Public holidays in Türkiye 2026: the full list, half-day eves and timesheets

List of public holidays in Türkiye 2026

In 2026 national and public holidays in Türkiye totalled 15.5 days: six fixed full-day holidays, the 1.5-day Republic Day, the 3.5-day Ramadan Feast and the 4.5-day Feast of Sacrifice. Fixed days come from Law No. 2429; religious holiday dates come from the 2026 religious days calendar of the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet).

Source: Law No. 2429 on National Holidays and Public Holidays, art. 1–2; religious holiday dates from the Diyanet 2026 religious days calendar (eves on 19 March and 26 May). Weekdays are calculated from the calendar.

How is the total reached? Six fixed full days (1 January, 23 April, 1 May, 19 May, 15 July, 30 August) + Republic Day 1.5 days + Ramadan Feast 3.5 days + Feast of Sacrifice 4.5 days = 15.5 days. This is the number of holiday days on the calendar; how many of an employee’s own working days were holidays is calculated in the next section.

As of 1 November 2026, when this guide was updated, there are no further public holidays in the rest of the year; the 2026 calendar remains relevant for year-end timesheet closing and retrospective checks.

Types of holiday: national, official and religious

Law No. 2429 groups holidays in four: the single national holiday is 29 October; 23 April, 19 May and 30 August are official holidays; Ramadan and the Feast of Sacrifice are religious holidays; New Year’s Day, 1 May and 15 July are listed separately as public holidays. All of them are subject to the public holiday rules.

The grouping makes no pay difference on the timesheet: the Labour Law applies the same rules to “national holidays and public holidays” (art. 44, art. 47). But Law No. 2429 has a special provision for 29 October, explained below.

How many 2026 public holidays fell on weekdays?

At a Monday–Friday workplace, 11.5 days of the 2026 public holidays fell on weekdays: 10 full days and three half days. In a six-day week that also works Saturdays the figure rises to 13.5, because the second day of the Ramadan Feast and the fourth day of the Feast of Sacrifice fell on Saturdays.

A public holiday falling on the weekly rest day (Sunday at most workplaces) does not add a working day off. In shift workplaces the weekly rest day varies by person, so the figure differs by employee; on the timesheet the calendar should be compared with each person’s own working days.

The half-day eve: the 1 pm rule

The holiday on an eve starts at 1 pm; work in the morning is a normal working day. Law No. 2429 defines the Ramadan Feast as “3.5 days from 1 pm on the eve” and the Feast of Sacrifice as “4.5 days”; Republic Day also starts at 1 pm on 28 October (art. 1, art. 2).

• On the timesheet. The eve is split in two: normal work until 1 pm, public holiday after 1 pm. If the employee also works in the afternoon, that time is public holiday work.
• Pay. If the afternoon is not worked, the pay for that half day is not deducted. If it is worked, the calculation of the extra pay is explained in the weekly rest and public holiday pay guide.
• Shifts. A shift crossing 1 pm is split in two; in an 8 am–4 pm shift, 5 hours are normal work and 3 hours are public holiday work (before deducting breaks).

The law’s Saturday and 29 October provisions

Law No. 2429 contains two further provisions: when national and public holidays end on a Friday evening, the whole of the following Saturday is a holiday; and on 29 October private workplaces must close (art. 2). The law also defines the weekly rest day as Sunday (art. 3).

These provisions are in the text of the law; however, the Labour Law leaves whether work is done on public holidays to the collective agreement or employment contract and, if the contract is silent, requires the employee’s consent (4857 art. 44). How the two laws apply together at your workplace, in particular for the Saturday after Friday 1 May 2026 and for work on 29 October, cannot be read definitively from the text alone; decide it with your payroll adviser or lawyer.

Working on a public holiday: consent and pay

Whether work is done on a public holiday is agreed by contract; if the contract is silent, the employee’s consent is required (art. 44). An employee who does not work is not docked that day’s pay; an employee who works is paid an extra day’s wage for each day worked (art. 47).

We do not repeat how the amount is calculated, why a monthly-paid employee gets “one more day” or how it differs from the weekly rest day; the details and a calculator are in the public holiday pay guide. This page covers the calendar, that page the pay.

Do bridge days and administrative leave bind the private sector?

No. The administrative leave occasionally granted in the public sector by Presidential circular covers only staff of public institutions; it creates no holiday for private-sector workplaces. Law No. 2429 has no holiday called a “bridge day”.

In the private sector, if a working day between a holiday and the weekend is to be taken off, there are three routes:

• Paid leave. The employer grants the day as paid leave at its own discretion. Other leave granted by the employer cannot be set off against annual leave (art. 56), so the day is not deducted from the annual leave balance.
• Annual leave. The employee may use the day from annual leave if they wish. Annual leave may be split by agreement, with one part not shorter than ten days (art. 56); a single-day use requires the employee’s consent and compliance with this rule.
• Make-up work. If the workplace closes before or after national and public holidays, the employer may require make-up work within four months for the time not worked; it does not count as overtime (art. 64); the rules are in the make-up work guide.

Holiday planning in shift and 24/7 workplaces

In continuously operating workplaces a public holiday is not a closure but a planning task: who will work is decided in advance, consent is obtained in advance where needed, and shifts crossing midnight or 1 pm are split hour by hour. The plan should be announced to employees before the holiday month starts.

• Consent first. If the contract has no clause on working public holidays, the employee’s consent is required (art. 44). Obtain it in writing before the holiday; consent obtained on the morning of the holiday is open to dispute.
• Shifts crossing midnight. In a shift from 10 pm on 18 May to 6 am on 19 May, the 6 hours after midnight fall on 19 May, a public holiday; the first 2 hours are a normal working day. The timesheet splits hours by calendar day.
• Shifts crossing the eve. The 1 pm boundary applies in the same way on 28 October, 19 March and 26 May.
• Rotation. Rotating who works on holidays prevents the same people working every feast and weakens claims of discrimination by employees who withhold consent.
• Weekly rest separately. A weekly rest day falling on a holiday does not remove the employee’s weekly rest entitlement; it is shown separately on the shift plan.

How to start planning for 2027

The fixed holidays of 2027 are set in law and their weekdays are already known; only the Ramadan Feast and Feast of Sacrifice dates are added from the official Diyanet calendar. When this guide was written, Diyanet’s 2027 page returned no content, so we have not given the religious holiday dates.

The days are the 2027 calendar equivalents of the fixed dates in Law No. 2429 art. 1–2. For religious holidays, see the Diyanet calendar.

How are public holidays recorded on the timesheet?

Public holidays come onto the timesheet from a calendar set up once at the start of the year: full days are marked “public holiday”, eves as half days split at 1 pm. Holiday work is a separate item; annual leave and sick leave that coincide with a holiday follow their own rules.

• Holidays during annual leave. National holidays, weekly rest days and public holidays falling within annual leave are not counted as leave days (art. 56), and their pay is paid separately (art. 57). Annual leave covering 27–30 May is extended by the holiday days.
• Holiday work. Kept in a column separate from overtime; public holiday work is not overtime and does not use up the 270-hour annual cap.
• Rebuild the calendar every year. Fixed days do not change; religious holidays move about eleven days earlier each year. For the 2027 religious holiday dates, see the official Diyanet religious days calendar.

In our workforce management software the company calendar and the public holiday calendar are applied to the timesheet; clock-ins on weekly rest days and public holidays are not blocked, the employee is asked and the manager notified. The public holiday work report gives the holiday days worked per person (full day 1, half day 0.5); your payroll adviser calculates the amount in payroll. Details: timesheet software.

This guide is for information only and is not legal or payroll advice. Your collective agreement or employment contract may contain more favourable terms.