COUNTRYSpec

Public holidays in British Virgin Islands

15 days in 2026 · 13 in 2027

Back to British Virgin IslandsCaribbean

Next public holiday

Heroes and Foreparents Day

After it: The 1949 Great March and Restoration Day, Monday 23 November

Monday, 19 October 2026

The British Virgin Islands have 15 public holidays in 2026, and every one of them falls on a weekday. Fourteen recur each year and one is a one-off: Tuesday 30 June 2026, for the 250th anniversary of freedom at Nottingham Estate in Long Look. The Cabinet fixes the dates each year under section 5 of the Public Holidays Act, and most of the territory's own days are kept on a Monday.

More than half the calendar is about the territory's own past. The first Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of August mark the end of slavery on 1 August 1834; Heroes and Foreparents Day in October and the Great March and Restoration Day in November honour the march of 1949 that won back an elected council; and a day in March honours Lavity Stoutt, the first Chief Minister. Several of these days took their present names only in 2020 and 2021.

Days off in 2026
15Nationwide public holidays
On a weekday
15Monday to Friday
On a weekend
0Saturday or Sunday
Long weekends
9and 2 with one day of leave

2026

Public holidays in British Virgin Islands in 2026

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayKept on 1 January. In 2026 it falls on a Thursday, so Friday 2 January is the one day of leave that joins it to the weekend.Thursday
  2. 9 March: Lavity Stoutt's BirthdayHamilton Lavity Stoutt was born on 7 March 1929, sat in the Legislative Council from 1957 until his death in 1995 and became the first Chief Minister in 1967. The day off is given on a Monday: 9 March in 2026 and 8 March in 2027.MondayDate moves
  3. 3 April: Good FridayEaster follows the Western church calendar. Businesses may not sell liquor on Good Friday until 6 p.m.FridayDate moves
  4. 6 April: Easter MondayThe Monday after Easter, making a four-day weekend with Good Friday.MondayDate moves
  5. 25 May: Whit MondayThe Monday after Pentecost, or Whit Sunday.MondayDate moves
  6. 12 June: Sovereign's BirthdayThe monarch's official birthday, normally kept on the second Friday in June. It was called Festival Friday until 2020.FridayDate moves
  7. 30 June: Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Freedom at Nottingham EstateA one-off holiday on Tuesday 30 June 2026. The people of the Nottingham estate at Long Look were freed in 1776, decades before emancipation.TuesdayDate moves
  8. 6 July: Virgin Islands DayThe territory's own day, kept since 1956: first as Colony Day, as Territory Day from 1978 and under its present name since 2021. The Cabinet set it on Monday 6 July in 2026.MondayDate moves
  9. 3 August: Emancipation MondayThe first Monday in August, for the end of slavery on 1 August 1834. Called Festival Monday until 2020, it opens the three days of the Emancipation Festival.MondayDate moves
  10. 4 August: Emancipation TuesdayThe second of the three August days, called Festival Tuesday until 2020.TuesdayDate moves
  11. 5 August: Emancipation WednesdayThe last of the three August days, called Festival Wednesday until 2020. In 2026 the run from Saturday 1 August to Wednesday 5 August gives five days off in a row.WednesdayDate moves
  12. 19 October: Heroes and Foreparents DayFirst celebrated on 18 October 2021 and kept on the third Monday of October, in place of St Ursula's Day. It honours the ten people named national heroes and the generations before them.MondayDate moves
  13. 23 November: The 1949 Great March and Restoration DayThe fourth Monday in November, first observed in 2021. It marks the march of more than 1,500 people on 24 November 1949 and the Legislative Council restored in 1950.MondayDate moves
  14. 25 December: Christmas DayKept on 25 December. In 2026 it falls on a Friday and, with Boxing Day moved to Monday 28 December, starts four days off.FridayDate moves
  15. 28 December: St. Stephen's DayBoxing DayThe first weekday after Christmas. In 2026, with 26 December on a Saturday, it is kept on Monday 28 December.MondayDate moves

Long weekends

Long weekends in British Virgin Islands in 2026

Runs of three days or more off, with weekends counted, and the working days that join a holiday to a weekend when taken as leave.

  • 4daysThu 1 Jan to Sun 4 JanWith Fri 2 Jan taken as leave · New Year's Day
  • 3daysSat 7 Mar to Mon 9 MarLavity Stoutt's Birthday
  • 4daysFri 3 Apr to Mon 6 AprGood Friday, Easter Monday
  • 3daysSat 23 May to Mon 25 MayWhit Monday
  • 3daysFri 12 Jun to Sun 14 JunSovereign's Birthday
  • 4daysSat 27 Jun to Tue 30 JunWith Mon 29 Jun taken as leave · Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Freedom at Nottingham Estate
  • 3daysSat 4 Jul to Mon 6 JulVirgin Islands Day
  • 5daysSat 1 Aug to Wed 5 AugEmancipation Monday, Emancipation Tuesday, Emancipation Wednesday
  • 3daysSat 17 Oct to Mon 19 OctHeroes and Foreparents Day
  • 3daysSat 21 Nov to Mon 23 NovThe 1949 Great March and Restoration Day
  • 4daysFri 25 Dec to Mon 28 DecChristmas Day, St. Stephen's Day

2027

Public holidays in British Virgin Islands in 2027

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayFriday
  2. 8 March: Lavity Stoutt's BirthdayMondayDate moves
  3. 26 March: Good FridayFridayDate moves
  4. 29 March: Easter MondayMondayDate moves
  5. 17 May: Whit MondayMondayDate moves
  6. 11 June: Sovereign's BirthdayFridayDate moves
  7. 1 July: Virgin Islands DayThursdayDate moves
  8. 2 August: Emancipation MondayMondayDate moves
  9. 3 August: Emancipation TuesdayTuesdayDate moves
  10. 4 August: Emancipation WednesdayWednesdayDate moves
  11. 18 October: Heroes and Foreparents DayMondayDate moves
  12. 22 November: The 1949 Great March and Restoration DayMondayDate moves
  13. 27 December: Christmas DayMondayDate moves

A fixed-date holiday that falls on a weekend is normally taken on the next working day. The territory's practice differs from the United Kingdom's when both Christmas days fall on a weekend: in 2010, with Christmas on a Saturday and Boxing Day on a Sunday, only one day was given in lieu, because the Attorney General's chambers treated both as common law holidays deferred to the same Monday. The provider's dates for 2027 follow that precedent and put both on Monday 27 December.

The dates for 2026 follow the Cabinet's list, which moved Virgin Islands Day from 1 July to Monday 6 July and added the one-off holiday of 30 June. The 2027 calendar comes from the holiday provider and had not been confirmed by an official list when this page was written; it shows Virgin Islands Day on Thursday 1 July, and the date may move when the Cabinet publishes its list.

St Ursula's Day, the feast of the saint Columbus named the islands after, is still marked on 21 October, but it has not been a day off since Heroes and Foreparents Day replaced it in 2021.

Common questions

Questions about public holidays in British Virgin Islands

How many public holidays do the British Virgin Islands have in 2026?

Fifteen, all of them on weekdays. Fourteen recur every year; the fifteenth is a one-off on Tuesday 30 June 2026 for the 250th anniversary of freedom at Nottingham Estate in Long Look. The provider's calendar for 2027 lists thirteen dates, because Christmas Day and Boxing Day both fall on Monday 27 December.

Why do the British Virgin Islands have three holidays in a row in August?

They mark the end of slavery on 1 August 1834, when 5,792 people were freed. Emancipation Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are the first Monday of August and the two days after it, and they carry the Emancipation Festival, with church services, a freedom march, calypso and village festivals in Carrot Bay and Long Look. Until 2020 they were called Festival Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

What is Heroes and Foreparents Day?

A holiday on the third Monday of October, first celebrated on 18 October 2021, that honours the territory's national heroes and earlier generations. It replaced St Ursula's Day. Ten people have been named national heroes, among them Theodolph Faulkner, Isaac Fonseca and Carlton de Castro, who led the march of 1949, and Lavity Stoutt. In 2026 it falls on Monday 19 October.

What does the Great March and Restoration Day commemorate?

The march of 24 November 1949, when more than 1,500 people went to the commissioner's office to demand a say in their government, and the restoration of the Legislative Council in 1950 that followed. The council had been dissolved in 1901. The holiday is kept on the fourth Monday of November and was first observed in 2021; in 2026 it is Monday 23 November.

Why is there a holiday for Lavity Stoutt?

Hamilton Lavity Stoutt, born on 7 March 1929, was first elected to the Legislative Council in 1957 and held his seat until his death in May 1995, 38 years in all. He became the territory's first Chief Minister when ministerial government began in 1967 and served four terms. The holiday is kept on a Monday near his birthday, 9 March in 2026.

What happens when a holiday falls on a weekend in the British Virgin Islands?

A fixed-date holiday is normally taken on the next working day: in 2026 Boxing Day falls on Saturday 26 December and is kept on Monday 28 December. When Christmas and Boxing Day both fall on a weekend, only one day has been given, as in 2010.

What are the long weekends in the British Virgin Islands in 2026?

Most holidays fall on a Monday or Friday, so long weekends come often: Lavity Stoutt's Birthday on Monday 9 March, Easter from Friday 3 April to Monday 6 April, Whit Monday on 25 May, the Sovereign's Birthday on Friday 12 June, Virgin Islands Day on Monday 6 July, Heroes and Foreparents Day, the Great March day and Christmas from Friday 25 December. August gives five days in a row, from Saturday 1 August to Wednesday 5 August.

Dates from Nager.Date, read 2026-10-02. The page counts from Saturday, 3 October 2026, the day it was built.