Public Holiday Calendar Guide for Taiwan
Taiwan's holiday calendar combines civic commemorations, traditional festivals, Labour Day and Indigenous ceremonial leave. The current framework is based on the national law governing memorial days and festivals, while private-sector employee rights are linked to that calendar through the Labor Standards Act. An important recent structural change also ended the former routine of creating long weekends by moving ordinary workdays and assigning Saturday makeup workdays, so older descriptions of Taiwan's holiday system can now be misleading. [1][2][3]
How Taiwan's Public Holiday System Works
Taiwan's law on memorial days and festivals distinguishes between commemorative occasions and those that actually carry a statutory day off. Holidays include major civic observances as well as Lunar New Year, Children's Day, Qingming Festival, Labour Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Teachers' Day and Mid-Autumn Festival. The law also provides a separate holiday entitlement for Indigenous seasonal rituals and ceremonies. [1]
For private-sector workers covered by the Labor Standards Act, national holidays, festivals, Labour Day and other holidays designated by the competent authorities are leave days under Article 37. The Ministry of Labor states that these statutory holidays are paid and that employees who agree to work on such a holiday are entitled to the compensation required by labour law. [2][4]
The Old Saturday Makeup-Work System Has Changed
The original reference describes a system in which the government routinely created a bridge day beside a Tuesday or Thursday holiday and then designated a Saturday as a makeup workday. That is no longer the standard rule. The Directorate-General of Personnel Administration states that the government removed the provision for converting an ordinary workday into a holiday followed by a makeup workday, reflecting the established five-day workweek. [3]
The current framework instead focuses on substitute holidays when a statutory holiday coincides with a regular day off. For government administrative agencies, the general arrangement places the substitute day before a holiday falling on Saturday and after a holiday falling on Sunday, subject to special rules and adjustments permitted by law. Private businesses remain governed by the Labor Standards Act and related labour rules rather than automatically inheriting every detail of the government-office calendar. [1][3]
Lunar New Year and Traditional Festivals
Lunar New Year receives the longest statutory festival break. The holiday law provides a multi-day period around the beginning of the lunar year rather than treating the festival as a single day. [1] Because its Gregorian position changes annually, travellers and employers should use the applicable official calendar rather than carrying dates forward from an older calendar.
Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival are also among Taiwan's major traditional celebrations. Taiwan's Tourism Administration identifies Lunar New Year, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival as three major annual traditional holidays. Dragon Boat traditions prominently include boat races and zongzi, while Mid-Autumn customs include family gatherings, mooncakes, viewing the moon and the particularly Taiwanese custom of gathering for barbecue. [5]
Qingming, Civic Holidays and the Modern Calendar
Qingming Festival is a statutory holiday associated with tomb sweeping and remembrance of ancestors. Children's Day is also a statutory day off, and the holiday law contains a specific rule for occasions when the two observances coincide. [1]
Taiwan's civic holiday calendar includes commemorations connected with the founding of the Republic of China, the Peace Memorial, Confucius' Birthday and Teachers' Day, National Day, Taiwan Retrocession and the Battle of Guningtou commemoration, and Constitution Day. [1] Because the statutory calendar has changed over time, older online holiday lists may omit observances that are now days off. Current official calendars are therefore preferable to historical lists.
Indigenous Seasonal Ritual Holidays
Taiwan's holiday framework also recognises the seasonal rituals and ceremonies of Indigenous peoples. Eligible Indigenous people may take three days of holiday according to the ceremonial calendar associated with their own people or tribe, or according to qualifying family connections defined by the relevant rules. The days may be taken separately or consecutively. [1][6]
The Council of Indigenous Peoples publishes the applicable ceremonial periods because different Indigenous peoples and communities follow different ritual calendars. [6] These holidays therefore should not be represented as one fixed nationwide festival date. Eligible employees and employers should consult the Council's calendar for the relevant year.
Holiday Rights for Private-Sector Workers
A government work calendar and a private employee's labour rights are related but not identical. The Directorate-General of Personnel Administration expressly notes that its government administrative calendar applies to government administrative agencies, while private-sector holiday arrangements are governed by the Labor Standards Act and Ministry of Labor rules. [3]
The Ministry of Labor states that workers covered by Article 37 must receive leave on designated national holidays with wages paid. If an employee agrees to work on a statutory holiday, the employer must provide the applicable holiday-work compensation. Labour and management may also agree to move a holiday to another working day, in which case the legal character of the original and substituted days changes accordingly. [2][4]
Planning Travel Around Taiwan's Holidays
Traditional holiday periods can substantially change travel patterns even when transport services continue operating. Lunar New Year is particularly important for family reunions, while Dragon Boat and Mid-Autumn festivals are major annual celebrations. [5] Long-distance travellers should therefore check railway, high-speed rail, airline and bus booking arrangements when travelling during major holiday periods rather than assuming ordinary demand.
Commercial opening hours are not determined by a simple rule that every shop or restaurant closes on a public holiday. Tourism, retail and food businesses can follow their own schedules within applicable employment rules. Visitors should check individual establishments, especially during Lunar New Year when family-oriented businesses may alter their hours. The Tourism Administration maintains practical holiday information for visitors and directs readers to the official government work calendar for annual dates. [7]
Frequently Asked Questions about Holidays in Taiwan
Does Taiwan still use Saturday makeup workdays to create long weekends?
Not as the former routine government-calendar practice. The government removed the rule that regularly converted an ordinary workday into a bridge holiday and then required a makeup workday. Current arrangements instead emphasise statutory holidays and substitute days when holidays coincide with regular days off. [3]
What happens when a public holiday falls on a weekend?
The holiday law provides a substitute holiday when a qualifying memorial or festival holiday coincides with a regular day off. For government administrative agencies, the general calendar rule places the substitute before a Saturday holiday and after a Sunday holiday, with special provisions possible for certain holidays and services. Private-sector arrangements must also comply with the Labor Standards Act. [1][3]
Are statutory holidays paid for private-sector employees?
For workers covered by the Labor Standards Act, designated national holidays and festivals are leave days, and Ministry of Labor guidance states that wages must be paid. If an employee agrees to work on a statutory holiday, the applicable holiday-work compensation rules apply. [2][4]
Do Lunar New Year, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival occur on the same Gregorian dates every year?
No. These traditional festivals are defined according to the lunar calendar, so their Gregorian dates change from year to year. Use the applicable official calendar when planning travel, staffing or leave. [1][5]
Do Indigenous employees have separate ceremonial holidays?
Eligible Indigenous people may take three days of holiday according to the applicable seasonal ritual calendar. The Council of Indigenous Peoples publishes the ceremonial periods, and the leave can be taken separately or consecutively under the applicable rules. [1][6]
Are shops and restaurants closed during public holidays?
Not necessarily. Public-holiday employment rights do not create a universal requirement for every retailer or restaurant to close. Operating hours vary by business and festival, so visitors should check individual establishments directly, particularly during major family holidays such as Lunar New Year. [2][7]
Sources
- 2027 Work Calendar- Directorate-General of Personnel Administration, Executive Yuan
- 國定假日及補假- Ministry of Labor, Republic of China (Taiwan)
- 人事總處新聞稿消息：行政院修正114年（西元2025年）政府行政機關辦公日曆表及核定115年（西元2026年）政府行政機關辦公日曆表- 行政院人事行政總處
- Employers are required to allow their employees to take time off on holidays (national holidays) that are specified in the Labor Standards Act.- Ministry of Labor, Republic of China (Taiwan)
- Traditional Festivals- Tourism Administration, Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Republic of China (Taiwan)
- Seasonal Rituals Holidays are Extended to Three Days for the Inheritance of Indigenous Peoples' Culture- Council of Indigenous Peoples, Republic of China (Taiwan)
- Useful Tips- Tourism Administration, Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Republic of China (Taiwan)