Public holidays in Jersey

Nine, on the Government of Jersey's list, and eight of them are weekdays off. Liberation Day falls on Saturday 9 May and is not replaced. Boxing Day, also a Saturday, moves to Monday 28 December, so with Christmas Day on Friday 25 December the island has four days off in a row, 25 to 28 December.

No. On a Saturday, as in 2026, 9 May is still a public holiday under the Act of 2010, but the government gives no weekday in its place, and Friday 8 May and Monday 11 May stay normal working days. On a Sunday, as in 2027, the law does not make it a public holiday at all, and there is no day in lieu.

The end of the German occupation, which lasted from 1 July 1940. On 9 May 1945 HMS Beagle reached the island from Plymouth to accept the surrender, and two naval officers raised the Union Flag at the harbour master's office and then on the flagstaff of the Pomme d'Or Hotel. In Jèrriais the day is Jour d'la Libéthâtion. It shares its date with Europe Day, kept by the European Union.

The States sit in a special session in the morning. Members, clergy and Crown Officers then walk in procession from the Royal Square to Liberation Square behind the Royal Mace and the Bailiff's Seal. An open-air ecumenical service follows, Beautiful Jersey is sung in Jèrriais and English, and the 1945 flag-raising is re-enacted, as it has been every year since 1995. A parade of vintage and military vehicles passes the official party, and stalls and entertainments fill the afternoon. A separate ceremony at the Crematorium remembers the victims and slave workers of the occupation.

Both days fall on the weekend, Christmas Day on Saturday 25 December and Boxing Day on Sunday 26 December. The government gives the two days off on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December instead, so the break runs four days, Saturday to Tuesday. In 2026 only Boxing Day has to move.

Good Friday is 26 March 2027 and Easter Monday 29 March, both days off, so Easter makes a four-day weekend. The early May bank holiday follows five weeks after Easter Monday, on Monday 3 May. In 2026 the Easter days off were 3 and 6 April.

Its calendar follows the United Kingdom's: New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, the three Monday bank holidays in May and August, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Liberation Day on 9 May is added. A shared holiday that lands on a weekend is usually moved to the following Monday, which Liberation Day never is. One-off days are added now and then, such as the Corn Riots anniversary holiday of 2021.