Public holidays in Brazil, 2013

How Brazil public holidays work in 2013

Brazil's public holidays come in three layers under Law 9.093 of 1995. The federal layer fixes nine national holidays including Tiradentes Day on 21 April, Independence Day on 7 September and Our Lady of Aparecida on 12 October. States and the Federal District add their own, and each município may declare up to four municipal holidays plus the municipal anniversary, which is why São Paulo closes for the city's foundation on 25 January while Rio de Janeiro closes for São Sebastião on 20 January. Carnival is famously not a federal holiday by statute, but a facultative day off observed almost universally in practice and made statutory in some states.

Working days in Brazil

The Consolidação das Leis do Trabalho article 67 requires one paid weekly rest day, preferably Sunday. The Código de Processo Civil article 219 counts procedural deadlines in dias úteis, meaning any day other than Saturday, Sunday and a public holiday. The standard private-sector week is Monday to Friday in offices, often Monday to Saturday in retail and trades. Settlement of real transactions runs on the Sistema de Pagamentos Brasileiro operated by the Banco Central, which observes federal holidays. State and municipal holidays affect local commerce but not national clearing.