Public holidays in New Zealand, 2020

How New Zealand public holidays work in 2020

New Zealand recognises eleven public holidays under the Holidays Act 2003, plus one anniversary day per region observed only in that region. The national list includes New Year's Day and 2 January, Waitangi Day on 6 February, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day on 25 April, King's Birthday on the first Monday of June, Matariki at a date set annually by the Matariki Advisory Committee (a Maori lunisolar new year added in 2022), Labour Day on the fourth Monday of October, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. The eleventh anniversary day varies: Auckland observes it on 29 January, Wellington on 22 January, Canterbury on 16 November.

Working days in New Zealand

The Holidays Act 2003 defines an otherwise working day for the purpose of public holiday entitlements as any day the employee would have worked but for the holiday. The Employment Relations Act 2000 governs working time generally. The standard private-sector week is Monday to Friday with banks operating Monday to Friday. District Court Rules and High Court Rules treat working day as any day except Saturday, Sunday, public holidays, the period from 25 December to 2 January inclusive and the anniversary day of the locality. Settlement of New Zealand dollar transactions runs on the Reserve Bank's ESAS system.

For people planning cross-border meetings, the practical move is to overlay New Zealand'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.