Public holidays in South Africa — dates and pay rules
South Africa has 12 gazetted public holidays under the Public Holidays Act. Employees who normally work on that day must be paid their ordinary wage even if the business is closed, and employees who do work must be paid at least double. Getting the premium wrong is one of the most common Labour Inspectorate findings against small employers.
Payroll Africa Editorial · SARS Payroll Compliance Team
The Payroll Africa editorial team is composed of registered tax practitioners, payroll administrators and BCEA specialists who maintain the SARS PAYE, UIF, SDL and ETI engines that power the platform. Every article is reviewed against the current SARS BRS and Basic Conditions of Employment Act before publication.
- SARS registered tax practitioners
- SAPA-affiliated payroll administrators
- BCEA and LRA compliance reviewers
Last updated 26 Aug 2026
Public holidays in South Africa for 2026
The 12 statutory holidays are fixed by the Public Holidays Act, 1994. When a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday automatically becomes a public holiday too.
- 1 January — New Year's Day
- 21 March — Human Rights Day
- Good Friday and Family Day (March/April, movable)
- 27 April — Freedom Day
- 1 May — Workers' Day
- 16 June — Youth Day
- 9 August — National Women's Day
- 24 September — Heritage Day
- 16 December — Day of Reconciliation
- 25 December — Christmas Day; 26 December — Day of Goodwill
What must you pay on a public holiday?
Section 18 of the BCEA sets the rule. If the public holiday falls on a day the employee would ordinarily work and they stay home, they are paid their ordinary daily wage — the holiday is paid time off, not leave.
If the employee works on that holiday, they must receive at least double their ordinary daily wage, or their ordinary wage plus the amount earned for the hours worked, whichever is greater. For a part-day shift, that means ordinary daily pay plus the hours worked at the normal rate.
- Ordinary working day, not worked: 100% of the daily wage
- Ordinary working day, worked: at least 200% of the daily wage
- Not an ordinary working day, worked: ordinary wage plus hours worked at the normal rate
- The premium cannot be replaced by a day off in lieu without agreement
- Public holiday pay is fully taxable remuneration for PAYE, UIF and SDL
Swapping a public holiday for another day
An employer and employee may agree in writing to exchange a public holiday for another day. This is common in businesses that trade over Christmas or in bargaining council sectors with December shutdowns.
The exchange must be by agreement — an employer cannot impose it unilaterally, and the substituted day must carry the same public holiday protections.
Shift workers, night shifts and Sunday overlap
Where a shift starts on a public holiday and ends the next day, the whole shift is treated as public holiday work. Where it starts the day before and runs into the holiday, it is treated as a normal shift.
A public holiday falling on a Sunday does not stack the premiums: the employee is paid the higher of the Sunday rate or the public holiday rate, not both.
Processing public holidays on payroll
Monthly-paid employees usually see no change to their salary for a holiday they did not work, because the salary already covers it. Wage and hourly staff need an explicit public holiday earning line so the payslip proves the correct rate was applied.
Payroll Africa carries the South African public holiday calendar, applies the double-time rule to hours captured on those dates, and shows the premium as a separate payslip line for inspection purposes.
- Use a dedicated 'Public holiday' earning code, not overtime
- Keep timesheets for public holiday work — inspectors ask for them
- Include the premium in the UIF and SDL remuneration base
- Reflect substituted days in writing on the employee file
Frequently asked questions
Related guides
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