Canada Statutory Holidays 2026 by Province
Canada has no single national holiday list. The ten federal statutory holidays in the table below are set by the Canada Labour Code and apply only to federally regulated workplaces — banks, airlines, railways, telecoms, broadcasters, interprovincial trucking and the federal public service. Everyone else follows the employment standards of their province or territory, and those lists differ in ways that catch out payroll teams every year.
Dates in 2026
| Date | Day | Holiday | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2026 | Thursday | New Year's DayStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| April 3, 2026 | Friday | Good FridayStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| May 18, 2026 | Monday | Victoria DayThe Monday preceding May 25. Not observed as a statutory holiday in some Atlantic provinces.Statutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| July 1, 2026 | Wednesday | Canada DayStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| September 7, 2026 | Monday | Labour DayStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| September 30, 2026 | Wednesday | National Day for Truth and ReconciliationA federal statutory holiday since 2021. Also a statutory holiday in several provinces and territories, but not all.Statutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| October 12, 2026 | Monday | ThanksgivingStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| November 11, 2026 | Wednesday | Remembrance DayA statutory holiday federally and in most provinces, but not in Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia or Manitoba.Statutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| December 25, 2026 | Friday | Christmas DayStatutory holiday | Statutory holiday |
| December 28, 2026 | Monday | Boxing Day (observed)Boxing Day (Dec 26) falls on a Saturday, so the substitute day off is Monday Dec 28. Among provinces, only Ontario observes Boxing Day as a statutory holiday.Substitute holiday | Substitute holiday |
Federal statutory holidays cover a minority of workers
The most common misunderstanding about Canadian holidays is treating the federal list as the national list. Federal jurisdiction covers roughly six per cent of Canadian employees. If you work in retail, hospitality, construction, manufacturing, health care, education or almost any provincially regulated industry, the Canada Labour Code list does not apply to you — your province’s employment standards act does.
Five days are effectively universal: New Year’s Day (Thu Jan 1), Good Friday (Fri Apr 3), Canada Day (Wed Jul 1), Labour Day (Mon Sep 7) and Christmas Day (Fri Dec 25). Quebec is the notable variation on Good Friday, where the employer may choose either Good Friday or Easter Monday. Everything else on the federal list — Victoria Day, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day and Boxing Day — is observed unevenly.
February: Family Day and its aliases
The third Monday of February — 16 February 2026 — is a statutory holiday under several different names. It is Family Day in Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Saskatchewan; Louis Riel Day in Manitoba; Islander Day in Prince Edward Island; and Heritage Day in Nova Scotia. Same date, five different names.
It is not universal, though. Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador have no February holiday at all, and Yukon’s Heritage Day sits on a different February date. This is the single biggest reason a “Canadian holiday calendar” downloaded from a generic site will be wrong for someone: a Montreal office works through the third Monday of February while a Toronto office two provinces away is closed.
The three biggest provincial splits
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (Wed Sep 30, 2026) is a federal statutory holiday, and a statutory holiday for all workers in British Columbia, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon. It is not a statutory holiday for provincially regulated employees in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia or Newfoundland and Labrador — although in some of those, provincial government staff do get the day, and many private employers grant it voluntarily.
Remembrance Day (Wed Nov 11, 2026) is a statutory holiday federally and in most provinces and territories, but not as an ordinary statutory holiday in Ontario or Quebec, and Manitoba and Nova Scotia handle it under separate closing-day legislation rather than as a standard paid stat. Boxing Day is narrower still: among the provinces, only Ontario treats it as a statutory holiday. Because 26 December 2026 is a Saturday, the day off shifts to Monday 28 December where it applies.
Two more worth knowing: the Civic Holiday on the first Monday of August (Mon Aug 3, 2026) is a genuine statutory holiday in British Columbia (BC Day), Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, but in Ontario the August Civic Holiday is not a statutory holiday under the Employment Standards Act — many employers grant it anyway. And Quebec has its own Fête nationale on Wednesday 24 June, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, which no other province observes.
Official sources & data
- Statutory holidays for federally regulated employeesVisit sourceGovernment of Canada
Frequently asked questions
Which provinces observe Family Day?+
On Monday 16 February 2026 it is Family Day in Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Saskatchewan, Louis Riel Day in Manitoba, Islander Day in Prince Edward Island and Heritage Day in Nova Scotia. Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador have no February statutory holiday, and Yukon’s Heritage Day is on a different date.
Is September 30 a statutory holiday in Ontario?+
No. The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a federal statutory holiday, so federally regulated employees in Ontario get it, but it is not a statutory holiday under Ontario’s Employment Standards Act. Provincially regulated Ontario employers may grant the day voluntarily, and many do.
Is Boxing Day a statutory holiday in Canada?+
Federally yes, and among the provinces only in Ontario. Because 26 December 2026 falls on a Saturday, the substitute day off is Monday 28 December for those covered. Elsewhere many retailers and offices close on Boxing Day by custom rather than by law.
Is Remembrance Day a statutory holiday across Canada?+
No. Remembrance Day (Nov 11) is a statutory holiday federally and in most provinces and territories, but it is not an ordinary statutory holiday in Ontario or Quebec, and Manitoba and Nova Scotia regulate it through separate closing-day legislation instead of the standard paid-holiday rules.
Why do the federal statutory holidays not apply to my job?+
Because federal labour jurisdiction is limited to specific industries — banking, air and rail transport, telecommunications, broadcasting, interprovincial trucking, ports, and the federal public service. Roughly 94 per cent of Canadian employees fall under provincial or territorial employment standards instead, and the holiday list follows the jurisdiction, not the calendar.
Is the August Civic Holiday a statutory holiday?+
It depends on the province. Monday 3 August 2026 is a statutory holiday in British Columbia (BC Day), Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, and is widely observed elsewhere under local names such as Terry Fox Day in Manitoba, Natal Day in Nova Scotia and Heritage Day in Alberta. In Ontario the Civic Holiday is not a statutory holiday under the Employment Standards Act, so paid time off is a matter of employer policy.