Public holidays in Iceland, 2028
Iceland observes 16 nationwide public holidays in 2028. After weekends and those holidays are removed, the working year comes to 250 days.
Every public holiday in 2028
| Date | Day | Holiday | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, 1 Jan | Saturday Weekend | New Year's Day Nýársdagur |
Nationwide |
| Thu, 13 Apr | Thursday | Maundy Thursday Skírdagur |
Nationwide |
| Fri, 14 Apr | Friday | Good Friday Föstudagurinn langi |
Nationwide |
| Sun, 16 Apr | Sunday Weekend | Easter Sunday Páskadagur |
Nationwide |
| Mon, 17 Apr | Monday | Easter Monday Annar í páskum |
Nationwide |
| Thu, 20 Apr | Thursday | First Day of Summer Sumardagurinn fyrsti |
Nationwide |
| Mon, 1 May | Monday | May Day Verkalýðsdagurinn |
Nationwide |
| Thu, 25 May | Thursday | Ascension Day Uppstigningardagur |
Nationwide |
| Sun, 4 Jun | Sunday Weekend | Pentecost Hvítasunnudagur |
Nationwide |
| Mon, 5 Jun | Monday | Whit Monday Annar í hvítasunnu |
Nationwide |
| Sat, 17 Jun | Saturday Weekend | Icelandic National Day Þjóðhátíðardagurinn |
Nationwide |
| Mon, 7 Aug | Monday | Commerce Day Frídagur verslunarmanna |
Nationwide |
| Sun, 24 Dec | Sunday Weekend | Christmas Eve Aðfangadagur |
Nationwide |
| Mon, 25 Dec | Monday | Christmas Day Jóladagur |
Nationwide |
| Tue, 26 Dec | Tuesday | St. Stephen's Day Annar í jólum |
Nationwide |
| Sun, 31 Dec | Sunday Weekend | New Year's Eve Gamlársdagur |
Nationwide |
Working days month by month
| Month | Calendar days | Weekend | Holidays | Working days | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31 | 10 | 0 | 21 | 168 |
| February | 29 | 8 | 0 | 21 | 168 |
| March | 31 | 8 | 0 | 23 | 184 |
| April | 30 | 10 | 4 | 16 | 128 |
| May | 31 | 8 | 2 | 21 | 168 |
| June | 30 | 8 | 1 | 21 | 168 |
| July | 31 | 10 | 0 | 21 | 168 |
| August | 31 | 8 | 1 | 22 | 176 |
| September | 30 | 9 | 0 | 21 | 168 |
| October | 31 | 9 | 0 | 22 | 176 |
| November | 30 | 8 | 0 | 22 | 176 |
| December | 31 | 10 | 2 | 19 | 152 |
| Year | 366 | 106 | 10 | 250 | 2,000 |
Reading these figures
The working day count treats Saturday and Sunday as the weekend, which is the standard working week in Iceland. Only nationwide holidays are deducted; a date observed in one region alone still counts as a working day here, because a national figure that moved with regional calendars would describe nobody accurately.
6 of this year's public holidays fall on a weekend and therefore add no time away from work: New Year's Day (1 Jan), Easter Sunday (16 Apr), Pentecost (4 Jun), Icelandic National Day (17 Jun), Christmas Eve (24 Dec), New Year's Eve (31 Dec). Whether these are compensated with a substitute day depends on national rules rather than on the calendar, so confirm before planning around them.
The longest working month is March at 23 days; the shortest is April at 16. That spread of 7 days matters for anything billed or accrued monthly, which is why payroll and capacity plans that assume an even year drift by the end of it. The thinnest quarter is Q2, carrying 58 working days across April, May, June.
Compared with 2027, which held 250 working days, 2028 is identical in length.
Against the 204 countries covered here for 2028, Iceland's 16 nationwide holidays put it above the median of 12, around the 88th percentile. The range across all countries this year runs from 3 to 50.
The holidays produce 5 breaks of three consecutive non-working days or more. The longest runs 5 days, from 13 April 2028 to 17 April 2028, built around Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and Easter Sunday and Easter Monday. A further 2 working days are stranded between a holiday and a weekend, where one day of leave buys a break of four days or more. The full breakdown is here.
9 of this year's holidays sit on a different calendar date than in 2027: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, First Day of Summer, Ascension Day and others. Dates that move cannot be carried forward from last year's planning spreadsheet, which is the most common way a holiday is missed.