Public holidays in Palau, 2026
Palau observes 11 nationwide public holidays in 2026. After weekends and those holidays are removed, the working year comes to 252 days.
Every public holiday in 2026
| Date | Day | Holiday | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu, 1 Jan | Thursday | New Year's Day | Nationwide |
| Sun, 15 Mar | Sunday Weekend | Youth Day | Nationwide |
| Tue, 5 May | Tuesday | Senior Citizens Day | Nationwide |
| Mon, 1 Jun | Monday | President's Day | Nationwide |
| Thu, 9 Jul | Thursday | Constitution Day | Nationwide |
| Mon, 7 Sep | Monday | Labour Day | Nationwide |
| Thu, 1 Oct | Thursday | Independence Day | Nationwide |
| Sat, 24 Oct | Saturday Weekend | United Nations Day | Nationwide |
| Thu, 26 Nov | Thursday | Thanksgiving Day | Nationwide |
| Fri, 27 Nov | Friday | Family Day | Nationwide |
| Fri, 25 Dec | Friday | Christmas Day | Nationwide |
Working days month by month
| Month | Calendar days | Weekend | Holidays | Working days | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31 | 9 | 1 | 21 | 168 |
| February | 28 | 8 | 0 | 20 | 160 |
| March | 31 | 9 | 0 | 22 | 176 |
| April | 30 | 8 | 0 | 22 | 176 |
| May | 31 | 10 | 1 | 20 | 160 |
| June | 30 | 8 | 1 | 21 | 168 |
| July | 31 | 8 | 1 | 22 | 176 |
| August | 31 | 10 | 0 | 21 | 168 |
| September | 30 | 8 | 1 | 21 | 168 |
| October | 31 | 9 | 1 | 21 | 168 |
| November | 30 | 9 | 2 | 19 | 152 |
| December | 31 | 8 | 1 | 22 | 176 |
| Year | 365 | 104 | 9 | 252 | 2,016 |
Reading these figures
The working day count treats Saturday and Sunday as the weekend, which is the standard working week in Palau. 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.
2 of this year's public holidays fall on a weekend and therefore add no time away from work: Youth Day (15 Mar), United Nations Day (24 Oct). 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 22 days; the shortest is November at 19. That spread of 3 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 Q4, carrying 62 working days across October, November, December.
Compared with 2025, which held 252 working days, 2026 is identical in length.
Against the 204 countries covered here for 2026, Palau's 11 nationwide holidays put it below the median of 12, around the 38th percentile. The range across all countries this year runs from 3 to 49.
The holidays produce 4 breaks of three consecutive non-working days or more. The longest runs 4 days, from 26 November 2026 to 29 November 2026, built around Thanksgiving Day and Family Day. A further 4 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.
3 of this year's holidays sit on a different calendar date than in 2025: Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Family Day. Dates that move cannot be carried forward from last year's planning spreadsheet, which is the most common way a holiday is missed.