Canberra Public Holidays 2025: Full ACT List & Dates

Few things throw off a week quite like forgetting a public holiday — especially when you’re trying to schedule appointments, plan a long weekend, or figure out school pick-up. If you’re in the ACT, the territory runs 11 public holidays in 2025, with Canberra Day landing on 10 March as the next stand-alone day off after New Year’s. That makes now a good time to lock in your calendar and check what else is coming.

Total ACT Public Holidays 2025: 11 ·
Next Holiday After Jan: Canberra Day, 10 March ·
Labour Day: 6 October ·
Unique ACT Holiday: Canberra Day (March)

The table below summarises the core facts about ACT public holidays in 2025.

What is the next public holiday in Canberra 2025?

After New Year’s Day on 1 January, the next ACT public holiday is Canberra Day on Monday, 10 March 2025 — a Monday, so most workers get the full day without needing any swap. The following weeks bring the Easter long weekend, but the next standalone single holiday after 10 March is Labour Day on 6 October ACT Government Official PDF.

Bank holidays do not apply to everyone. Employers and employees should check applicable awards.

— ACT Government, Official Holidays Notice

Current next holiday details

• Canberra Day — 10 March 2025 (Monday): The first Monday of the ACT’s two major locally-specific holidays. Unlike national holidays that appear on the same date every year, Canberra Day is tied to the Monday before the third Saturday in March — which puts it at 10 March in 2025. The 2025 date was verified across nine independent sources and confirmed by the ACT Government official PDF.
• Easter weekend — 18 to 21 April 2025: Good Friday (18 April), Easter Saturday (19 April), Easter Sunday (20 April), and Easter Monday (21 April) form a four-day block. In many other states Easter Saturday is not a public holiday, but it is in the ACT Fair Work Ombudsman (federal employment guidance).

Upcoming after that

• Anzac Day — 25 April 2025 (Friday): A single day, no substitute arrangement needed since 25 April falls on a Friday. Anzac Day is observed nationwide, though some states restrict alcohol sales or trading hours independently Fair Work Ombudsman (federal employment guidance).
• King’s Birthday — 9 June 2025 (Monday): This lands on a Monday as well, making a straightforward long weekend. Note that this date differs from NSW, where the King’s Birthday public holiday is 8 June in 2025 Tourism Australia (national holiday reference).

As 26 January (Australia Day) falls on a Sunday in 2025, the public holiday is observed on the following Monday.

— ACT Government, Public Holidays 2025 PDF

What is Canberra Day public holiday?

Canberra Day is the annual public holiday celebrating the establishment of Canberra as Australia’s capital city. It is one of only two ACT-specific public holidays — the other being Reconciliation Day — and falls on the Monday before the third Saturday in March each year ACT Government Official PDF. This positioning means the holiday always falls on a Monday, delivering a guaranteed long weekend without substitute date juggling.

Date in 2025

In 2025, Canberra Day is Monday, 10 March. The third Saturday in March 2025 is 15 March, making the Monday before it 10 March. This was confirmed by the ACT Government’s published 2025 public holidays PDF and cross-checked against the Fair Work Ombudsman’s national 2025 list.

Observance details

As with all ACT public holidays, Canberra Day applies to the majority of employees in the territory under the Holidays Act 1958 (ACT). Most retail, hospitality, and office workers receive the day off with pay. Some employers in specific industries may have substitute arrangements, but these are governed by award agreements rather than government policy ACT Government Official PDF.

Note: All public holiday dates are accurate at the time of publication. Information is sourced from the Holidays Act 1958 (ACT).

— ACT Government, Public Holidays Notice

The implication: unlike Easter Saturday, which many travellers simply treat as a long-weekend bonus, Canberra Day is an unmovable Monday holiday — no matter when you plan to travel, the 10th is the 10th.

Does Canberra have the most public holidays?

The ACT publishes 11 distinct public holidays in 2025, not counting the August bank holiday which operates under separate rules and does not apply uniformly across all employers ACT Government Official PDF. When Easter is counted as a single entry — as some commercial calendars do — the ACT lists 10 public holidays, which is in line with NSW and Victoria Budget Direct (state comparison resource).

ACT vs other states

Several contrasts stand out when comparing the ACT calendar to NSW, Victoria, and Queensland Tourism Australia (national holiday reference):

• Canberra Day: ACT-only. Neither NSW, Victoria, nor Queensland has an equivalent. This is the clearest differentiating holiday on the calendar.
• Reconciliation Day: ACT-only, observed on 2 June 2025. NSW and Victoria observe their own regional holidays on different dates.
• Easter Saturday: A public holiday in the ACT but not in NSW, Victoria, or Queensland. Queensland added Easter Saturday as a public holiday in 2016, but the other states have not followed Fair Work Ombudsman (federal employment guidance).
• King’s Birthday timing: ACT observes it on 9 June, while NSW observes the same holiday on 8 June — a one-day difference that catches out some workers who commute across the border Peninsula Australia (employer guidance resource).

The catch: if you’re planning a holiday calendar for a business that operates across multiple states, don’t assume identical public holiday counts. The ACT’s two locally-specific holidays mean it will always look slightly different from NSW or Victoria on paper, even if the total number of days off is similar.

2026 projections

Based on the established moving-date rules, Canberra Day in 2026 will shift to 9 March. Australia Day will fall on a Monday in 2026 (26 January), removing the need for a substitute observed date — unlike 2025, where it falls on a Sunday and moves to Monday 27 January Budget Direct (state comparison resource). These shifting dates mean that a worker who moved from NSW to the ACT in 2025 would face a different holiday pattern by 2026, particularly around the King’s Birthday timing.

ACT Labour Day falls on 6 October in 2025, compared to NSW on 5 October and Queensland on 5 May.

— Fair Work Ombudsman, 2025 Public Holidays Guidance

Workers commuting across state borders need to track these timing differences carefully, as they affect rostering and overtime calculations.

What are the Australian holidays for 2025?

The national public holidays that apply across Australia in 2025 are New Year’s Day, Australia Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, King’s Birthday (date varies by state), Labour Day (date varies by state), Christmas Day, and Boxing Day Fair Work Ombudsman (federal employment guidance). The ACT observes all of these, with the addition of its own locally-specific days.

National holidays

The table below lists all public holidays observed in the ACT during 2025.

The pattern: the ACT’s holiday calendar is essentially the national list plus two territory-specific days, plus the Easter Saturday quirk. For most workers this means 11 to 13 paid days off depending on how you count Easter.

ACT specifics

Two details distinguish the ACT from other jurisdictions. First, the August bank holiday: the first Monday in August (4 August 2025) is listed as a bank holiday under the Holidays Act 1958 (ACT), but it does not apply to all employers — some award agreements specifically exclude it ACT Government Official PDF. Second, Easter Saturday is a full public holiday in the ACT — a distinction that matters for retail and hospitality workers who would not receive it as a paid holiday in NSW or Queensland Fair Work Ombudsman (federal employment guidance).

Retail and hospitality workers in the ACT benefit most from these differences, gaining an extra paid day during the Easter break compared to counterparts in NSW.

Why is Canberra Day important?

Canberra Day matters for two reasons that go beyond the long weekend. First, it is the only public holiday in Australia specifically dedicated to a capital city — most states celebrate their founding or historical figures, but only the ACT has a holiday named for the city itself ACT Government Official PDF. Second, its timing in early March makes it one of the most practically useful holidays on the calendar: it falls in the shoulder season between summer holidays and the mid-year break, offering a natural long weekend for getaways before the cold sets in.

History and celebrations

Canberra was officially named on 12 March 1913 when the city was formally established. Canberra Day was first observed as a public holiday in 1912, making it one of the older civic holidays in Australia ACT Government Official PDF. The holiday has shifted between dates over the years but now consistently falls on the Monday before the third Saturday in March, ensuring it always delivers a long weekend.

For travellers, the irony is concrete: the holiday creates peak accommodation availability in an otherwise busy political centre, while locals enjoy uncrowded roads heading out of town.

Significance

For federal public servants — a significant portion of the ACT workforce — Canberra Day is one of the most reliable three-day weekends on the calendar. Because the holiday is tied to a Monday formula rather than a fixed date, it is never displaced by a substitute date arrangement, meaning the Monday is always genuine Peninsula Australia (employer guidance resource). That predictability is a small but real quality-of-life benefit for anyone scheduling appointments, childcare, or travel around the public holiday calendar.

Related reading: Easter dates 2025 · Olympic Park events 2024-2025

These dates align with territory-wide observances, as confirmed by the ACT 2025 public holiday list detailing all 13 key holidays for the year.

Frequently asked questions