Bank holidays in Hungary 2026

Hungarian bank holidays and other special days in 2026

• January 1, 2026 (Thursday): New Year’s Day
• January 2 (Friday): rest day to create a 4-day long weekend (January 1 – 4)
• January 10 (Saturday): working day in exchange for a rest day on January 2
• March 15 (Sunday): commemoration of the revolution in 1848
• April 3 – April 5&6 (Friday – Monday): 4-day long weekend for the Easter holidays with Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday
• May 1 (Friday): Labor Day
• May 24 and 25 (Sunday and Monday): Pentecost
• August 8 (Saturday): working day in exchange for a rest day on August 21
• August 20 (Thursday): St. Stephen’s Day or the Day of the New Bread
• August 21 (Friday) rest day to create a 4-day long weekend (August 20 – 23)
• October 23 (Friday): commemoration of the revolution in 1956
• November 1 (Sunday): All Saints’ Day or All Hallows’ Day
• December 12 (Saturday): working day in exchange for a rest day on 24 December, Thursday
• December 24 (Thursday): Christmas Eve, rest day to create a 4-day long weekend
• December 25 – 26 (Friday – Saturday): 1^st and 2^nd day of Christmas
• December 31 (Thursday): New Year’s Eve, “short day”
• January 1, 2027 (Friday): New Year’s Day

Regular working hours in Hungary

A full-time job in Hungary means 40 hours a week. Most often, this is distributed in 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, Monday through Friday from either 8 am to 4 pm or 9 am to 5 pm. Of course, many businesses operate on different schedules, such as shops, restaurants, or theaters: they may be open in the evening or on weekends, or even around the clock. Based on your activities, you might already be familiar with working time banking or wage supplements in Hungary.

In 2026, several bank holidays fall on weekends, causing little change to regular working time. Mind you, Saturdays and Sundays that are bank holidays are different from regular Saturdays and Sundays, meaning that different wage supplements will apply, and even you opening hours might be affected.

Meanwhile, some public holidays will fall on weekdays, resulting in extended weekends. If they fall on a Tuesday or a Thursday, the previous or following day will be turned into a rest day to create an extra long weekend. These rest days need to be compensated, so the Saturday of the previous or following week will be turned into a working day.

Long weekends and working Saturdays

In Hungary, it is traditionally preferred to have one long weekend instead of having a bank holiday in the middle of the week. As a result, exchanging Saturdays for rest days around holidays is a regular occurrence. The practice is regulated by law and marked in calendars.

Working Saturdays are supposed to be full working days. When it comes to schedules (like opening hours or public transport timetables), they work like Fridays, while the preceding Friday is turned into a Thursday. For example, if employees work until 4 on most weekdays but only until 3 on Fridays, the expected schedule will be to work until 3 on an exchanged Saturday and until 4 on the preceding Friday.

Of course, as an employer you may decide how to best manage the time of your employees. Many employers let employees leave earlier on working Saturdays, or schedule special events, such as trainings or team building activities.

Employees can take PTO on working Saturdays, just like on any other working days. Make sure to coordinate with everyone and plan schedules well in advance to avoid being understaffed.

Short days: special days that are not holidays

Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve are special. They are not bank holidays, but most people are preparing for celebrations, and this is reflected in opening hours and public transport timetables. Businesses usually close early, and public transportation switches to night mode around 4 pm.

In 2026, Christmas Eve will be a rest day and behave as a Saturday (compensated by the working Saturday on December 12). New Year’s Eve will remain a working day, so you should keep in mind that it will be a “short day”.

When planning the workload for December 2026, consider how busy a season it is for your business. In retail, Christmas is typically the busiest season of the year, while for office jobs, it might be a slow period. In either case, employees will want to leave early or take days off during the holidays. Additionally, they are required by law to take most of their PTO by the end of the calendar year, and as an employer, it is your job that paid time off is scheduled for everyone.

HR compliance and payroll support with Helpers

Consider what kind of workload expect throughout the year, and help your employees schedule their vacation days in a balanced way. While you are at it, consider if you will need to provide any wage supplements for overtime, shift work, night work, or working on bank holidays.

The Helpers Team provides comprehensive assistance with business operation in Hungary, which includes payroll support and HR compliance as well as accounting and other ongoing services. If you have any questions, feel free to contact your account manager anytime.

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