Q&A: What are the dates of public holidays in Ireland?

Mike from Colorado sent me an email today. In it he reminded me of the upcoming US 4th of July national holiday. Mike is considering a move to Ireland for work related reasons next year, and asked me the following question.

Hi Liam, Can you tell me which days on the Irish calendar are observed as national holidays? Which can I expect to have off from work in Ireland?

Mike, there are 9 public holidays each year on the Irish calendar. Unlike in the US where your national holidays are all named, many of ours are just referred to as 'bank holidays' e.g. the June bank holiday.

The 9 Irish public holidays are:
- New Year's Day (1 January)
- St. Patrick's Day (17 March)
- Easter Monday
- First Monday in May, June, August
- Last Monday in October
- Christmas Day (25 December)
- St. Stephen's Day (26 December)

The norm for most workers is to have those days off, however there are many professions that don't. Most offices and schools will most certainly be closed on each of those days, but you'll find many business (shops, pubs etc) open at least for part of the day. It's very similar to the system in the US in that respect.

Holiday and pay entitlement is covered in more detail in this article on citizensinformation.ie.

beach photo credit: Flickr/23629083@N03