Guide · Public holidays
Public holiday pay when you leave, full or part time
This site does not give legal advice. This guide explains the general rules; it does not tell you what applies to your situation.
Rules checked on
The short answer
If your job ends during the week that ends the day before a public holiday, and you worked for your employer during the 4 weeks before, you are due an extra day's pay. Part-time workers must also have worked at least 40 hours in the 5 weeks before the holiday.
Public holidays in Ireland in 2026 and 2027
Ireland has 10 public holidays a year. Good Friday is not one of them.
| Public holiday | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| New Year’s Day | Thursday 1 January | Friday 1 January |
| St Brigid’s Day | Monday 2 February | Monday 1 February |
| St Patrick’s Day | Tuesday 17 March | Wednesday 17 March |
| Easter Monday | Monday 6 April | Monday 29 March |
| May | Monday 4 May | Monday 3 May |
| June | Monday 1 June | Monday 7 June |
| August | Monday 3 August | Monday 2 August |
| October | Monday 26 October | Monday 25 October |
| Christmas Day | Friday 25 December | Saturday 25 December |
| St Stephen’s Day | Saturday 26 December | Sunday 26 December |
What are you entitled to on a public holiday?
While you are employed, your employer chooses one of these for each public holiday Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, s.21(1):
- a paid day off on the day;
- a paid day off within a month of the day;
- an extra day of annual leave;
- an extra day’s pay.
You can ask your employer, at least 21 days before the holiday, which one it will be. If it does not reply at least 14 days before, you get a paid day off on the holiday itself s.21(2) and (3).
Part-time workers: the 40-hour test
If you do not work full time, you qualify only if you have worked at least 40 hours in the 5 weeks ending on the day before the public holiday s.21(4). Citizens Information says annual leave counts towards these hours. Full-time workers do not need to meet this test.
Long absences
You do not qualify if, just before the holiday, you were absent for more than Third Schedule:
- 52 weeks in a row, because of an injury from an accident at work;
- 26 weeks in a row, because of an injury from another accident, or an illness;
- 13 weeks in a row, for another absence your employer authorised, including a lay-off.
You also do not qualify if you were absent because of a strike in your employer’s business or industry.
What happens to the public holiday when you leave?
If your employment ends during the week ending on the day before a public holiday, and you worked for your employer during the 4 weeks before, you are due an extra day’s pay s.23(2). Citizens Information adds that part-time workers must also have worked 40 hours in the previous 5 weeks.
That week is the 7 days ending on the day before the holiday:
| Public holiday | Your last day falls between |
|---|---|
| Monday 26 October 2026 | Monday 19 and Sunday 25 October 2026 |
| Friday 25 December 2026 | Friday 18 and Thursday 24 December 2026 |
| Saturday 26 December 2026 | Saturday 19 and Friday 25 December 2026 |
| Friday 1 January 2027 | Friday 25 and Thursday 31 December 2026 |
| Monday 1 February 2027 | Monday 25 and Sunday 31 January 2027 |
| Wednesday 17 March 2027 | Wednesday 10 and Tuesday 16 March 2027 |
| Monday 29 March 2027 | Monday 22 and Sunday 28 March 2027 |
Around Christmas, these weeks overlap. A last day between 19 and 24 December 2026 falls in the week before Christmas Day and in the week before St Stephen’s Day, so the rule may apply to each of them. The calculator checks only the first public holiday after your last day: check the others yourself. If your last day is itself a public holiday, the law is less clear: the calculator applies the rule to the next public holiday and says so.
How much is a day’s pay?
The rate depends on whether the holiday falls on a day you normally work S.I. No. 475/1997, reg. 5:
| The public holiday falls on… | Rate |
|---|---|
| a day you normally work | your normal pay for that day |
| a day you do not normally work | one-fifth of your normal weekly pay, but not more than a normal day’s pay |
Overtime is left out. If your pay varies, an average over the previous 13 weeks is used.
Worked examples
Full time. Aoife works Monday to Friday for €850 gross a week. Her last day is Friday 23 October 2026. Monday 26 October is a public holiday, and her last day falls in the week from 19 to 25 October. She worked the 4 weeks before. Monday is one of her usual days, so her daily rate is €850 ÷ 5 = €170.00. That is the extra day’s pay.
The same pattern applies a year later. If her last day were Friday 22 October 2027, Monday 25 October 2027 would give her €170.00.
Part time. Brian works 20 hours a week, Monday to Thursday, for €400 gross a week. His last day is Friday 31 July 2026. Monday 3 August is a public holiday.
- His last day falls in the week from 27 July to 2 August.
- Hours in the 5 weeks before: 5 × 20 = 100, which is more than 40.
- Monday is one of his usual days: €400 ÷ 4 days = €100.00.
If Brian did not normally work on Mondays, the rate would be one-fifth of his weekly pay: €400 ÷ 5 = €80.00.
Public holidays earlier in the year
The extra day only covers the holiday after you leave. If you were given nothing for an earlier public holiday this year (no paid day off, no extra leave, no extra pay), that is a separate amount. Our calculator adds the number of days you enter at your daily rate. It does not check them for you, so look at your payslips and rota first.
Annual leave not taken is also due when you leave. See annual leave and holiday pay when you leave a job, and your P45 and final pay for a check of every line. If your job was made redundant, see also statutory redundancy in Ireland.
What to do if the day’s pay is missing
- Check the payslip. Look for a line for the public holiday. Some employers include it in holiday pay: compare the total with the calculator.
- Write to your employer. Give your last day, the public holiday, the rate and the amount. Ask for payment by a set date.
- Complain to the WRC if needed. A complaint must usually be made within 6 months of the breach, or up to 12 months if the WRC accepts there was a reasonable cause for the delay Workplace Relations Act 2015, s.41(6) and (8).
For the day’s pay due when you leave, count the 6 months from your last day, the safer reading. For Aoife, that gives 22 April 2027, with a suggested filing date of 12 April 2027. For an earlier public holiday that was never given, the 6 months may run from an earlier date, close to the holiday itself. Act quickly. Writing to your employer does not stop the clock. See making a WRC complaint online.
Your next steps
- Check, free. Use the leave calculator to check the public holiday, your untaken leave and your time limits.
- Claim in writing. If the day’s pay is missing, you can prepare a final pay claim letter to your employer yourself (€9, or €19 with a dated follow-up letter and reminders). It can include annual leave and notice too.
- The next step. If your employer does not pay, you make a complaint to the WRC online yourself. A free preparation sheet, available from the calculator’s results without any purchase, lists what the online form asks for.
Free help is also available from Citizens Information, the WRC’s information service, a trade union or a solicitor.
One-page checklist
Before you check public holiday pay
Check public holiday pay and untaken leave, free
Enter your last day, your usual working days, your hours and your weekly pay. The calculator finds the next public holiday, checks the conditions, works out the daily rate and adds your untaken annual leave. No account needed.
Open the leave calculator