Public holidays in Australia, 2020

How Australia public holidays work in 2020

Australia has no national public holiday statute; each state and territory legislates its own list under its own Holidays Act or equivalent. The result is eight overlapping but distinct calendars, with about seven days common across all jurisdictions including New Year's Day, Australia Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Beyond that, things diverge sharply. Victoria observes the Melbourne Cup public holiday on the first Tuesday in November, the Northern Territory observes Picnic Day, Western Australia observes Foundation Day in early June, and South Australia observes Proclamation Day on 26 December. Queen's Birthday is observed on different dates in different states.

Working days in Australia

The Fair Work Act 2009 sets a 38-hour standard week as the maximum without overtime, with the working week defined by the relevant modern award or enterprise agreement. The standard private-sector business week is Monday to Friday with banks operating Monday to Friday. Court procedural rules in each state roll filing deadlines from a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday to the next business day. Settlement of Australian dollar transactions runs on the Reserve Bank Information and Transfer System (RITS), which observes a nationally agreed banking calendar narrower than any single state's holiday list because banks operate across state lines.

For people planning cross-border meetings, the practical move is to overlay Australia's calendar with the calendars of the other countries on your team. A week that looks completely clear from your end might be a national holiday on theirs. The compare tool above pairs two country calendars and highlights the overlapping closures, so you can spot the weeks where almost no one is at their desk before you put a launch on the board.