Holiday List 2026: India’s Official Holiday Calendar

It’s already the New Year!

And you know what that means?

New challenges, new opportunities, new plans, new goals…

And of course, the new holiday list!

Because whether you’re an employee planning trips or a manager figuring out your payroll process for the next year, the first thing everyone wants to know from their HR is,

“Where is the holiday list 2026?”

And honestly, holidays affect everything. Leaves, work schedules, travel plans. Even salary processing in some cases.

Now, India is known for its diversity! Different cultures, traditions, food, and, of course, festivals.

That’s why having a clear holiday calendar for 2026 is mandatory.

In this blog, we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of India’s holidays for 2026, along with some practical tips on how companies and HR teams can effectively utilize this calendar.

Let’s get into this!

Summary:

This blog covers everything you need to know about the holiday list 2026 in India. You’ll find the official public holidays, key state-wise holidays, and simple tips on how HR teams and businesses use the holiday calendar 2026 for leave planning, payroll, and work schedules.

Public holiday list 2026

Here is the official holiday list for 2026.

State-wise holiday list 2026

How HR & Businesses use the 2026 holiday calendar?

A holiday calendar may look like just a list of dates. But inside companies, it’s used for a lot more than people think.

Leave planning:

The moment the holiday list is out, employees start planning leave. HR can already predict peak leave periods around festivals and long weekends. This helps avoid situations where too many people apply for leave at the same time.

Workforce & shift planning:

For support teams and field staff, holidays don’t always mean a full day off. Managers use the calendar to plan:

• Shift rotations
• Comp-offs
• Backup staff for critical days

Without a clear holiday plan, things usually become last-minute and messy.

Payroll processing:

Holidays directly affect payroll timelines. HR and payroll teams use the calendar to:

• Finalise salary cut-off dates
• Plan approvals
• Avoid delays in salary processing.

One unplanned holiday can easily push payroll schedules off track.

Project planning:

Business teams use the holiday calendar while setting yearly and quarterly plans. Important launches or deadlines are usually avoided during holiday-heavy months. Sales, finance, and operations teams all align their targets using this calendar.

How to create your company holiday list for 2026?

Creating a holiday list sounds simple… until you actually sit down to do it.

At first, it feels like, “Okay, we’ll just copy the government list, and it will be done.”

But then questions start popping up.

• Which states are we covering?
• Do we have to give optional holidays or not?
• What about teams working on weekends?
• And what about the payroll processing?

So here’s a more practical way to approach it.

Step 1: Start with locations, not holidays

Before you even think about dates, figure out where your employees are based.

If you have a remote team, it goes without saying that your team is working every corner of the country.

Each state has its own festivals, which means you need to be mindful about preparing your holiday calendar. Trying to apply one single list to everyone usually creates confusion (and complaints).

Step 2: Lock your “must-have” holidays

Now pick the non-negotiables.

These are the holidays your company will observe no matter what, like national holidays and a few major festivals.

Keep this list short and clean. Too many fixed holidays can disrupt operations, especially for growing teams.

Step 3: Decide on optional or restricted holidays

This is where flexibility helps. Instead of forcing everyone to take the same festival off, many companies allow optional holidays.

Employees choose what matters to them. HR gets fewer exceptions. Everyone’s happier (mostly).

Just be clear on how many optional holidays employees can take in a year.

Step 4: Check how holidays affect attendance & leave rules

This step is often skipped, and teams later regret it.

Ask things like:

• Will comp-off be given if a holiday falls on a weekend?
• Does the sandwich rule apply?
• What happens for shift-based or field teams?

If these rules aren’t clear, employees will keep asking, and HR will keep explaining.

Step 5: Sync holidays with payroll timelines

It’s very important. Holidays directly affect payroll cut-off dates, approvals, and salary processing.

Before finalising the list, quickly cross-check:

• Payroll run dates
• Compliance deadlines
• Month-end processing days

One missed alignment can delay salaries, something that no one wants!

Step 6: Publish it early and communicate properly

Once the list is ready, don’t just upload it!

Share it clearly:

• Email
• HR portal
• Employee dashboard
• Calendar invites, if possible

The earlier people know the holiday list, the better they can plan leaves, travel, and work.

Superworks: The best way to prepare your holiday list 2026

If you are an HR or a manager, you can’t afford to miss this!

Superworks offers you the smartest solution to manage holidays in 2026.

With SuperHRMS, holiday prep becomes less chaotic. You basically set up your holiday calendar inside the system, and then it’s just there for everyone, even for the team that is working remotely.

Conclusion

Who doesn’t enjoy holidays? If you have a doubt, ask your employees. No employee will say otherwise, and they shouldn’t. However, for HRs, it is extremely important to organize holidays strategically. So that the employees can plan accordingly. A small mistake will simply create chaos. That’s why starting the new year with a clear holiday list for 2026 is the best way to have absolute clarity.

With so many public and state-specific festivals, you need proper planning, clear communication, and smooth execution across teams and locations.

This is where Superworks makes things easier. From creating your holiday calendar to syncing it with leave, attendance, and payroll, the platform helps you manage every holiday in 2026 without the usual back-and-forth or errors.

Plan once. Set it right. And let Superworks handle the rest. Book a demo now!