Good News for Office Workers: 5 Additional Public Holidays Added After Legal Reform in 2025! 2026 Brings 5 New National Holidays – Full Guide to Second-Half Leave and Makeup Work Rules

Office workers and students are迎来 the most generous holiday system in recent years. In 2025, Taiwan's Legislative Yuan officially passed the 'Holiday Implementation Act' in its third reading, elevating previously lower-tier holiday regulations to legal status. This establishes a nationwide '4 plus 1' expanded holiday framework, adding five new national holidays annually.

In the first half of this year, the day before Lunar New Year's Eve (Little New Year's Eve) was legally formalized as a holiday. Additionally, on May 1, Labor Day was observed simultaneously by military personnel, civil servants, teachers, students, and private-sector workers for the first time. As autumn approaches, the second half of the year will see a wave of new national holidays, marking the peak holiday density of the year.

Which new holidays are coming in the second half? How will Teachers' Day, Retrocession Day, and Constitution Day be observed?

According to current regulations, three of the five newly added holidays under the amendment will be implemented in the second half. Leading the way is September 28—Confucius' Birthday (Teachers' Day)—which ends years of controversy over being 'commemorated but not observed as a holiday,' officially restoring it as a nationwide public holiday. Next is October 25, Taiwan Retrocession Day and the Commemoration of the Kinmen Guningtou Victory, followed by December 25, Constitution Day, which coincides with Christmas. All three are legally mandated as one-day holidays for all citizens.

In addition to these three nationwide holidays, the statutory leave days for Indigenous Peoples' seasonal rituals have been significantly expanded from one to three days, reflecting concrete respect for multicultural traditions.

Looking back at the first half of the year, Little New Year's Eve (the day before Lunar New Year's Eve) was officially incorporated into the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday on February 15, eliminating the need for makeup work on Saturdays under previous flexible scheduling. On May 1, Labor Day, long-standing issues were resolved, such as only Labor Standards Act-covered workers being entitled to time off, which previously caused misalignment between public and private sector schedules and disrupted parental childcare.

With the sequential implementation of these three major holidays in the second half, the overall holiday system becomes more comprehensive.

How do autumn consecutive holidays naturally form? Why can people enjoy a four-day break without makeup work when Mid-Autumn Festival coincides with Teachers' Day?

The most anticipated holiday period in the second half falls in late September, during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Teachers' Day. This year, the Mid-Autumn Festival falls on Friday, September 25. Combined with the weekend, and with Teachers' Day on Monday, September 28, office workers and students will enjoy a natural four-day consecutive holiday.

This holiday has sparked widespread discussion, primarily because the Executive Yuan has fully implemented the principle of 'makeup holidays without makeup work.' The previously unpopular practice of Saturday makeup work has officially been abolished. Under the current holiday scheduling mechanism, if a national holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday is designated as a makeup holiday; if it falls on a Sunday, the following Monday becomes the makeup holiday.

For example, Retrocession Day on October 25 falls on a Sunday in 2026, so it will legally be moved to Monday, October 26, naturally forming a comfortable three-day consecutive holiday without requiring makeup work before or after the holiday. Similarly, Constitution Day on December 25 falls on a Friday, directly creating a three-day weekend.

How should people plan their second-half holidays? How is pay calculated for working on national holidays?

With the密集 holiday schedule, vacation planning and travel demand have surged. For the four-day consecutive holiday in late September (Mid-Autumn Festival and Teachers' Day), if individuals take four days of annual leave before the holiday, they can directly extend it into a full 10-day long break. Similarly, by strategically using flexible leave around National Day, Retrocession Day in October, and Constitution Day in December, people can create multiple short 'micro-trips,' significantly boosting domestic and international tourism and consumer spending.

Regarding workers' rights when working on national holidays, Taiwan's Ministry of Labor has specifically reminded all employers that all newly added statutory holidays and weekend makeup holidays are legally recognized as official national holidays. For any worker required to work on these days due to shift or rotational scheduling, employers must, in accordance with the Labor Standards Act, either pay double the daily wage or, through clear mutual agreement between labor and management, provide equivalent compensatory time off. Employers are urged to avoid inadvertently violating labor laws and infringing on workers' legitimate rights to rest and compensation.

| Holiday Name | Legal Date | Observance Group and Nature | 2026 Date and Makeup Rules | Substantive Change Before and After Amendment | |--------------|------------|------------------------------|-------------------------------|---------------------------------------------| | Little New Year's Eve | Day before Lunar New Year's Eve | Nationwide holiday | Feb 15 (Sun) | Incorporated into the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday (Feb 14–22), eliminating the need for Saturday makeup work under previous flexible scheduling. | | Labor Day (+1) | May 1 | Nationwide holiday (including military, civil servants, teachers, and students) | May 1 (Fri) | Naturally forms a three-day holiday (May 1–3). Previously only applied to Labor Standards Act-covered workers; now unified for all, resolving public-private sector scheduling misalignment. | | Teachers' Day (Confucius' Birthday) | Sep 28 | Nationwide holiday | Sep 28 (Mon) | Connects with Mid-Autumn Festival (Fri, Sep 25), resulting in a four-day break. Ends the 'commemoration-only' status since the 2016 amendment. | | Retrocession Day (Guningtou Victory) | Oct 25 | Nationwide holiday | Oct 25 (Sun) | Under 'makeup holiday only, no makeup work' principle, moved to Mon, Oct 26, forming a three-day holiday. | | Constitution Day | Dec 25 | Nationwide holiday | Dec 25 (Fri) | Falls on Friday, naturally forming a three-day holiday (Dec 25–27). Fully restored as a nationwide holiday (coincides with Christmas), boosting year-end consumption and leisure tourism. | | Indigenous Peoples' Seasonal Rituals | Announced per tribal calendar | For individuals with Indigenous status | Expanded from 1 to 3 days | Statutory leave increased from 1 to 3 days, supporting cultural heritage and ritual participation. |