Public holidays in Germany work on two levels. Nine dates are observed nationwide in 2026, and additional holidays apply only in certain federal states. Unlike in some countries, a public holiday that falls on a weekend is not moved to the following Monday, so it is worth checking the relevant German public holiday calendar for your own Bundesland before planning travel, deliveries, or a day off.
This matters in practice for anyone coordinating work, study, or a visit across more than one part of the country. A business meeting scheduled in Frankfurt in June may run as normal while the same date is a public holiday a short drive away in Saarland. Shops, schools, public offices, and even postal deliveries follow the calendar of their own federal state, so the safest approach is always to check the specific date and location rather than assume a single national list applies everywhere.
Public holidays in Germany at a glance
Public holidays in Germany are not set by a single national law. The nine nationwide dates rest on long-standing federal practice and are confirmed in each state’s own each state’s own public holiday law (Feiertagsgesetz), while every additional holiday is decided individually by the 16 Länder. This is why someone working in Munich may have a day off that a colleague in Hamburg does not, even on the same date. For international residents, employees, and students, the practical takeaway is simple: the nationwide list applies everywhere, and anything beyond it depends entirely on where you live or work.
This split dates back to Germany’s federal structure, under which culture and religious affairs, including public holidays, fall under state rather than federal authority. As a result, predominantly Catholic states in the south and west tend to keep more religious holidays, such as Corpus Christi or All Saints’ Day, while several states in the east and north instead observe Reformation Day. Neither list is more official than the other; both carry full legal weight within their own territory.
Nationwide public holidays in Germany in 2026
These nine dates are observed in all 16 federal states in 2026, according to the German public holiday calendar published by Deutsche Bundesbank:
| Date | Day of the week | Holiday |
| 1 January | Thursday | New Year’s Day |
| 3 April | Friday | Good Friday |
| 6 April | Monday | Easter Monday |
| 1 May | Friday | Labour Day |
| 14 May | Thursday | Ascension Day |
| 25 May | Monday | Whit Monday |
| 3 October | Saturday | Day of German Unity |
| 25 December | Friday | Christmas Day |
| 26 December | Saturday | Boxing Day |
Two of these dates, 3 October and 26 December, fall on a Saturday in 2026. Because German law does not shift a public holiday to the nearest weekday, neither date brings an extra day off work; it simply overlaps with a day that was already non-working for most employees.
State-specific public holidays in Germany by state in 2026
Beyond the nationwide nine, each federal state adds its own holidays, and some of these fall on a Sunday in 2026, which likewise does not create a substitute day off. According to iamexpat.de and the Bundesbank calendar, the main regional dates for 2026 are:
| Date | Day of the week | Holiday | Observed in |
| 6 January | Tuesday | Epiphany | Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Saxony-Anhalt |
| 8 March | Sunday | International Women’s Day | Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern |
| 4 June | Thursday | Corpus Christi | Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, and parts of Saxony and Thuringia |
| 15 August | Saturday | Assumption Day | Saarland and parts of Bavaria |
| 20 September | Sunday | World Children’s Day | Thuringia |
| 31 October | Saturday | Reformation Day | Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia |
| 1 November | Sunday | All Saints’ Day | Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland |
| 18 November | Wednesday | Day of Prayer and Repentance | Saxony |
If your federal state is not listed next to a given date, that date is an ordinary working day there. Employers, schools, and public offices follow the holiday calendar of the state they are located in, not the employee’s state of residence. Saxony stands out with two additional holidays of its own, Reformation Day and the Day of Prayer and Repentance, which together with the nationwide nine give the state eleven public holidays in 2026, among the highest counts in the country. Bremen and Hamburg, by contrast, keep closer to the nationwide minimum, with only Reformation Day added locally.
What is open on public holidays in Germany?
The general rule is straightforward: on a public holiday, most shops, offices, banks, and public authorities are closed, following the same restrictions that normally apply on a Sunday. Shop opening hours are regulated at state level, through each federal state’s own shop opening law (Ladenöffnungsgesetz), which is why the exact exceptions differ from one federal state to another.
Typical exceptions that stay open include petrol stations, pharmacies on duty under the local rota system, some bakeries for a limited number of hours in the morning, and shops in designated tourist areas or at main railway stations. Restaurants and cafés generally continue to operate. A smaller group of so-called “stille Feiertage” (quiet public holidays), including Good Friday, carries additional restrictions in several states, such as limits on public dancing or loud entertainment, sometimes enforced by local police. Online deliveries and parcel services are also affected: couriers generally do not deliver on a public holiday in the receiving address’s state, which can add a day to delivery times around dates such as Ascension Day or Whit Monday. Because these rules sit with each Bundesland, it is worth checking the local authority’s website or a shop’s own notice before relying on it being open.
FAQ
Are all public holidays in Germany observed nationwide? No. Only nine dates apply across all 16 federal states in 2026. Every other public holiday is specific to one or more states and does not apply elsewhere in the country.
Are shops open on public holidays? Most shops follow Sunday closing rules and stay closed, with limited exceptions such as petrol stations, some bakeries, and pharmacies on duty. The exact exceptions are set by each federal state, so it is worth checking locally.
Do public holidays move to Monday if they fall on a weekend? No. Unlike some countries, Germany does not shift a public holiday to the next working day when it falls on a Saturday or Sunday. In 2026, this affects dates including 3 October, 26 December, and several state-specific holidays.
Does the applicable holiday depend on where I live or work? It depends on where the employer, school, or office is located, not on an employee’s home address. Someone commuting across a state border should check the holiday calendar of the state where their workplace sits.
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