While South Africans are currently enjoying a Monday off work thanks to Women’s Day, eyes will no doubt have already turned to when the next public holiday in the country falls.
National Women’s Day fell on Sunday, 9 August, meaning Monday, 10 August is being observed as a public holiday – and a long weekend.
As a reminder, if a public holiday occurs on a weekday (Monday to Friday), employees receive the day off.
But when a holiday falls on a Saturday, workers who normally do not work that day do not receive an additional day off, meaning the holiday is effectively ‘lost’.
If it falls on a Sunday, the following Monday is observed as a public holiday.
Next public holiday
The next official public holiday isn’t too far off.
Heritage Day will be celebrated on Thursday, 24 September. Widely known as ‘Braai Day’, it should be celebrated with an ice-cold beer and braai tongs in hand, no?
If you move fast, taking Friday, 25 September off work will give you a four-day weekend.
Public holidays in 2026
The number of public holidays in South Africa in 2026 will be 14.
However, South Africans have lost – and will lose – two of those holidays due to the fact that they fall on Saturdays.
Looking at the 2026 public holiday calendar, those public holidays falling on a Saturday are – or were:
Below is the full list of remaining public holidays in South Africa for 2026:
Which is your favourite public holiday of the year?
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