2026 Taiwan Public Holidays Complete Guide: 9 Long Weekends & Optimal Leave Strategy
How do some workers turn a few leave days into weeks-long getaways, while other people’s vacations always get fragmented? The trick is early planning, plus understanding the two new rules in 2026: no make-up workdays anywhere in the year (the make-up workday system was abolished starting in the second half of 2025), and 5 newly added public holidays (Labor Day, Confucius’s Birthday, Taiwan Retrocession Day, Constitution Day, and the night before Lunar New Year’s Eve). This guide pulls together the full 2026 calendar and a leave strategy that turns the fewest annual leave days into the longest break possible.
Two new rules in the 2026 Taiwan calendar
1. Make-up workdays abolished (starting second half of 2025)
In the past, when a public holiday fell on a Saturday or Sunday, the central government would announce a “make-up workday” (work a Saturday to compensate for a weekday off). Starting in the second half of 2025, the policy is make-up days off only, no make-up workdays — meaning there are no make-up workdays in 2026 at all. Good news for office workers: no more awkward situations where a 4-day weekend “costs” you a Saturday at the office.
2. Five new public holidays (Regulations on Implementing Memorial Days and Holidays, effective 2025-05-28)
Holidays that for years were either available only to certain groups (like Labor Day for workers) or abolished outright (like Taiwan Retrocession Day) were all restored to nationwide public holidays through a 2025 Legislative Yuan amendment:
| New public holiday | Date | Eligibility |
|---|---|---|
| The night before Lunar New Year’s Eve | Lunar 12/29 | Nationwide (civil servants and students included) |
| Labor Day | 5/1 | First time as a nationwide unified holiday (previously only for workers) |
| Confucius’s Birthday | 9/28 | Nationwide |
| Taiwan Retrocession Day | 10/25 | Nationwide |
| Constitution Day | 12/25 | Nationwide |
The biggest change: May 1 Labor Day shifts from “workers only” to a nationwide unified holiday. Civil servants, teachers and faculty, and students all get the day off starting in 2026 (police, firefighters, and military personnel may rotate the day off because of shift duty).
Complete list of 2026 public holidays
Taiwan’s public holidays come in two categories: fixed-date and lunar-calendar-variable. The 2026 (ROC Year 115) full list below totals 9 long weekends / 11 public holidays / 120 days off across the year:
| Long weekend | Date | Days | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Year’s Day | 1/1 (Thu) – 1/4 (Sun) | 4 | Includes the weekend |
| 228 Peace Memorial Day | 2/27 (Fri) – 3/1 (Sun) | 3 | 2/28 (Sat) + make-up day off |
| Lunar New Year — 9 days | 2/14 (Sat) – 2/22 (Sun) | 9 | Year’s longest; the night before LNY’s Eve 2/15 + LNY’s Eve 2/16 + LNY 2/17–2/19 + make-up day off |
| Children’s Day + Tomb-Sweeping Day | 4/3 (Fri) – 4/6 (Mon) | 4 | Children’s Day 4/4 + Tomb-Sweeping Day 4/5 make-up day off |
| Labor Day | 5/1 (Fri) – 5/3 (Sun) | 3 | First time as a nationwide unified holiday |
| Dragon Boat Festival | 6/19 (Fri) – 6/21 (Sun) | 3 | Lunar 5/5 |
| Teachers’ Day + Mid-Autumn Festival | 9/25 (Fri) – 9/28 (Mon) | 4 | Mid-Autumn 9/25 + Teachers’ Day 9/28 + long weekend |
| National Day | 10/9 (Fri) – 10/10 (Sat) | 2 | 10/9 make-up day off |
| Constitution Day | 12/25 (Fri) – 12/27 (Sun) | 3 | Includes the weekend |
⚠️ Always refer to the official DGPA (Directorate-General of Personnel Administration) announcement for the final list. 10/25 Taiwan Retrocession Day falls on a Sunday this year (standalone holiday) — it doesn’t form a long weekend but the day itself is off.
Long weekend leave strategy: maximize time off, minimize annual leave used
The best combo: Lunar New Year + 228 → take 4 days off, get 16 days
To stretch the Lunar New Year break, take just 4 days of annual leave from 2/23 (Mon) – 2/26 (Thu) and you can chain Lunar New Year (2/14–2/22) and 228 long weekend (2/27–3/1) into a single 16-day super-break (2/14 – 3/1). It’s the highest-ROI leave move of 2026.
Leave-planning tips:
- Book travel early: Lunar New Year flights and accommodation jump 30–50% — book a 16-day trip 6 months in advance
- Avoid the evening of 2/13: that’s the peak homebound-travel surge — leaving early morning on 2/14 helps
Lunar New Year: 9 days off naturally
Official holiday: 2/14 (Sat) – 2/22 (Sun), 9 days total, naturally formed by surrounding weekends.
Leave tips:
- For just 1–2 extra days, take 2/13 (Fri) for a 10-day break (2/13 – 2/22)
- Not recommended to extend past 2/23 unless you’re going for the full “4 leave days → 16 day” combo
Children’s Day + Tomb-Sweeping Day: 4-day long weekend
Children’s Day 4/4 (Sat) gets a make-up day off on 4/3 (Fri); Tomb-Sweeping Day 4/5 (Sun) gets a make-up day off on 4/6 (Mon), naturally forming a 4-day long weekend 4/3 – 4/6.
Leave tips:
- Want a longer break? Take 4/2 (Thu) — turns into 5 days (4/2 – 4/6)
- Going further: take 4/2 + 4/7 (Tue) — turns into 6 days
Labor Day: 3-day long weekend (new rule in 2026)
First time as a nationwide unified holiday (new law effective 2025-05-28), 5/1 (Fri) – 5/3 (Sun).
Leave tips:
- Want a longer break? Take 4/30 (Thu) — turns into 4 days (4/30 – 5/3)
- Going further: take 4/30 + 5/4 (Mon) – 5/5 (Tue) — turns into 6 days
Dragon Boat Festival: 3-day long weekend
6/19 (Fri) – 6/21 (Sun), lunar 5/5.
Leave tips:
- Want a longer break? Take 6/18 (Thu) — turns into 4 days
- Going further: take 6/18 + 6/22 (Mon) – 6/23 (Tue) — turns into 6 days
Teachers’ Day + Mid-Autumn Festival: 4-day long weekend
9/25 (Fri) Mid-Autumn Festival + 9/28 (Mon) Teachers’ Day + Confucius’s Birthday, combined with the weekend = 4-day long weekend 9/25 – 9/28.
Leave tips:
- Want a longer break? Take 9/24 (Thu) — turns into 5 days (9/24 – 9/28)
- Going further: take 9/29 (Tue) – 9/30 (Wed) — turns into 6–7 days
National Day: 2 days
10/9 (Fri) make-up day off + 10/10 (Sat) National Day.
Leave tips:
- Want a longer break? Take 10/12 (Mon) – 10/13 (Tue) — turns into 5 days
- Note that Taiwan Retrocession Day 10/25 falls on a Sunday — no long weekend forms (just the day off, weekdays on either side)
Constitution Day: 3 days
12/25 (Fri) – 12/27 (Sun). Newly added as a public holiday in 2026 — civil servants and students had to work this day in the past.
Leave tips:
- Stretch into New Year’s: take 12/29 (Tue) – 12/31 (Thu) — combined with New Year’s Day, you get 8 days (12/25 – 1/3)
2026 leave strategy summary
| Target days off | Annual leave used | Recommended window |
|---|---|---|
| 16-day super break | 4 days | 2/23–2/26 chaining Lunar New Year + 228 |
| 8-day year-end break | 3 days | 12/29–12/31 chaining Constitution Day + New Year |
| 6–7 days | 2–3 days | Teachers’/Mid-Autumn 9/29–9/30 / around Dragon Boat |
| 5 days | 1–2 days | Children’s/Tomb-Sweeping 4/2 / Labor Day 5/4–5/5 |
| 4 days | 0–1 days | Most long weekends are already 3–4 days |
Leave-request tips
Submit your leave request early
Most companies require leave to be submitted 2–4 weeks in advance. Competition for popular holidays is fierce:
- Lunar New Year holidays: submit by December at the latest (homebound travel peak)
- Tomb-Sweeping long weekend: submit by February at the latest
- Summer vacation: submit by May at the latest
Early submission isn’t just better for approval odds — it also helps the company plan staffing.
Combine leave with WFH days
If your company allows working from home:
- Leave + WFH combo: take 4/2 (Thu) as leave but WFH a half day to spend time with family while staying productive
- Alternating WFH: if you can’t get continuous days off, consider 1–2 leave days plus WFH on other dates
Avoid the peak booking windows
- Lunar New Year: skip the 2/14–2/22 core window — taking 2/23–2/27 instead is just as much a vacation but half the crowds
- Tomb-Sweeping: if you don’t have to sweep tombs, use alternative dates like 4/2–4/6
- Summer vacation: mid-July sees fewer travelers than early July, and flights run 20–30% cheaper
Bank your leave (if company policy allows)
Some companies let employees roll over annual leave (for example, at year-end settlement):
- Don’t waste current-year leave — roll it over to next year or save it for flexible dates
- Plan multi-year long breaks (e.g., bank 2–3 years of leave for a 1-month overseas trip)
Cross-country Lunar New Year comparison: where do Taiwan’s 9 days rank in Asia?
Taiwan’s 9-day Lunar New Year break in 2026 feels long, but the actual gap between Asian countries that celebrate Lunar New Year is wider than you’d expect. Here’s a 2026 comparison around Lunar New Year’s Day (2/17):
| Country | Statutory days off | Main effective long weekend window | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vietnam | 7–9 days | 2/14–2/22 | Government announces annually; about 9 days including weekends in 2026 |
| Taiwan | 7 days (including make-up days off) | 2/14–2/22 (9 days) | The night before LNY’s Eve + 5 weekdays + weekend make-up day off |
| South Korea | 3 days | 2/16–2/18 | Lunar New Year’s Eve through Lunar 1/2 |
| Malaysia | 2 days | 2/17–2/18 | States may add extras (e.g., Sarawak) |
Taiwan and Vietnam tie as the two countries with the longest Lunar New Year breaks in Asia — driven by the cultural weight of the Chinese New Year tradition plus the 2025 amendment adding 5 new public holidays. South Korea also celebrates Lunar New Year (Seollal / 설날), but only Lunar New Year’s Eve through Lunar 1/2 are off (3 days total) — Chuseok (Mid-Autumn) actually gets more days off there. Malaysia, as a multi-religious country, gives 2 days for Chinese New Year (national consensus), with Eid, Deepavali, Vesak Day, and other religious holidays carrying their own public days off to balance across communities.
In comparison, Taiwan’s 9-day Lunar New Year break ranks at the top in Asia. If you have friends overseas, fair warning: it’s also the peak window for flight bookings, and the heaviest period for Taiwan High Speed Rail and intercity buses. Heading abroad? Book 3–4 months in advance. Traveling domestically? Skip the 2/16–2/19 core 3 days and go to the outer edges (2/20–2/22) for a smoother trip.
Countdown tool
Want to keep tabs on how many days until the next holiday? TWTools’ Countdown Timer lets you set every important 2026 holiday and automatically tracks the days remaining. Open the homepage and you can see at a glance:
- Days until the next holiday
- Working days remaining in the year
- Custom personal dates (birthdays, anniversaries, trip dates)
FAQ
Q1: Are there really no make-up workdays in 2026?
A: Yes. After the Legislative Yuan amended the law in the second half of 2025, the rule is make-up days off only — no make-up workdays. So every long weekend in 2026 is a true gain — no Saturday at the office to “repay” it.
Q2: Do civil servants get May 1 Labor Day off?
A: Yes. Starting 2025-05-28, the Regulations on Implementing Memorial Days and Holidays added Labor Day as a nationwide public holiday. Civil servants, teachers and faculty, and students all get May 1 off starting in 2026. Police, firefighters, coast guard, and military personnel may rotate the actual day off because of shift duty.
Q3: How do you count 9 days for the Lunar New Year break?
A: The night before LNY’s Eve 2/15 (Sun) + LNY’s Eve 2/16 (Mon) + Lunar New Year 2/17–2/19 (Tue, Wed, Thu) + 2/20 (Fri) make-up day off + 2/21–2/22 (weekend) = 9 days total (2/14–2/22 with the leading Saturday included).
Q4: Is the 16-day Lunar New Year + 228 chain really possible?
A: Yes. 2/14–2/22 Lunar New Year 9 days + 2/23–2/26 4 days of annual leave + 2/27–3/1 228 long weekend 3 days = 16 continuous days. The highest-ROI leave move of 2026.
Q5: Why is Mid-Autumn Festival on 9/25 and not some date at the end of September?
A: Mid-Autumn Festival falls on Lunar 8/15. In 2026 Lunar 8/15 maps to 9/25 (Fri) on the solar calendar, naturally combining with the weekend + 9/28 (Mon) Teachers’ Day into a 4-day long weekend.
Use these tools and strategies to maximize your time off in 2026. The golden rules of vacation planning: plan early, combine flexibly, avoid the peaks. That 16-day super break is waiting.