![\"How](\"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/free-photo-of-colorful-summer-day-at-coney-island-amusement-park-1.jpeg\")
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Hello everyone, I am your dedicated public holiday assistant. Recently, a little friend consulted me about the topic of how many bank holidays in the Netherlands<\/b>. Now I will summarize the relevant info, hoping to help the little friends who want to know exactly what to expect when planning around Dutch holidays.<\/p>\n
So, here\u2019s the deal: the Netherlands doesn\u2019t have a ton of public holidays compared to some other countries, but the ones they do have are pretty solid. Officially, there are seven national public holidays<\/b> that are recognized across the country. But that number can sometimes feel like eight if you count Liberation Day, which is a little tricky. Most folks in the Netherlands refer to these as \u201cpublic holidays\u201d rather than \u201cbank holidays\u201d \u2013 but since banks and most businesses are closed on these days, the term still fits.<\/p>\n
First up, let me break down the standard seven: New Year\u2019s Day<\/b> (January 1), Easter Monday<\/b> (the day after Easter Sunday), King\u2019s Day<\/b> (April 27 \u2013 if that falls on a Sunday, they celebrate it on the 26th), Ascension Day<\/b> (40 days after Easter), Whit Monday<\/b> (the Monday after Pentecost), Christmas Day<\/b> (December 25), and Boxing Day<\/b> (December 26, which they call Second Christmas Day). That\u2019s the core seven. All of these are paid public holidays for most employees, meaning you get the day off with full pay.<\/p>\n
Now, Liberation Day on May 5 is a bit of a wild card. It\u2019s a national public holiday, but it\u2019s only a paid day off once every five years<\/b> \u2013 specifically in years ending in a 0 or a 5 (like 2025, 2030, etc.). In other years, it\u2019s still a holiday, but most people have to work unless their employer decides to give it off. So technically, if you\u2019re counting bank holidays where banks are closed, you\u2019ll find that banks are usually closed on Liberation Day every year (because it\u2019s a recognized holiday), but for workers, it\u2019s not always a day off. So the answer to \u201chow many bank holidays\u201d can be seven or eight depending on the year.<\/p>\n
One thing that trips people up: the Netherlands does not<\/b> have a tradition of \u201cday in lieu\u201d if a holiday falls on a weekend. So if Christmas lands on a Saturday, you don\u2019t automatically get Friday or Monday off instead. Some employers might be nice about it, but it\u2019s not a legal requirement. That means the actual number of paid days off per year can vary slightly. Also, Good Friday is not a national holiday in the Netherlands \u2013 it\u2019s observed by some Christian businesses and schools, but it\u2019s not a mandatory day off for everyone.<\/p>\n
Another quirky thing: the Netherlands has a few regional holidays<\/b> that aren\u2019t national. For example, in the northern provinces, there\u2019s a fun celebration called \u201cGroningen\u2019s Liberation Day\u201d or something similar, but that\u2019s more local. And of course, Carnival is huge in the southern Catholic regions, but it\u2019s not an official public holiday \u2013 schools and some businesses close, but not banks. So when we talk strictly about bank holidays (meaning national public holidays when banks and most government offices shut down), you\u2019re looking at that core seven.<\/p>\n
For 2024, let\u2019s do a quick run-through: New Year\u2019s Day (Monday), Easter Monday (April 1 \u2013 yes, April Fools\u2019 Day!), King\u2019s Day (April 27 \u2013 Saturday, so no extra day off for most people), Ascension Day (May 9), Whit Monday (May 20), Liberation Day (May 5 \u2013 Sunday, and because 2024 doesn\u2019t end in 0 or 5, it\u2019s not a paid day off unless your boss is generous), Christmas Day (Wednesday), and Boxing Day (Thursday). So in 2024, if you\u2019re lucky enough to have a boss that gives Liberation Day off, you\u2019ll get eight paid days. If not, it\u2019s seven.<\/p>\n
Here are some common questions I hear: \u201cAre Dutch banks closed on all public holidays?\u201d Yes, banks are closed on all the seven national holidays, and typically on Liberation Day too, even if it\u2019s not a paid day off for workers. \u201cDo I get a day off if a holiday falls on a weekend?\u201d Generally no, but some collective labor agreements (CAO) might give you a substitute day \u2013 check your contract. \u201cIs Good Friday a bank holiday?\u201d No, it\u2019s not \u2013 most businesses and banks stay open. \u201cWhat about New Year\u2019s Eve?\u201d That\u2019s not a public holiday either \u2013 most places close early but it\u2019s not a mandatory day off. \u201cAre there any differences for expats or international workers?\u201d No, the rules apply to everyone working in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n
Also, if you\u2019re planning a trip to the Netherlands, keep in mind that on King\u2019s Day (April 27), the whole country basically parties \u2013 public transport is crazy, and many museums or attractions might have special hours. On Ascension Day and Whit Monday, a lot of people take a long weekend. And around Christmas, expect most things to be closed on the 25th and 26th. If you\u2019re a business traveler, avoid those days for meetings unless you\u2019re okay with empty offices.<\/p>\n
One more thing: the Dutch vacation entitlement is generous (minimum four weeks per year for full-time workers), so many people use their personal days to bridge between holidays and weekends. That\u2019s why you\u2019ll see a lot of \u201cbridge days\u201d (brugdagen) taken off, especially around Ascension Day and Whit Monday. But that\u2019s not an official holiday \u2013 it\u2019s just smart planning.<\/p>\n
In summary, the Netherlands has a solid seven national public holidays<\/b> every year, with an eighth (Liberation Day) that counts as a paid day off only every five years. Banks are closed on all of these, so if you\u2019re counting \u201cbank holidays\u201d in the traditional sense, it\u2019s seven. But remember: no automatic compensation for holidays on weekends, and regional celebrations aren\u2019t official days off. Always double-check the official calendar from the Dutch government for the exact dates, since Easter and related holidays move around.<\/p>\n
Thank you for reading, I hope this article can help you fully understand how many bank holidays in the Netherlands<\/b>. If you have more questions \u2013 maybe about specific years, or about how holidays affect your work contract \u2013 please contact us. I\u2019m your Holiday Little Assistant, and I\u2019m always here to help you plan your days off!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hello everyone, I am your dedicated public holiday assistant. Recently, a little friend consulted me about the topic of how many bank holidays in the Netherlands. Now I will summarize the relevant info, hoping to help the little friends who want to know exactly what to expect when planning around Dutch holidays. So, here\u2019s the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25107,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"slim_seo":{"title":"How Many Bank Holidays Does the Netherlands Have? A Complete Guide for 2024 and Beyond - Public Holiday Calendar","description":"Hello everyone, I am your dedicated public holiday assistant. Recently, a little friend consulted me about the topic of how many bank holidays in the Netherland"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[278],"tags":[25532,25535,25531,25534,25533],"class_list":["post-25108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-dutch-public-holidays","tag-how-many-holidays-in-netherlands","tag-netherlands-bank-holidays","tag-netherlands-holiday-calendar-2024","tag-official-holidays-netherlands"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25108","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25108"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25108\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25109,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25108\/revisions\/25109"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25107"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25108"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25108"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}