Christmas
Holidays

The Christmas holidays mean different things depending on where you live. In the United States, Christmas Day is a federal holiday - but Christmas Eve is not. In much of Europe, both December 25 and 26 are public holidays. In Japan, Christmas isn't a holiday at all. And if you're a parent wondering when Christmas break starts, the answer changes by school district, country, and year.

This page is your one-stop reference for 2026: the exact dates, which days are federal or bank holidays, when school breaks begin and end, how the Christmas season is defined, and a country-by-country breakdown of Christmas public holidays around the world. No fluff, just the facts you're looking for.

Christmas Day (December 25) is a federal holiday in the United States. It has been since June 28, 1870, when President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law alongside New Year's Day, Independence Day, and Thanksgiving. All federal employees receive a paid day off, and most private-sector employers observe it as well.

If Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, the federal holiday is observed on the preceding Friday. If it falls on a Sunday, it's observed on the following Monday. In 2026, Christmas Day is a Friday, so it is observed on December 25 itself.

Is Christmas Eve a Paid Holiday?

There is no federal requirement for private employers to give paid time off on Christmas Eve. However, approximately 47% of US employers offer Christmas Eve as a paid holiday, and many more offer a half-day. Federal employees have occasionally received Christmas Eve off through executive orders - most recently when it falls on a Friday before a Saturday Christmas.

Several US states recognise Christmas Eve as a state holiday for government employees, including Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, and Wisconsin, among others. But at the federal level, Christmas Eve remains a regular working day.

United States

Christmas Day is a Federal Reserve bank holiday - all banks are closed. On Christmas Eve, banks are technically open, but many branches close early (typically at noon or 1 PM). The New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ close on Christmas Day. On Christmas Eve, the stock market typically closes at 1:00 PM ET.

United Kingdom

Both Christmas Day and Boxing Day (December 26) are bank holidays in the UK. Christmas Eve is not a bank holiday, but most bank branches close early. If Christmas Day or Boxing Day falls on a weekend, a substitute bank holiday is given on the next available weekday - meaning you might see bank holidays on December 27 or 28 in some years.

Canada & Australia

In Canada, Christmas Day is a statutory holiday in all provinces, and Boxing Day is a statutory holiday in Ontario and several other provinces. In Australia, both Christmas Day and Boxing Day are public holidays in all states and territories. Banks are closed on both days in both countries.

Christmas break (also called winter break or holiday break) is the school holiday period around Christmas and New Year. In most countries, it lasts approximately two weeks - from around December 20 to January 2–5. Exact dates vary significantly by region, school district, and country. In Australia and New Zealand, Christmas falls during the longer summer holiday.

Note: These are typical ranges. Always check your local school calendar for exact dates. In the United States, school break dates are set by individual school districts, so two schools in the same state may have different break schedules.

Liturgical Calendar

In the Christian liturgical calendar, the Christmas season (also called Christmastide) officially begins on Christmas Day, December 25 and ends on Epiphany, January 6 - a period known as the 12 Days of Christmas. Before Christmas, the four-week period of Advent serves as a time of preparation and anticipation, beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas.

The 12 Days of Christmas

The 12 Days of Christmas run from December 25 to January 5, with Epiphany falling on January 6. This is the period the famous carol refers to. In many European traditions, Epiphany (also called Three Kings' Day or Twelfth Night) marks the end of the Christmas celebrations - the day when decorations come down and the last celebrations are held.

Commercial & Cultural

Commercially, the "Christmas season" starts much earlier. In the United States, it often begins the day after Thanksgiving (late November), coinciding with Black Friday. In the UK and Europe, Christmas decorations, markets, and advertising typically appear in mid-to-late November. The Philippines holds the record for the longest Christmas season - celebrations begin as early as September and run through the Feast of the Three Kings in early January.

Orthodox Christmas

In countries that follow the Julian calendar for religious observances - including Russia, Serbia, Ethiopia, and Egypt - Orthodox Christmas is celebrated on January 7 (which corresponds to December 25 on the Julian calendar). In Russia, January 7 is a public holiday, while December 25 is a regular working day.

Key takeaway: Christmas Day (December 25) is a public holiday in the vast majority of countries worldwide. December 26 (Boxing Day or its equivalent) is a holiday in most of Europe, the Commonwealth, and Scandinavia. Christmas Eve is only a full public holiday in a handful of countries, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Finland, and the Philippines.

Christmas was not always a day off. In fact, the Puritans of colonial New England actively banned Christmas celebrations in the 17th century, considering them too rowdy and pagan in origin. It wasn't until the 19th century that Christmas began to be formalised as a public holiday. Alabama was the first US state to declare Christmas a legal holiday in 1836, and other states gradually followed. On June 28, 1870, Christmas Day became a federal holiday in the United States - nearly a century after the country's founding.

In Britain, Christmas Day and Boxing Day have been bank holidays since the Bank Holidays Act of 1871. Across Europe, the Christianisation of December 25 (originally tied to the Roman festival of Saturnalia and the winter solstice) meant that the day had religious significance long before it had legal status. Today, Christmas holidays are recognised in some form in over 160 countries worldwide - making it one of the most widely observed public holidays on Earth.

On Christmas Day in the United States, most businesses are closed: banks, government offices, post offices, schools, and the majority of retail stores. Grocery stores are almost universally closed. However, some businesses remain open, including certain pharmacies (CVS and Walgreens typically operate on reduced hours), convenience stores, movie theaters, some restaurants (particularly Chinese restaurants - a longstanding American tradition), and gas stations.

In the UK, virtually everything closes on Christmas Day - it is one of the only days of the year when even major supermarkets shut completely. Boxing Day, by contrast, has become a major shopping day, with many retailers launching post-Christmas sales. In Australia and New Zealand, Christmas Day closures are similar to the US, though Boxing Day is also widely observed with store closures followed by sales the day after.