Holidays in United Arab Emirates 2026

United Arab Emirates observes 13 public holidays in 2026. 11 fall on a weekday and 2 land on a weekend, leaving 250 working days across the year on the national-only count.

2026 public holidays calendar

Date	Day	Holiday	Notes
Jan 1	Thursday	New Year's Day	New Year's Day on Thursday January 1 is a strong bridge-day candidate; many employers grant the Friday as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
Mar 19	Thursday	Eid al-Fitr (eve)	Eid al-Fitr (eve) on Thursday March 19 is a strong bridge-day candidate; many employers grant the Friday as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
Mar 20	Friday	Eid al-Fitr (day 1)	Eid al-Fitr (day 1) on Friday March 20 produces a three-day weekend with the immediately following Saturday and Sunday.
Mar 21	Saturday (weekend)	Eid al-Fitr (day 2)	Eid al-Fitr (day 2) lands on a Saturday (March 21) and is absorbed into the weekend.
Mar 22	Sunday (weekend)	Eid al-Fitr (day 3)	Eid al-Fitr (day 3) lands on a Sunday (March 22) and is absorbed into the weekend.
May 26	Tuesday	Arafat Day	Arafat Day on Tuesday May 26 is a bridge-day candidate; the Monday is sometimes granted as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
May 27	Wednesday	Eid al-Adha (day 1)	Eid al-Adha (day 1) on Wednesday May 27 breaks the working week without an obvious adjacent-weekend bridge opportunity.
May 28	Thursday	Eid al-Adha (day 2)	Eid al-Adha (day 2) on Thursday May 28 is a strong bridge-day candidate; many employers grant the Friday as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
May 29	Friday	Eid al-Adha (day 3)	Eid al-Adha (day 3) on Friday May 29 produces a three-day weekend with the immediately following Saturday and Sunday.
Jun 16	Tuesday	Islamic New Year	Islamic New Year on Tuesday June 16 is a bridge-day candidate; the Monday is sometimes granted as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
Dec 1	Tuesday	Commemoration Day	Commemoration Day on Tuesday December 1 is a bridge-day candidate; the Monday is sometimes granted as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.
Dec 2	Wednesday	National Day	National Day on Wednesday December 2 breaks the working week without an obvious adjacent-weekend bridge opportunity.
Dec 3	Thursday	National Day (day 2)	National Day (day 2) on Thursday December 3 is a strong bridge-day candidate; many employers grant the Friday as discretionary leave to produce a four-day weekend.

2026 year summary

Total days

365

Weekend days

104

Public holidays on weekdays

Working days

250

The 2 weekend-falling public holidays in 2026 are absorbed into the regular Saturday and Sunday count, so the working-day reduction comes only from the 11 weekday-falling entries. The UAE observes federal public holidays per annual Cabinet decree, with Eid al-Fitr, Arafat Day, Eid al-Adha, Islamic New Year, and Mawlid al-Nabawi on the Islamic lunar calendar. The federal public sector moved from a Friday-Saturday to a Saturday-Sunday weekend in January 2022; the private sector largely aligned.

Holidays not included

Emirate-specific commemorations (e.g., Sheikh Zayed Humanitarian Work Day on August 19 in some configurations, Dubai government anniversaries) are not part of the federal set. The free zones (ADGM, DIFC, JAFZA, DAFZA) operate under their own commercial-law regimes and may observe slightly different holiday calendars. The Mawlid al-Nabawi (Prophet's Birthday) was removed from the official UAE federal holiday list in 2019 but reappears in some years; this calculator includes it for 2024 and excludes it for 2025-2026 per the Cabinet announcements.

Other years

United Arab Emirates holidays 2024 United Arab Emirates holidays 2025 United Arab Emirates holidays 2027 United Arab Emirates holidays 2028 United Arab Emirates business day calculator Working days in 2026 Holiday data methodology

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United Arab Emirates Holidays 2026 - FAQ

How many public holidays does United Arab Emirates have in 2026?

United Arab Emirates observes 13 public holidays in 2026. Of those, 11 fall on a weekday and 2 land on a weekend. The complete list with dates and weekday placements is in the calendar table above.

How many working days does United Arab Emirates have in 2026?

United Arab Emirates has 250 working days in 2026 on the national-only count, after subtracting 104 weekend days and 11 weekday-falling public holidays. Regional or industry-specific holidays may further reduce the count for narrower contract definitions.

Which 2026 public holiday dates fall on a weekday?

11 of United Arab Emirates's 13 public holidays in 2026 fall on a weekday and reduce the working days count: New Year's Day (Thursday, January 1); Eid al-Fitr (eve) (Thursday, March 19); Eid al-Fitr (day 1) (Friday, March 20); Arafat Day (Tuesday, May 26); Eid al-Adha (day 1) (Wednesday, May 27); Eid al-Adha (day 2) (Thursday, May 28); Eid al-Adha (day 3) (Friday, May 29); Islamic New Year (Tuesday, June 16); Commemoration Day (Tuesday, December 1); National Day (Wednesday, December 2); National Day (day 2) (Thursday, December 3).

Which 2026 holidays fall on a weekend and how are they handled?

2 public holidays in 2026 fall on a weekend: Eid al-Fitr (day 2) on Saturday, March 21; Eid al-Fitr (day 3) on Sunday, March 22. The country may shift the observance to an adjacent weekday by proclamation or industry custom; check the official gazette for the year in question.