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Public holidays in Russia

18 days in 2026 · 20 in 2027

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Next public holiday

Unity Day

День народного единства

After it: Day off for New Year holiday, Thursday 31 December

Wednesday, 4 November 2026

Article 112 of Russia's Labour Code lists 14 non-working holidays, and eight of them fall in the first eight days of January: the New Year holidays on 1 to 6 and 8 January, with Orthodox Christmas on 7 January between them. The other six are single days from February to November, from Defender of the Fatherland Day on 23 February to Unity Day on 4 November.

The law is only half the calendar. Every year the government issues a decree moving days off, which it has to publish at least a month before the year begins. In 2026 that added four days off: Friday 9 January, Monday 9 March, Monday 11 May and Thursday 31 December. For 2027 the decree of 17 September 2026 gives an eleven-day New Year break, from 31 December 2026 to 10 January 2027, and turns Saturday 20 February into a working day.

Easter, Old New Year on 14 January and Constitution Day on 12 December are marked but are not days off.

Days off in 2026
18Nationwide public holidays
On a weekday
14Monday to Friday
On a weekend
4Saturday or Sunday
Long weekends
6three days off or more

2026

Public holidays in Russia in 2026

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayНовый годNew Year's Day, the most widely kept holiday in the calendar. Many people mark it a second time on 14 January, Old New Year, which is 1 January by the Julian calendar Russia used until 1918.Thursday
  2. 2 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Friday
  3. 3 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Saturday
  4. 4 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Sunday
  5. 5 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Monday
  6. 6 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Tuesday
  7. 7 January: Christmas Day (Orthodox)Рождество ХристовоOrthodox Christmas, 25 December by the Julian calendar. It became a public holiday again in 1991, after decades of Soviet state atheism.Wednesday
  8. 8 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.Thursday
  9. 9 January: Day off for New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.FridayDate moves
  10. 23 February: Defender of the Fatherland DayДень защитника ОтечестваDefender of the Fatherland Day, known in Soviet times as Soviet Army Day. It is kept for veterans and serving personnel and is widely treated as a day for all men.Monday
  11. 8 March: International Women's DayМеждународный женский деньInternational Women's Day, first marked by Russian women in 1913. Women receive flowers and presents.Sunday
  12. 9 March: Day off for International Women's DayМеждународный женский деньInternational Women's Day, first marked by Russian women in 1913. Women receive flowers and presents.MondayDate moves
  13. 1 May: Labour DayДень трудаIn law the Holiday of Spring and Labour, its name since 1992. In the Soviet Union it was International Workers' Day, with large parades in Moscow.Friday
  14. 9 May: Victory DayДень ПобедыVictory Day. Germany's surrender took effect on 9 May 1945 by Moscow time. Wreaths go on war graves, and the day also brings concerts for veterans, a parade and fireworks in the evening.Saturday
  15. 11 May: Day off for Victory DayДень ПобедыVictory Day. Germany's surrender took effect on 9 May 1945 by Moscow time. Wreaths go on war graves, and the day also brings concerts for veterans, a parade and fireworks in the evening.MondayDate moves
  16. 12 June: Russia DayДень РоссииThe Russian parliament declared the republic's sovereignty on 12 June 1991. The day was first named after that declaration and has been called Russia Day since 2002. No official document has named it Independence Day, though 44% of respondents to a Levada Center survey in May 2009 called it that.Friday
  17. 4 November: Unity DayДень народного единстваUnity Day, first kept on 4 November 2005. It recalls the rising led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky that ended the Polish occupation of Moscow in 1612.Wednesday
  18. 31 December: Day off for New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыThe New Year holidays, novogodniye kanikuly. Until 2005 only 1 and 2 January were days off; the Labour Code now lists 1 to 6 and 8 January.ThursdayDate moves

Long weekends

Long weekends in Russia 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.

  • 11daysThu 1 Jan to Sun 11 JanNew Year's Day, New Year holiday, New Year holiday, New Year holiday, New Year holiday, New Year holiday, Christmas Day (Orthodox), New Year holiday, Day off for New Year holiday
  • 3daysSat 21 Feb to Mon 23 FebDefender of the Fatherland Day
  • 3daysSat 7 Mar to Mon 9 MarInternational Women's Day, Day off for International Women's Day
  • 3daysFri 1 May to Sun 3 MayLabour Day
  • 3daysSat 9 May to Mon 11 MayVictory Day, Day off for Victory Day
  • 3daysFri 12 Jun to Sun 14 JunRussia Day

2027

Public holidays in Russia in 2027

  1. 1 January: New Year's DayНовый годFriday
  2. 2 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыSaturday
  3. 3 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыSunday
  4. 4 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыMonday
  5. 5 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыTuesday
  6. 6 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыWednesday
  7. 7 January: Christmas Day (Orthodox)Рождество ХристовоThursday
  8. 8 January: New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыFriday
  9. 22 February: Day off for Defender of the Fatherland DayДень защитника ОтечестваMondayDate moves
  10. 23 February: Defender of the Fatherland DayДень защитника ОтечестваTuesday
  11. 8 March: International Women's DayМеждународный женский деньMonday
  12. 1 May: Labour DayДень трудаSaturday
  13. 3 May: Day off for Labour DayДень трудаMondayDate moves
  14. 9 May: Victory DayДень ПобедыSunday
  15. 10 May: Day off for Victory DayДень ПобедыMondayDate moves
  16. 12 June: Russia DayДень РоссииSaturday
  17. 14 June: Day off for Russia DayДень РоссииMondayDate moves
  18. 4 November: Unity DayДень народного единстваThursday
  19. 5 November: Day off for New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыFridayDate moves
  20. 31 December: Day off for New Year holidayНовогодние каникулыFridayDate moves

The Labour Code has two rules for a holiday that falls on a Saturday or Sunday. For the six single days the lost weekend day moves to the next working day, which is why 9 March and 11 May 2026 were days off, and why 3 May, 10 May and 14 June 2027 will be. The weekend days that fall inside the January holidays do not move automatically: the government takes two of them and places them elsewhere in the year. For 2026 that gave Friday 9 January and Thursday 31 December; for 2027 it moved Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 January to Friday 5 November and Friday 31 December.

A decree can also swap a Saturday for a weekday to join a holiday to a weekend. Saturday 20 February 2027 is a working day. Its day off goes to Monday 22 February, so 21 to 23 February make three days in a row.

Employees who are not on a fixed salary receive an additional payment for each non-working holiday they do not work, set by the collective agreement or the employment contract. Salaried staff lose nothing either: a month with holidays in it is no ground for paying them less.

Common questions

Questions about public holidays in Russia

How many public holidays does Russia have?

Fourteen under article 112 of the Labour Code: eight in January (1 to 8 January, Christmas included) and six single days on 23 February, 8 March, 1 May, 9 May, 12 June and 4 November. The government then adds days off each year by moving weekend days that fell on a holiday. In 2026 there were four of these: 9 January, 9 March, 11 May and 31 December.

How long are the New Year holidays in Russia in 2027?

Eleven days, from Thursday 31 December 2026 to Sunday 10 January 2027. The law supplies 1 to 8 January; 31 December 2026 was moved there by the decree for 2026, and 9 and 10 January are the weekend. The New Year break of 2026 was the same length, from 1 to 11 January.

Why is 31 December usually a day off in Russia?

Not by law. In practice, though, it has been a day off for several years running. The government moved a weekend day to 31 December in 2024, 2025 and 2026, and the decree for 2027 does so again, making Friday 31 December 2027 a day off. The day is set afresh in each year's decree, not fixed in advance.

Why does Russia move its days off every year?

Because article 112 of the Labour Code requires it. When a holiday falls on a weekend, the weekend day moves to the next working day. Weekends that fall inside the January holidays are the exception: the government moves two of them to other dates in the year. Its decree for the next year must be published at least one month before 1 January, and the decree for 2027 is dated 17 September 2026.

Which Saturday is a working day in Russia in 2027?

Saturday 20 February. The decree for 2027 moves its day off to Monday 22 February, so the week before Defender of the Fatherland Day ends with a six-day week and the holiday itself, a Tuesday, becomes the third of three days off, 21 to 23 February.

When are the May holidays in Russia in 2027?

In two blocks of three days. Spring and Labour Day falls on Saturday 1 May, so its day off moves to Monday 3 May, and 1 to 3 May are free. Victory Day falls on Sunday 9 May and moves to Monday 10 May, giving 8 to 10 May. In 2026 the holidays fell on a Friday and a Saturday, and 11 May was the day off in lieu.

Why is Christmas on 7 January in Russia?

The Russian Orthodox Church keeps Christmas on 25 December of the Julian calendar, which falls on 7 January of the Gregorian calendar the state adopted in 1918. The day off was restored in 1991. It sits inside the New Year holidays, and 25 December is an ordinary working day.

Is Orthodox Easter a public holiday in Russia?

No. Easter always falls on a Sunday. Neither Good Friday nor Easter Monday is in the Labour Code, so the feast adds no day off. In 2026 Orthodox Easter was on 12 April. Several other widely kept days are also working days: Tatiana Day, the students' day, on 25 January, Cosmonautics Day on 12 April, and Constitution Day on 12 December.

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