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Public holidays in Montenegro

10 days in 2026 · 12 in 2027

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Next public holiday

Njegoš Day

Njegošev dan

After it: Njegoš Day, Saturday 14 November

Friday, 13 November 2026

Every holiday in Montenegro's Law on State and Other Holidays of 2007 is a pair of days off, and those days stop work for everyone: 1 and 2 January for New Year, 1 and 2 May for Labour Day, 21 and 22 May for Independence Day, 13 and 14 July for Statehood Day and 13 and 14 November for Njegoš Day. A pair that starts on a Saturday gains the Monday after it, and one that starts on a Sunday is taken on the Monday and Tuesday. In 2026 two of the pairs join a weekend into four days off, from Thursday 21 May to Sunday 24 May and from Saturday 11 July to Tuesday 14 July; in 2027 Labour Day and Njegoš Day both start on a Saturday, so Monday 3 May and Monday 15 November are off.

The religious feasts sit under a separate law, on celebrating religious holidays, dating from 1993. Its days are off only for the members of the community that keeps them: Orthodox Christmas Eve and Christmas from 6 to 8 January, Good Friday and Easter Monday of each church, Catholic All Saints' Day and Christmas from 24 to 26 December, three days at each Bajram for Muslims, and two days each at Pesach and Yom Kippur for Jews. On 7 January an Orthodox employee stays at home while a Catholic colleague works, and on 25 December the reverse holds.

The Orthodox Church keeps the Julian calendar and reckons Easter by its own computus, so the two Christmases fall thirteen days apart and the two Easters need not share a Sunday. In 2026 Orthodox Good Friday came a week after the Catholic one, on 10 April; in 2027 the gap is five weeks, and Orthodox Easter runs from 30 April to 3 May, straddling Labour Day.

Days off in 2026
10Nationwide public holidays
On a weekday
8Monday to Friday
On a weekend
2Saturday or Sunday
Long weekends
5three days off or more

2026

Public holidays in Montenegro in 2026

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayNova godinaNew Year, two days off for everyone. In 2027 the second day falls on a Saturday.Thursday
  2. 2 January: New Year's DayNova godinaNew Year, two days off for everyone. In 2027 the second day falls on a Saturday.Friday
  3. 1 May: Labour DayPraznik radaLabour Day, off for everyone on 1 and 2 May. In 2027 both days land on the weekend, so Monday 3 May is off in their place.Friday
  4. 2 May: Labour DayPraznik radaLabour Day, off for everyone on 1 and 2 May. In 2027 both days land on the weekend, so Monday 3 May is off in their place.Saturday
  5. 21 May: Independence DayDan nezavisnostiThe anniversary of the referendum of 21 May 2006, which ended the state union with Serbia and made Montenegro independent.Thursday
  6. 22 May: Independence DayDan nezavisnostiThe anniversary of the referendum of 21 May 2006, which ended the state union with Serbia and made Montenegro independent.Friday
  7. 13 July: Statehood DayDan državnostiTwo events share the date: the Congress of Berlin recognising Montenegro as an independent state on 13 July 1878, and the uprising against the Axis forces that began on 13 July 1941.Monday
  8. 14 July: Statehood DayDan državnostiTwo events share the date: the Congress of Berlin recognising Montenegro as an independent state on 13 July 1878, and the uprising against the Axis forces that began on 13 July 1941.Tuesday
  9. 13 November: Njegoš DayNjegošev danNjegoš Day, the last pair of the year that is off for everyone: 13 and 14 November. In 2026 it is a Friday and a Saturday; in 2027 it starts on a Saturday, and Monday 15 November is added.Friday
  10. 14 November: Njegoš DayNjegošev danNjegoš Day, the last pair of the year that is off for everyone: 13 and 14 November. In 2026 it is a Friday and a Saturday; in 2027 it starts on a Saturday, and Monday 15 November is added.Saturday

Long weekends

Long weekends in Montenegro 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 JanNew Year's Day, New Year's Day
  • 3daysFri 1 May to Sun 3 MayLabour Day, Labour Day
  • 4daysThu 21 May to Sun 24 MayIndependence Day, Independence Day
  • 4daysSat 11 Jul to Tue 14 JulStatehood Day, Statehood Day
  • 3daysFri 13 Nov to Sun 15 NovNjegoš Day, Njegoš Day

2027

Public holidays in Montenegro in 2027

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayNova godinaFriday
  2. 2 January: New Year's DayNova godinaSaturday
  3. 1 May: Labour DayPraznik radaSaturday
  4. 2 May: Labour DayPraznik radaSunday
  5. 3 May: Labour Day (day off)Praznik radaMondayDate moves
  6. 21 May: Independence DayDan nezavisnostiFriday
  7. 22 May: Independence DayDan nezavisnostiSaturday
  8. 13 July: Statehood DayDan državnostiTuesday
  9. 14 July: Statehood DayDan državnostiWednesday
  10. 13 November: Njegoš DayNjegošev danSaturday
  11. 14 November: Njegoš DayNjegošev danSunday
  12. 15 November: Njegoš Day (day off)Njegošev danMondayDate moves

Observances

Days marked in Montenegro that are not days off

  1. 6 January: Orthodox Christmas EveBadnji danChristmas Eve, a day off only for believers: Orthodox Christians keep it on 6 January, Catholics on 24 December.Tuesday
  2. 7 January: Christmas Day (Orthodox)BožićChristmas. Orthodox believers have 7 and 8 January off, by the Julian calendar, and Catholics 25 and 26 December.Wednesday
  3. 8 January: Christmas Day (Orthodox)BožićChristmas. Orthodox believers have 7 and 8 January off, by the Julian calendar, and Catholics 25 and 26 December.Thursday
  4. 3 April: Good FridayVeliki petakGood Friday by the Catholic reckoning, a day off for Catholics: 3 April 2026 and 26 March 2027.FridayDate moves
  5. 5 April: Easter SundayUskrsCatholic Easter. Easter Monday is the working day it frees, for Catholics only: 6 April 2026 and 29 March 2027.SundayDate moves
  6. 6 April: Easter MondayUskrsCatholic Easter. Easter Monday is the working day it frees, for Catholics only: 6 April 2026 and 29 March 2027.MondayDate moves
  7. 10 April: Good FridayVaskrsOrthodox Easter, under which the calendar lists both Orthodox Good Friday and Orthodox Easter Monday. Days off for Orthodox believers, dated by the Orthodox computus.FridayDate moves
  8. 13 April: Easter MondayVaskrsOrthodox Easter, under which the calendar lists both Orthodox Good Friday and Orthodox Easter Monday. Days off for Orthodox believers, dated by the Orthodox computus.MondayDate moves
  9. 1 November: Catholic All Saints' DaySvi SvetiAll Saints' Day, a day off for Catholics only. It falls on a Sunday in 2026 and a Monday in 2027.Sunday
  10. 24 December: Catholic Christmas EveBadnji danChristmas Eve, a day off only for believers: Orthodox Christians keep it on 6 January, Catholics on 24 December.Thursday
  11. 25 December: Catholic Christmas DayBožićChristmas. Orthodox believers have 7 and 8 January off, by the Julian calendar, and Catholics 25 and 26 December.Friday
  12. 26 December: Catholic St. Stephen's DayBožićChristmas. Orthodox believers have 7 and 8 January off, by the Julian calendar, and Catholics 25 and 26 December.Saturday

The Muslim and Jewish holidays follow lunar calendars and move against the civil year. In 2026 Ramazanski bajram, the end of Ramadan, fell from 20 to 22 March and Kurbanski bajram from 27 to 29 May; Yom Kippur falls on 21 and 22 September. Kurbanski bajram lasts four days in religious practice, but the law gives only three of them.

A further set of days is marked by the communities without being non-working days: the Orthodox New Year on 14 January, Velika Gospa, the Assumption, on 15 August for Catholics, the Islamic New Year, Mawlid and the first day of Ramadan for Muslims, and Rosh Hashanah for Jews. Businesses rarely close for any of them.

Religious days still shape public offices. The Central Bank of Montenegro publishes its closing days for 2026, and besides the state holidays the list takes in Orthodox Christmas Eve, 7 and 8 January, Orthodox Good Friday on 10 April and Orthodox Easter Monday on 13 April, while its payments department works through all of them.

Common questions

Questions about public holidays in Montenegro

Which holidays are days off for everyone in Montenegro?

The state holidays and the other holidays named in the law of 2007, each two days long: New Year on 1 and 2 January, Labour Day on 1 and 2 May, Independence Day on 21 and 22 May, Statehood Day on 13 and 14 July and Njegoš Day on 13 and 14 November. Religious feasts are a separate matter. They are non-working days only for the believers of the church or community concerned.

Is Orthodox Christmas a public holiday in Montenegro?

It is a religious holiday, off for Orthodox believers from Christmas Eve on 6 January to 8 January. Other workers are not entitled to the days, although the Central Bank of Montenegro closes its offices on all three. In 2027 Christmas Eve falls on a Wednesday and Christmas on Thursday 7 January and Friday 8 January, so Orthodox believers have five days off in a row.

When is Orthodox Easter in Montenegro in 2027?

Orthodox Good Friday falls on 30 April 2027 and Orthodox Easter Monday on 3 May, both days off for Orthodox believers. Between them lie 1 and 2 May, Labour Day, a Saturday and Sunday that year, and because Labour Day starts on a Saturday, Monday 3 May is off for everyone as well. Catholic Easter comes five weeks earlier, with Good Friday on 26 March and Easter Monday on 29 March.

Do Muslims in Montenegro get the Bajram holidays off?

Yes. The law on religious holidays gives Muslim believers three days at Ramazanski bajram, from the first of Shawwal, and three at Kurbanski bajram, from the tenth of Dhu al-Hijjah, although the second feast lasts four days in religious practice. In 2026 they fell on Friday 20 March to Sunday 22 March and Wednesday 27 May to Friday 29 May.

What does Statehood Day on 13 July mark?

Two anniversaries. On 13 July 1878 the Congress of Berlin recognised Montenegro as an independent state, and on 13 July 1941 an uprising began against the Axis forces. The holiday takes 13 and 14 July. In 2026 they are a Monday and a Tuesday, making four days off with the weekend before; in 2027 a Tuesday and a Wednesday.

Why does Montenegro have two Independence Days in May?

It does not, but the one holiday takes two dates, 21 and 22 May, like every holiday in the law of 2007. It marks the referendum of 21 May 2006, after which Montenegro left the state union with Serbia. In 2026 the pair falls on a Thursday and Friday and in 2027 on Friday 21 May and Saturday 22 May, giving a three-day weekend.

Are Catholic holidays days off in Montenegro?

For Catholics. The law lists Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and 26 December, Good Friday, Easter Monday and All Saints' Day, each off only for Catholic believers. Everyone else works as normal on 25 December unless it falls on a weekend, as in 2027, when it is a Saturday.

Is 14 January a holiday in Montenegro?

Not a day off. The Orthodox New Year, the first of January by the Julian calendar, is celebrated on 14 January as the start of the year by the old calendar, but it is not in either holiday law and businesses rarely close for it. The official New Year remains 1 and 2 January.

What happens when a Montenegrin holiday falls on a weekend?

It depends on the first day of the pair. When a state or other holiday starts on a Saturday, the Monday after it is a non-working day; when it starts on a Sunday, both Monday and Tuesday are. In 2027 it applies twice: Labour Day on Saturday 1 May brings Monday 3 May, and Njegoš Day on Saturday 13 November brings Monday 15 November.

Dates from Nager.Date, read 2026-09-26. The page counts from Monday, 28 September 2026, the day it was built.