Statutory holidays in Canada in 2026

Alberta – Statutory holidays in 2026

Alberta has nine general holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Alberta businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Alberta’s rules on general holidays.

Note: The following are not general holidays in Alberta. An employer may grant them, but no legal obligation attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Heritage Day (August 3) — widely granted but not mandatory
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

British Columbia – Statutory holidays in 2026

British Columbia has eleven statutory holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of B.C. businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see British Columbia’s rules on statutory holidays.

Note: Easter Monday (April 6) and Boxing Day (December 26) are not statutory holidays in British Columbia. An employer may grant them, but no legal obligation attaches to them. December 26 is, however, a general holiday for federally regulated employers.

Manitoba – Statutory holidays in 2026

Manitoba has nine general holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Manitoba businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Manitoba’s rules on general holidays.

Note: The following are not general holidays in Manitoba. An employer may grant them, but no legal obligation attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Terry Fox Day (August 3) — a civic holiday, widely granted but not mandatory
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Remembrance Day (November 11) is governed separately in Manitoba: it is not a general holiday, but The Remembrance Day Act restricts the operation of most businesses and requires premium pay for employees who do work that day. No pay is owed to those who do not work, and no substitute date is permitted. See Manitoba’s rules on Remembrance Day. It is also a general holiday for federally regulated employers.

New Brunswick – Statutory holidays in 2026

New Brunswick has eight paid public holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of New Brunswick businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see New Brunswick’s rules on paid public holidays.

Note: The following are not paid public holidays under New Brunswick’s Employment Standards Act. An employer may grant them, but no public holiday pay attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Victoria Day (May 18) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Thanksgiving (October 12) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Newfoundland and Labrador – Statutory holidays in 2026

Newfoundland and Labrador has six paid public holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of businesses in the province; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see the Labour Standards Act, Part II.

Note: Newfoundland and Labrador observes several other days, but none is a paid public holiday under the Labour Standards Act. Depending on the day, it may be a provincial public service holiday, a mandatory shop closing day, or both:

• St. Patrick’s Day (March 16) — provincial public service holiday
• Easter Sunday (April 5) — mandatory shop closing day
• Easter Monday (April 6)
• St. George’s Day (April 20) — provincial public service holiday
• Victoria Day (May 18) — provincial public service holiday; mandatory shop closing day; a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• June Holiday (June 22) — provincial public service holiday; consultations regarding this day are ongoing
• Orangeman’s Day (July 13) — provincial public service holiday
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — provincial public service holiday, subject to ongoing consultations; a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Thanksgiving (October 12) — provincial public service holiday; mandatory shop closing day; a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — mandatory shop closing day; a general holiday for federally regulated employers; observed Monday, December 28 in the provincial public service

The provincial public service dates come from the Treasury Board’s 2026 paid holidays list; they bind government employees, not private employers. The mandatory closing days come from the public notice on shops closing holidays for 2026 (PDF).

Local civic holidays: The Shops Closing Act also requires shops to close on Regatta Day in St. John’s and in Harbour Grace, as well as on the day fixed as a civic holiday by the council of any other municipality. Regatta Day falls on the first Wednesday in August (August 5, 2026) and may be postponed depending on weather. None of these days is a paid public holiday under the Labour Standards Act.

Northwest Territories – Statutory holidays in 2026

The Northwest Territories has eleven statutory holidays in 2026. They apply to territorially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of businesses in the territory; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see the Northwest Territories’ rules on employment standards.

¹ June 21, 2026 falls on a Sunday. The employee is entitled to a holiday with pay whether or not the holiday falls on a working day: the pay is owed in every case. Substituting another day is not automatic; it requires either a collective agreement setting out the substituted day, with written notice to the Employment Standards Officer, or, absent an agreement, the Officer’s approval and the consent of a majority of the affected employees.

Note: Easter Monday (April 6) and Boxing Day (December 26) are not statutory holidays under the Employment Standards Act. They are, however, territorial public service holidays, which is why they are often mistaken for statutory holidays. A private employer may grant them, but no holiday pay attaches to them. December 26 is a general holiday for federally regulated employers.

Nova Scotia – Statutory holidays in 2026

Nova Scotia has six paid holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Nova Scotia businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Nova Scotia’s rules on paid holidays.

Note: The following are not paid holidays under the Labour Standards Code. An employer may grant them, but no holiday pay attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Victoria Day (May 18) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Natal Day (August 3) — a civic holiday, widely granted; a municipal by-law restricts retail opening hours in the Halifax Regional Municipality
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — provincial offices, schools and regulated child care are closed, but no pay is owed in the private sector; a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Thanksgiving (October 12) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Retail closing days: In addition to the six paid holidays in the table above, Nova Scotia requires certain retail businesses to close on Easter Sunday (April 5), Thanksgiving (October 12) and Boxing Day (December 26). These three days are not paid holidays: the business must close, but no pay is owed to the employee. See the rules on closing days.

Remembrance Day: November 11 is governed separately in Nova Scotia. It is not a paid holiday, but the Remembrance Day Act requires most retail businesses to close. An employee who does not work that day is owed nothing; one who works for an employer required to close may be entitled to another day off with pay. See the rules on Remembrance Day.

Nunavut – Statutory holidays in 2026

Nunavut has eleven general holidays in 2026. They apply to territorially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Nunavut businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Nunavut’s rules on labour standards.

Note: Easter Monday (April 6) and Boxing Day (December 26) are not general holidays under Nunavut’s Labour Standards Act. They are, however, territorial public service holidays, which is why they are often mistaken for general holidays. A private employer may grant them, but no holiday pay attaches to them. December 26 is a general holiday for federally regulated employers.

Ontario – Statutory holidays in 2026

Ontario has nine public holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Ontario businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and the calculation of public holiday pay, see Ontario’s rules on public holidays.

¹ December 26, 2026 falls on a Saturday. If that day is not ordinarily a working day for the employee, they are entitled to a substitute day off paid at public holiday pay or, if they agree electronically or in writing, to public holiday pay with no substitute day. The law does not fix the date of the substitute day: it must be taken within three months of the public holiday, or within twelve months if the employee agrees, and the employer must provide a written statement before the public holiday.

Note: The following are not public holidays under the Employment Standards Act, 2000. An employer may grant them, but no public holiday pay attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Civic Holiday (August 3) — widely granted but not mandatory
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Remembrance Day (November 11) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Prince Edward Island – Statutory holidays in 2026

Prince Edward Island has eight paid holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of businesses in the province; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Prince Edward Island’s rules on paid holidays.

Note: The following are not paid holidays in Prince Edward Island. An employer may grant them, but no legal obligation attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Victoria Day (May 18) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Thanksgiving (October 12) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Quebec – Statutory holidays in 2026

Quebec has eight statutory holidays with pay in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Quebec businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For the calculation of the indemnity and special cases, see the CNESST’s rules on statutory holidays.

¹ The employer chooses between Good Friday and Easter Monday; the employee is not entitled to both.

² The National Holiday is governed by a statute separate from the Act respecting labour standards, which narrows the window for the compensatory day off.

Note: January 2, September 30, November 11 and December 26 are not statutory holidays in Quebec, even though the last three are general holidays for federally regulated employers.

Saskatchewan – Statutory holidays in 2026

Saskatchewan has ten public holidays in 2026. They apply to provincially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Saskatchewan businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Saskatchewan’s rules on public holidays.

Note: The following are not public holidays under The Saskatchewan Employment Act. An employer may grant them, but no public holiday pay attaches to them:

• Easter Monday (April 6)
• National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Yukon – Statutory holidays in 2026

Yukon has eleven general holidays in 2026. They apply to territorially regulated employers, which is the vast majority of Yukon businesses; federally regulated businesses follow a different list. For eligibility and pay calculation, see Yukon’s rules on statutory holidays.

¹ June 21, 2026 falls on a Sunday. Where a general holiday falls on an employee’s regular day off, the employee is entitled to the holiday on the next working day immediately following — Monday, June 22, 2026.

Note: The following are not general holidays under the Employment Standards Act. An employer may grant them, but no holiday pay attaches to them:

• Heritage Day (February 20)
• Easter Monday (April 6)
• Boxing Day (December 26) — a general holiday for federally regulated employers

Federal jurisdiction – Statutory holidays in 2026

The Canada Labour Code provides for ten general holidays in 2026. They apply to federally regulated businesses: banks, telecommunications and broadcasting, interprovincial or international transportation (air, rail, road, marine), ports, grain elevators, nuclear energy, postal service, band councils and federal Crown corporations — roughly 6% of Canadian employees. These employers are not subject to provincial or territorial employment standards. For eligibility and pay calculation, see the federal rules on general holidays.

Note: Easter Monday (April 6) is not a general holiday under the Canada Labour Code. It is a paid holiday for federal public service employees, which explains the frequent confusion: banks and telecommunications companies, for example, are under no obligation to grant it.

Provincial holidays do not apply: A federally regulated employer follows this list and this list only. In Quebec, for instance, it must grant September 30, November 11 and December 26, but not the National Holiday on June 24; in Ontario, it does not have to grant Family Day; in British Columbia, neither Family Day nor B.C. Day. May 18 is Victoria Day, not National Patriots’ Day, even in Quebec.