Ireland bank holidays in 2026: Full list of public holidays with bonus day off

There are ten bank holidays in Ireland in 2026, and the first has already arrived. The rest of the year’s breaks are as follows – including a notable change at the end of the year

The opening bank holiday of 2026 has arrived, offering people throughout Ireland a much-deserved respite following the New Year festivities.

With Ireland’s complete 2026 bank holiday schedule now finalised, it serves as a useful reference for those organising getaways, family gatherings or simply some relaxation time.

This year features ten bank holidays altogether, with the majority of workers entitled to paid time off under the Organisation of Working Time Act.

Whilst educational institutions and numerous companies shut their doors, essential services like public transport remain operational, though typically with reduced timetables.

Thus far, the sole bank holiday to have occurred is today’s New Year’s Day, reports the Irish Mirror.

Following this, there’ll be a consistent flow of breaks throughout February, March, April, May and June, then continuing in August and October, before concluding with Christmas Day and St Stephen’s Day in December.

A significant adjustment for 2026 occurs towards the year’s end.

St Stephen’s Day (26th December) lands on a Saturday, meaning the vast majority of employees are entitled to a replacement benefit – essentially an additional day off – to makeup for the public holiday falling on a weekend.

As stated by Citizens’ Information: “If the public holiday falls on a day which is not a normal working day for that business (for example, on Saturday or Sunday), you are still entitled to benefit for that public holiday. However, you do not have any automatic legal entitlement to have the next working day off work.”

The Irish Government has verified that employers must offer one of the following alternatives: This alteration signifies that numerous Irish employees will relish an extra holiday during the festive period later this year.

The impact of this change will be even more noticeable in 2027 when both Christmas Day and St Stephen’s Day land on the weekend – Saturday and Sunday – potentially providing two additional days off for many workers, subject to employer arrangements.