Public holidays, school terms and daylight savings
Public holidays in the ACT
Public holidays in Australia are different in each state and territory. Below are the ACT’s public holidays. The information on this page comes from the Holidays Act 1958 (ACT).
2024
Public holiday | Date |
|---|---|
New Year's Day | Monday 1 January |
Australia Day | Friday 26 January |
Canberra Day | Monday 11 March |
Good Friday | Friday 29 March |
Easter Saturday – the day after Good Friday | Saturday 30 March |
Easter Sunday | Sunday 31 March |
Easter Monday | Monday 1 April |
ANZAC Day | Thursday 25 April |
Reconciliation Day | Monday 27 May |
King's Birthday | Monday 10 June |
Labour Day | Monday 7 October |
Christmas Day | Wednesday 25 December |
Boxing Day | Thursday 26 December |
Download a copy of the 2024 ACT Public Holidays
Public holiday | Date |
|---|---|
New Year's Day | Wednesday 1 January |
Australia Day | Monday 27 January |
Canberra Day | Monday 10 March |
Good Friday | Friday 18 April |
Easter Saturday – the day after Good Friday | Saturday 19 April |
Easter Sunday | Sunday 20 April |
Easter Monday | Monday 21 April |
ANZAC Day | Friday 25 April |
Reconciliation Day | Monday 2 June |
King's Birthday | Monday 9 June |
Labour Day | Monday 6 October |
Christmas Day | Thursday 25 December |
Boxing Day | Friday 26 December |
Download a copy of the 2025 ACT Public Holidays
Public holiday | Date |
|---|---|
New Year's Day | Thursday 1 January |
Australia Day | Monday 26 January |
Canberra Day | Monday 9 March |
Good Friday | Friday 3 April |
Easter Saturday – the day after Good Friday | Saturday 4 April |
Easter Sunday | Sunday 5 April |
Easter Monday | Monday 6 April |
ANZAC Day | Saturday, 25 April |
Reconciliation Day | Monday 1 June |
King's Birthday | Monday 8 June |
Labour Day | Monday 5 October |
Christmas Day | Friday 25 December |
Boxing Day | Saturday 26 and Monday 28 December |
Download a copy of the 2026 ACT Public Holidays
Public holiday | Date |
|---|---|
New Year's Day | Friday 1 January |
Australia Day | Tuesday 26 January |
Canberra Day | Monday 8 March |
Good Friday | Friday 26 March |
Easter Saturday – the day after Good Friday | Saturday 27 March |
Easter Sunday | Sunday 28 March |
Easter Monday | Monday 29 March |
ANZAC Day | Monday 26 April |
Reconciliation Day | Monday 31 May |
King's Birthday | Monday 14 June |
Labour Day | Monday 4 October |
Christmas Day | Saturday 25 and Monday |
Boxing Day | Sunday 26 and Tuesday |
Download a copy of the 2027 ACT Public Holidays
Bank holidays
The Holidays Act 1958 includes bank holidays. In the ACT there is a bank holiday on the first Monday in August.
Bank holidays do not apply to everyone. We recommend you refer to your Enterprise Agreement or Award for more information.
View public holidays in the ACT in previous years.
ACT school term dates
Term | Student start date | Finish date |
|---|---|---|
Term 1 | New students: Tuesday 30 January Continuing students: Wednesday 31 January | Friday 12 April |
Term 2 | Tuesday 30 April | Friday 5 July |
Term 3 | Tuesday 23 July | Friday 27 September |
Term 4 | Tuesday 15 October | Tuesday 17 December |
Term | Student start date | Finish date |
|---|---|---|
Term 1 | New students: Monday 3 February Continuing students: Tuesday 4 February | Friday 11 April |
Term 2 | Tuesday 29 April | Friday 4 July |
Term 3 | Tuesday 22 July | Friday 26 September |
Term 4 | Tuesday 14 October | Thursday 18 December |
Teacher start dates
Teachers have different term dates. Education Directorate publishes the teacher term dates for all teachers in the ACT.
ACT school terms and holidays calendar
View the ACT School terms dates and holiday calendar
Public school terms dates printed version
Download a document version of the school term dates.
Daylight saving in the ACT
Daylight saving in the ACT is the same as in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.
When does daylight saving start and end?
Daylight saving begins at 2am Eastern Standard Time on the first Sunday in October each year. This is when you need to put your clocks forward one hour.
Daylight saving ends at 3am, Eastern Daylight Saving Time on the first Sunday in April. This is when you need to put your clocks back one hour.
The next daylight saving:
- starts at 2am Sunday 6 October 2024
- ends at 3am Sunday 6 April 2025.