Public Holiday Calendar Guide for Paraguay
Paraguay's public holiday calendar combines civic commemorations, Holy Week observances and Catholic feast days under a national legal framework that was substantially consolidated by new public-holiday legislation. The law identifies the regular national holidays, allows several historical observances to be moved to a nearby Monday, and permits the Executive Branch to declare a limited number of additional national holidays for tourism, economic activity or special occasions.[1] Employees also have specific labour protections when work is required on a national holiday.[2]
How Paraguay's Public Holiday System Works
Paraguay's current public-holiday law establishes a nationwide statutory calendar that includes New Year, Heroes' Day, the Holy Week holidays, Workers' Day, the national independence observances, Peace of the Chaco Day, Constitution Oath Day, the Foundation of Asunción, the Battle of Boquerón, the Virgin of Caacupé and Christmas.[1] The legislation replaced several earlier holiday laws and brought the principal rules into a single framework.
The law also distinguishes national public holidays from an 'asueto' granted to public-sector employees. The Executive Branch can declare an asueto for all or part of a day in the central public administration and decentralised bodies, but the law expressly states that an asueto remains a working day and does not have the same legal effects as a national public holiday, apart from a specific rule concerning deadlines.[1] This distinction is important when a government announcement affects public offices but not private-sector workplaces.
Which Holidays Can Move to Monday?
Only specified historical holidays are movable under the current legislation: Heroes' Day, Peace of the Chaco Day, Constitution Oath Day and the Battle of Boquerón.[1] The Executive Branch may move one of these observances by decree to the Monday immediately before or after its underlying commemorative date. The remaining statutory holidays are expressly non-movable and stay attached to their established calendar dates.[1]
The reference guide's description of holidays being shifted to the 'nearest Monday' is therefore too general. A transfer is not automatic simply because a holiday falls in the middle of a working week. It requires an executive decree and is limited to the holidays that the law designates as movable.[1] For exact travel or workplace planning, the applicable official decree should be checked rather than predicting a long weekend from the calendar alone.
Additional Holidays for Special Occasions
The Executive Branch has another power that makes Paraguay's calendar less predictable far in advance: it may declare up to three additional national public holidays in a year for the promotion of tourism and economic activity or for special occasions.[1] These additional days have the same legal effects as the regular national public holidays.
This mechanism can be used for exceptional national events rather than recurring observances. The government has, for example, used the current framework to declare a special national holiday following a major achievement by Paraguay's national football team.[3] Such one-off holidays should never be carried forward into future calendars unless a new official decree establishes them.
Independence and the Chaco War in the Calendar
Several Paraguayan holidays are closely connected with the country's political and military history. The independence observances commemorate the revolutionary movement in Asunción that ended Spanish colonial authority and led to the creation of independent Paraguay.[4] Modern official celebrations commonly use historic locations such as the Casa de la Independencia and combine civic, cultural and educational activities.
The Peace of the Chaco observance commemorates the agreement that ended hostilities between Paraguay and Bolivia in the Chaco War.[5] Heroes' Day and the Battle of Boquerón add further remembrance of military history to the calendar. The current holiday law expressly calls for public awareness of the historical value of national commemorative holidays, reinforcing their role as occasions for remembrance rather than merely days away from work.[1]
Caacupé and Religious Observances
Catholic tradition is also prominent in Paraguay's statutory calendar. Holy Thursday and Good Friday are national holidays, as are Christmas and the feast of the Virgin of Caacupé.[1] The Caacupé celebration is one of the country's major expressions of popular religious devotion and attracts pilgrims from Paraguay and abroad to the city and its sanctuary.[6]
The pilgrimage has practical consequences for travel as well as religious significance. SENATUR describes the celebration as an important form of religious tourism with effects on local gastronomy, handicrafts and other activities serving pilgrims.[6] Anyone visiting the Caacupé area around the observance should therefore consult current transport, access and event information rather than treating it as an ordinary public holiday.
Working on a National Holiday
Under Paraguay's Labour Code, public holidays are compulsory rest days for workers. Where the nature of a business makes holiday work necessary, the Ministry of Labour states that employees can be required to provide services under the applicable legal conditions and must receive the statutory compensation.[2]
Hours worked on a public holiday carry a one-hundred-percent surcharge over the ordinary hourly wage, effectively producing double the ordinary hourly rate for those hours.[2] Employers should not assume that an ordinary replacement day off removes this wage obligation where the Labour Code requires the holiday premium.
Government Services and Practical Planning
A national public holiday does not mean that every activity in Paraguay stops. The holiday law expressly protects the continuity of emergency medical services and other indispensable public services, including functions connected with foreign trade and tax collection.[1] Private commercial opening hours also depend on the nature of the business and its staffing arrangements.
Movable holidays are intended in part to support longer breaks and domestic tourism. SENATUR has promoted transferred holidays as opportunities for travel to historical, cultural and natural destinations and for increased economic activity in local communities.[7] Travellers should nevertheless confirm intercity transport, accommodation, attractions and other services directly because the legal declaration of a holiday does not prescribe a single operating schedule for every provider.
Frequently Asked Questions about Public Holidays in Paraguay
Can every Paraguayan public holiday be moved to Monday?
No. Current legislation identifies only Heroes' Day, Peace of the Chaco Day, Constitution Oath Day and the Battle of Boquerón as movable holidays. The Executive Branch may transfer one of them by decree to the Monday immediately before or after the commemorative date.[1] Other statutory holidays remain non-movable.
Can Paraguay declare extra national holidays?
Yes. The current public-holiday law authorises the Executive Branch to declare up to three additional national holidays in a year for tourism and economic purposes or to mark special occasions.[1] These are not permanent additions to future calendars unless separately established.
Is a public-sector asueto the same as a national public holiday?
No. The Executive Branch may grant an asueto to public-sector employees, but the public-holiday law states that an asueto remains a working day and does not have the same legal effects as a national public holiday, subject to a specific rule for deadlines.[1]
How is work on a public holiday paid in Paraguay?
The Ministry of Labour states that hours worked on a national public holiday must be paid with a one-hundred-percent surcharge over the ordinary hourly wage, meaning double the ordinary rate for those hours.[2]
Why is the Virgin of Caacupé observance important for travellers?
It is both a national public holiday and one of Paraguay's major religious celebrations. Large numbers of pilgrims travel to Caacupé, and the celebration has a significant religious-tourism component.[1][6] Visitors should check current transport and local access arrangements when planning a trip around the observance.
Do essential public services stop on national holidays?
No. The public-holiday law expressly provides that emergency medical work and other indispensable public services are not interrupted by national holidays or public-sector asuetos.[1]
Sources
- Ley Nº 7544/2025 / QUE DETERMINA LOS FERIADOS NACIONALES DE LA REPÚBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, SE ESTABLECEN LOS FERIADOS MÓVILES Y SE FACULTA AL PODER EJECUTIVO A INSTITUIR OTROS FERIADOS EN SITUACIONES ESPECIALES.- Biblioteca y Archivo Central del Congreso de la Nación
- Ministerio de Trabajo estableció directrices ante la vigencia de ley de feriados extraordinarios- Ministerio de Trabajo, Empleo y Seguridad Social
- Presidente Peña decreta feriado nacional tras la histórica clasificación de la Albirroja- Presidencia de la República del Paraguay
- 1811 – La Revolución del 14 de mayo|1811 – Ñepu’ã Guasu 14 jasypópe guare- Secretaría Nacional de Cultura
- 89 años de la “PAZ DEL CHACO”- Centro Cultural de la República El Cabildo
- FESTIVIDAD DE CAACUPÉ FUE DECLARADA DE INTERÉS TURÍSTICO NACIONAL- Secretaría Nacional de Turismo
- FERIADO LARGO, UNA EXCELENTE OCASIÓN PARA FOMENTAR EL TURISMO INTERNO- Secretaría Nacional de Turismo