Singapore Public Holidays: Official Dates, Employee Pay & HR Rules

Public holidays are one of those payroll topics that seem simple until one lands on a Sunday, a shift worker only clocks a few hours, or HR and payroll read the contract differently.

In Singapore, the devil is in the details.

Under the Employment Act, employees covered in Singapore get 11 paid public holidays each year. If someone works on a public holiday, you will usually owe an extra day’s salary at the basic rate of pay, though some arrangements allow a substitute public holiday or time off in lieu.

This guide gives you the official 2026 Singapore public holiday dates, plus the practical pay and compliance rules you need to apply them correctly.

Singapore public holidays 2026

“Gazetted” means the holiday is officially set by the Singapore Government.

When a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the next working day is a public holiday for employees whose rest day falls on that Sunday.

Some religious holidays are published by the government with a note that they are subject to confirmation.

Review this page each year against the latest MOM release so your payroll calendar stays current.

Who gets public holidays

If your employee is covered by the Employment Act, they are generally entitled to the 11 paid public holidays in Singapore. That includes both local and foreign employees working under a contract of service. The simplest way to think about it is like this: public holiday entitlement is part of the baseline employment framework, not a special perk.

For part-time employees, the entitlement still exists, but the pay is pro-rated based on hours worked. Singapore also allows part-time public holidays to be encashed by agreement in some cases, which is why your contract wording matters. If you need the broader context for leave planning, start with this guide to paid vacation days by country.

Probation does not remove public holiday entitlement. New hires can still be entitled to public holiday benefits. For shift workers and employees on non-standard schedules, the question is less about title and more about what day is a working day, non-working day, or rest day under the documented schedule.

Paid day off basics

A paid public holiday usually means your monthly-paid employee’s salary already includes pay for that holiday. In other words, you are not adding a separate public holiday payment just because the day exists on the calendar.

Where teams get tripped up is the schedule. If the holiday lands on a normal working day and the employee doesn’t work, they still get the paid holiday. If it lands on a day that is not normally worked, you need to check whether that day is their rest day or a non-working day, because the outcome is different.

In Singapore, public holiday payments and salary in lieu often use the gross rate of pay, while payment for work done on a public holiday uses the basic rate of pay.

If a public holiday falls on a rest day or non-working day

This is where most internal confusion starts.

If a public holiday falls on an employee’s rest day, the following working day becomes a paid public holiday. For many five-day schedules, Sunday is the rest day. So when National Day falls on Sunday, 9 August 2026, Monday, 10 August 2026, becomes the paid public holiday for employees whose rest day is Sunday.

If the public holiday falls on a non-working day instead, the employee is generally entitled to another day off or one extra day’s salary in lieu at the gross rate of pay. That is a different rule. Saturday on a five-day schedule is the usual example.

As you can see, things get messy fast for rotating schedules. You should always document three things in writing: what counts as a rest day, what counts as a non-working day, and how substitute days or salary in lieu will be handled. That one step saves a surprising number of payroll corrections later.

If an employee works on a public holiday

Start with the default rule: If an employee is required to work on a public holiday, the employer should pay an extra day’s salary at the basic rate of pay. For monthly-paid employees, the monthly salary already covers the holiday itself, so what you add is the extra day’s pay.

You can also agree on a substitute public holiday in some cases. For certain employees not covered under Part 4 of the Employment Act, time off in lieu can also be used if there is mutual agreement.

What counts as working? Even partial-day work can trigger public holiday rules. So if someone logs in for a short shift, covers a client handoff, or works a few scheduled hours, do not assume it can be ignored just because it was not a full shift.

Substitute public holiday or off-in-lieu options

Singapore gives you some flexibility when it comes to substitutions.

An employer and employee can mutually agree to substitute a public holiday for another working day. That is helpful for operations teams that need coverage on the holiday itself but can release staff on a different day.

Time off in lieu is more specific. It can be granted for working on a public holiday only for employees not covered under Part 4 of the Employment Act, and the number of hours should be mutually agreed. If there is no mutual agreement on duration, the employer may need to default to the statutory outcomes, including the extra day’s salary at the basic rate for one day’s work, or the specified four-hour or full-day time-off outcomes, depending on hours worked.

If you want to use a substitute day or time off in lieu, get the agreement in writing before payroll closes.

Premium pay, overtime, and allowances

Keep the definitions clear.

Basic rate of pay generally excludes allowances, overtime, bonuses, and similar extras. Gross rate of pay is broader, but it still excludes some categories, such as overtime and certain reimbursements. When payroll mixes those two up, you’re going to have issues.

Overtime rules may also stack on top for employees covered under Part 4. If someone works beyond their normal daily working hours on a public holiday, overtime beyond those normal hours is paid at least 1.5 times the hourly basic rate of pay. That is why a short written payroll policy for public holiday work is worth having.

Pay calculation quick guide

Before payroll calculates anything, confirm four points: the employee’s salary type, the employee’s work schedule, whether the employee actually worked on the public holiday, and how many hours they worked.

Say you have a monthly-paid employee whose normal workday falls on a public holiday, and they are required to work that day. In most cases, their monthly salary already covers the holiday, and you add one extra day’s salary at the basic rate of pay. If they also work beyond normal daily hours and are covered for overtime, calculate the overtime piece separately.

For a quick check, use the official public holiday pay calculator. Then match it against your contract terms and internal payroll guidance. If your team also reviews other year-end and calendar-based pay practices, this roundup of holiday bonuses in seven countries can help frame the bigger picture.

Employer compliance checklist

• Check the contract. Make sure your employment contract and handbook say how public holiday work, substitute days, and time off in lieu will be handled.
• Communicate early. Publish holiday schedules in advance, especially for customer support, retail, operations, and shift-based teams.
• Record agreements. Keep written records for any substitute public holiday or time-off-in-lieu arrangement.
• Track time carefully. Public holiday pay errors often start with weak time records, not bad intent.
• Itemize where helpful. A clear payslip line can save time when employees want to know how the holiday payment was handled.

Pebl perfects public holiday pay

If you’ve made it this far, you’ve got your sights set on Singapore. Maybe you’ve already found the perfect talent. There’s a lot that needs to be taken care of before you can start hiring—researching taxes, finding experts in local labor law, finding a payroll processor, and more. It takes a lot of time and a lot of money. Wouldn’t it be great if there were an easier way?

With Pebl, there is.

Our EOR platform allows you to hire, pay, and manage employees in 185+ countries around the world without setting up your own local entity. That means your new talent starts in days, not months. We handle it all: onboarding, benefits, salary benchmarking, payroll, and compliance with all local regulations. Every public holiday, overtime or double time pay the law requires, we make sure it happens. All you have to do is stay focused on leading your team.

When you’re ready to do things the easy way, let us know.

This information does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal or tax advice and is for general informational purposes only. The intent of this document is solely to provide general and preliminary information for private use. Do not rely on it as an alternative to legal, financial, taxation, or accountancy advice from an appropriately qualified professional. The content in this guide is provided “as is,” and no representations are made that the content is error-free.

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