Australia has no single rule for public holidays that fall on a weekend. The original date may remain the only public holiday, be replaced by a weekday, or remain alongside an additional weekday holiday. The result depends on the holiday and the jurisdiction.
Anzac Day shows all three treatments across the 2026 and 2027 calendars. Christmas Day and Boxing Day use another set of rules when they fall on a weekend in 2027.
Anzac Day in 2026
Anzac Day is Saturday 25 April 2026. These are the statewide dates published for each jurisdiction and loaded by the calculator:
| Jurisdiction | Dates treated as public holidays |
|---|---|
| NSW | Sat 25 Apr and Mon 27 Apr |
| Western Australia | Sat 25 Apr and Mon 27 Apr |
| ACT | Sat 25 Apr and Mon 27 Apr |
| Victoria | Sat 25 Apr only |
| Queensland | Sat 25 Apr only |
| South Australia | Sat 25 Apr only |
| Tasmania | Sat 25 Apr only |
| Northern Territory | Sat 25 Apr only |
NSW and the ACT formally declared the additional Monday for 2026. A declaration for one year does not establish the date for a later year. Western Australian legislation provides an additional Monday when Anzac Day falls on a weekend.
Anzac Day in 2027
Anzac Day is Sunday 25 April 2027. The published calendars use three treatments:
| Jurisdiction | Dates treated as public holidays |
|---|---|
| NSW | Sun 25 Apr and Mon 26 Apr |
| Western Australia | Sun 25 Apr and Mon 26 Apr |
| Queensland | Mon 26 Apr only |
| Northern Territory | Mon 26 Apr only |
| ACT | Mon 26 Apr only |
| Victoria | Sun 25 Apr only |
| South Australia | Sun 25 Apr only |
| Tasmania | Sun 25 Apr only |
Queensland's Holidays Act 1983 says Anzac Day is observed on 25 April unless it falls on Sunday, when it is observed on Monday. The Northern Territory and ACT calendars likewise publish Monday 26 April for 2027. Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania publish no replacement Monday.
The Sunday remains listed alongside Monday in NSW and WA. Queensland, the Northern Territory and the ACT list Monday instead. Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania retain Sunday without a Monday holiday. A general assumption that every Sunday holiday moves to Monday will therefore produce the wrong calendar in several jurisdictions.
Worked example: the 2026 Anzac split
Suppose a five-working-day period starts on Monday 20 April 2026. The start date is excluded.
| Date | NSW, WA and ACT | VIC, QLD, SA, TAS and NT |
|---|---|---|
| Tue 21–Fri 24 Apr | Working days 1–4 | Working days 1–4 |
| Sat 25–Sun 26 Apr | Weekend | Weekend |
| Mon 27 Apr | Additional Anzac Day holiday | Working day 5 |
| Tue 28 Apr | Working day 5 | After the period ended |
The calculator returns Tuesday 28 April 2026 for NSW, WA and the ACT. It returns Monday 27 April 2026 for Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory. The only changed input is the selected state or territory.
These dates come from the published holiday calendars. They establish the dates excluded from this calculation, not an employee's pay or a business's trading rights.
Christmas and Boxing Day in 2026
Christmas Day is Friday 25 December 2026 and Boxing Day is Saturday 26 December.
Seven jurisdictions publish both Saturday 26 December and Monday 28 December as public holidays. South Australia calls 26 December Proclamation Day holiday rather than Boxing Day. Tasmania's statewide table lists Monday 28 December as Boxing Day and does not list Saturday 26 December as a separate statewide holiday.
All eight profiles exclude Monday 28 December from a Monday-to-Friday working-day calculation. The different treatment of Saturday does not change that result because Saturday is already outside the working week.
The four-day Christmas block in 2027
Christmas Day is Saturday 25 December 2027 and Boxing Day is Sunday 26 December. Every jurisdiction publishes weekday holidays on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December.
| Jurisdiction | Weekend dates also listed? | Weekday holidays |
|---|---|---|
| NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Northern Territory | Sat 25 and Sun 26 | Mon 27 and Tue 28 Dec |
| ACT | Its calendar pairs Christmas with Sat 25 and Mon 27, and Boxing Day with Sun 26 and Tue 28 | Mon 27 and Tue 28 Dec |
| Tasmania | Sat 25 is listed; Sun 26 is not | Mon 27 and Tue 28 Dec |
South Australia's Sunday 26 December holiday is Proclamation Day. In a standard Monday-to-Friday count, every profile excludes Monday and Tuesday, while the preceding weekend is already excluded. The legal name still matters if an employment, contract or statutory rule refers to a particular holiday.
Australia Day uses another pattern
NSW illustrates why the holiday itself must be checked. When Australia Day falls on a weekend, the weekend date is not the public holiday; the following Monday replaces it. By contrast, its Christmas and Boxing Day rules retain the original dates and add weekdays.
The treatment of one holiday cannot be used to predict another holiday in the same state.
Easter Saturday is not a substitute day
Good Friday, the Saturday after Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday are separately named holidays where a jurisdiction recognises them. Easter Saturday is not a holiday that moved from another date.
The jurisdictions also recognise different Easter days. Western Australia has Easter Sunday but not Easter Saturday; Tasmania's statewide calendar has Good Friday and Easter Monday, while its Easter Tuesday generally applies only to the Tasmanian Public Service. Those differences belong to the Easter public-holiday guide, not to a weekend-substitution formula.
Employment treatment is a separate question
The annual calendar supplies the holiday dates. It does not calculate an employee's pay.
Under the National Employment Standards, an employee may be absent on a public holiday, subject to the rules about reasonable requests to work and reasonable refusals. Payment for absence depends on the employee's ordinary hours. An award or registered agreement can contain penalty rates, minimum engagements or provisions for substituting another day or part-day.
The applicable award, registered agreement or employment contract determines payment for the original date, an additional date or a substituted date.
Using the calculator
Select the State or Territory and the year. The calculator loads the dates published for that jurisdiction rather than applying a national weekend formula. Its result shows which dates were excluded.
For a deadline, the governing document must still be checked for its use of calendar days or working days, its definition of public holiday or business day, and any rule that moves a deadline ending on a non-working day. A regional holiday may also require a more specific calendar selection.
Sources and verification
Sources checked on 4 August 2026.
- NSW Government: Public holidays, 2026 and 2027 Anzac, Christmas and Boxing Day dates and the distinction between replacement and additional days.
- Business Victoria: Victorian public holidays 2026 and 2027, no Anzac replacement and the Christmas dates.
- Queensland Government: Public holidays, 2026–2029 dates and holiday-specific rules.
- SafeWork SA: Public holidays, Anzac Day, Christmas Day and Proclamation Day treatment.
- Western Australian Government: Public holidays, 2026–2027 dates and weekend rules.
- WorkSafe Tasmania: Public holidays, statewide dates and substitute-holiday notes.
- NT Government: Public and regional holidays, 2026–2028 dates.
- ACT Government: Public holidays, 2026–2029 dates.
- Fair Work Ombudsman: Public holidays, National Employment Standards and award or agreement considerations.
