. Christmas Day 2027 is a Saturday and New Year's Day 2028 is a Saturday too. Under Malta's weekend rule, Christmas Day adds an extra day to 2027 leave and New Year's Day adds one to 2028 leave.

Sources

Laws of Malta National Holidays and Other Public Holidays Act, Cap. 252 · The 14 public holidays. Checked October 2026.
DIER Vacation leave · Leave in hours, weekend public holidays. Checked October 2026.
DIER Public holiday entitlements · Extra leave for public holidays falling on a weekend. Checked October 2026.
Laws of Malta Organisation of Working Time Regulations, S.L. 452.87 · Annual leave. Checked October 2026.

FAQs

What are the public holidays in Malta in December 2026?
There are three: the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on Tuesday 8 December, Republic Day on Sunday 13 December and Christmas Day on Friday 25 December. New Year's Day on Friday 1 January 2027 follows a week later.
Is 26 December a public holiday in Malta?
No. Unlike the UK and Ireland, Malta doesn't have a Boxing Day or St Stephen's Day public holiday. In 2026 it falls on a Saturday anyway.
Is Christmas Eve a public holiday in Malta?
No, Christmas Eve is a normal working day, and so is New Year's Eve. Many businesses close early or shut for the week, but that's their choice rather than a legal holiday.
What happens when a public holiday falls on a Sunday in Malta?
It isn't lost. An equivalent day (8 hours for someone on a 40-hour week) is added to the employee's annual leave for that year. Republic Day on Sunday 13 December 2026 is one of three weekend public holidays this year, which takes a full-timer's 2026 leave to 216 hours.
How many days of leave do I need for Christmas 2026 in Malta?
Five days (24 December and 28 to 31 December) gets you 11 days off in a row, from Thursday 24 December to Sunday 3 January. Add 21 to 23 December and eight days of leave gets you 16 days off.
Who wrote this

The team behind Book Time Off. We run a small business ourselves, so we've had the Christmas leave clashes, the lost requests and the end-of-year leave pile-ups first hand. That's a big part of why we built it. Everything legal here is checked against DIER and the Laws of Malta, and we update it when the rules change.

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Not legal advice

This is practical, general information for employers in Malta. If you've got a dispute brewing or something unusual in a contract or sector order, check with DIER or an employment lawyer.

GuideHow to plan staff leave over ChristmasDeadlines, closures and who gets the days. GuidePublic holidays in Malta 2026 to 2028All 14 days, with a calendar file. GuideAnnual leave carry-over rules in MaltaWhat can move into 2027.