How public holidays work

The date tables on this site answer "when". These guides answer "why" and "what am I owed": the rules behind the calendar, written for people rather than lawyers.

1. How public holidays are decided in Australia

   Who declares public holidays, why the states differ, how a date gets gazetted, and where one-off holidays come from.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide
2. Substitute and additional public holidays explained

   What happens when a public holiday falls on a weekend: which states move the day, which add one, and why it matters for weekend workers.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide
3. Part-day public holidays: Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve

   Which states declare evening public holidays on 24 and 31 December, what hours they cover, and what they mean for pay.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide
4. Regional show holidays: who gets them and how to check

   How show days, cup days and other local public holidays work in Queensland, the NT, Tasmania and elsewhere, and how to tell whether yours applies.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide
5. Public holiday pay and penalty rates: the basics

   What the national employment standards say about days off, pay for not working, reasonable requests to work, and how penalty rates are set.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide
6. How to plan annual leave around public holidays

   The arithmetic of bridging days, the combinations that reliably work in each state, and how the long weekend planner scores them.

   Reviewed 14 Sep 2026 Read the guide

Looking for a date?

Every holiday has its own page with dates by state for each published year, and the state pages list the full calendar.

All holiday dates