Public holidays in France 2020-2024
The French holidays are quite similar to the German ones. From Easter to Pentecost to Christmas, most of the holidays are Christian. Despite the dominating Catholic Church, Corpus Christi is not a public holiday. The national holiday is celebrated on 14 July.Good Friday and the second day of Christmas are an exception: both are public holidays only in Alsace and Lorraine. But they are known throughout the country.
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Non-movable holidays
Non-statutory holidays are written in gray.| holiday | Local name | date |
|---|---|---|
| New Year | Jour de l'An | Jan, 1st |
| Labor Day | Fête du travail | May, 1st |
| Victory Day 1945 | Fête de la Victoire | May, 8th |
| French National Day | Fête Nationale de la France | Jul, 14th |
| Assumption Day | Assomption | Aug, 15th |
| All Saints' Day | Toussaint | Nov, 1st |
| Ceasefire of Compiègne | Armistice 1918 | Nov, 11th |
| Saint Nicholas | Saint-Nicolas | Dec, 6th |
| 1st Christmas Holiday | Noël | Dec, 25th |
| 2nd Christmas holiday (only Alsace + Lorraine) | Lendemain de Noël | Dec, 26th |
Moving Holidays in France
| holiday | Local name | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good Friday (only Alsace + Lorraine) | Vendredi Saint | Apr, 10th | Apr, 2nd | Apr, 15th | Apr, 7th | Mar, 29th |
| Easter Sunday | Jour de Pâques | Apr, 12th | Apr, 4th | Apr, 17th | Apr, 9th | Mar, 31st |
| Easter Monday | Lundi de Pâques | Apr, 13th | Apr, 5th | Apr, 18th | Apr, 10th | Apr, 1st |
| Ascension of Christ | Ascension | May, 21st | May, 13th | May, 26th | May, 18th | May, 9th |
| Whit Sunday | Pentecôte | May, 31st | May, 23rd | Jun, 5th | May, 28th | May, 19th |
| Mother's Day | Fête des Mères | May, 31st | May, 30th | May, 29th | May, 28th | May, 26th |
| Whit Monday | Lundi de Pentecôte | Jun, 1st | May, 24th | Jun, 6th | May, 29th | May, 20th |
| Corpus Christi | Fête-Dieu | Jun, 11th | Jun, 3rd | Jun, 16th | Jun, 8th | May, 30th |
| Father's Day | Fête des Pères | Jun, 21st | Jun, 20th | Jun, 19th | Jun, 18th | Jun, 16th |
Day of Victory
Like many other countries involved in the Second World War, France has a holiday that dates back to its end. Every year, the "Day of Victory", or "Day of Armistice", commemorates the 8th of May 1945, the day on which the German troops capitulated, thus bringing about the end of the war. On this day the church bells ring all over France. The holiday was introduced in France in 1981.The fact that some countries celebrate this day on 8 May, others on 9 May, is quite justified: The deed was signed on the night of May 9th, shortly after midnight German time. At that time summer time was in force in Germany, but not in all neighbouring countries, which is why some of them were still 1 hour behind and had a different date.