Chennai Holidays 2026
Complete Tamil Nadu Holiday Calendar

Tamil Nadu has 21 gazetted (compulsory) holidays and 14 restricted (optional) holidays in 2026, for a total of 35 notified holidays. The three national holidays — Republic Day (26 Jan), Independence Day (15 Aug), and Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti (2 Oct) — are mandatory paid offs for every employer in India under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

Gazetted holidays are compulsory paid holidays declared by the Tamil Nadu government — all government offices and most banks remain closed, and private companies typically observe them as paid offs. Restricted holidays are optional — central government employees may choose any 2 from the restricted list, and private employers decide their own number (usually 2 to 4) at the start of the year.

Yes, Chennai follows the Tamil Nadu state holiday calendar issued by the Public (DGAD) Department. There is no separate Chennai-specific gazetted list. The only local variations are when individual employers add company-specific holidays (e.g., founder's day, annual offsite) on top of the state-notified list.

The three national holidays — 26 January (Republic Day), 15 August (Independence Day), and 2 October (Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti) — are mandatory under the Negotiable Instruments Act for every private employer in India, including all Tamil Nadu Shops & Establishments. Most Tamil Nadu employers also observe Pongal (14 Jan), Tamil New Year (14 Apr), and Deepavali (8 Nov) as compulsory paid offs.

2026 offers 12 long-weekend opportunities for Chennai employees. The standout windows are the Pongal week (Jan 14-18, five days off with no extra leave), the Navarathri/Dussehra long weekend (Oct 17-21, five days with one leave day), Tamil New Year (Apr 11-14), and Vinayagar Chathurthi (Sep 19-22). Christmas, Good Friday, Krishna Jayanthi, and Gandhi Jayanti all give three-day weekends without taking extra leave.

Deepavali falls on Sunday, 8 November 2026 in Tamil Nadu. Because it falls on a Sunday, most Chennai employers grant a compensatory paid off on Monday 9 November. The exact comp-off policy varies by company — confirm with your HR team and publish the decision before the festival to avoid disputes.

Tamil New Year (Puthandu / Chithirai Vishu) falls on Tuesday, 14 April 2026 and coincides with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Jayanti the same day. Most Tamil Nadu employers treat the day as a single gazetted holiday. The combination of Mon (13 Apr) leave + Tamil New Year (Tue) + the preceding weekend gives a four-day long weekend.

Private companies registered under the Tamil Nadu Shops & Establishments Act must publish a holiday calendar that includes the three national holidays at minimum. State-notified gazetted holidays are not strictly mandatory for the private sector, but the majority of Tamil Nadu employers follow the state list to stay aligned with banks, courts, and customer-facing services. Companies should publish their own calendar at the start of every year.

A typical Chennai office employee gets 11 to 14 paid public holidays each year — this includes the three national holidays, key Tamil Nadu festivals (Pongal, Thiruvalluvar Day, Tamil New Year, Deepavali, Christmas), and 2 to 4 restricted holidays chosen from the optional list. Earned leave (typically 12 to 21 days annually under the TN Shops Act) is separate.

Under Section 14 of the Minimum Wages Act and Rule 25 of the Tamil Nadu Shops & Establishments Act, employees working on a gazetted holiday must be paid double the ordinary rate — basic + VDA times two for the hours worked. The same double-rate rule applies for work beyond 9 hours/day or 48 hours/week on any working day.

Mostly yes, but with two exceptions. Banks observe the Annual Closing of Accounts on 1 April (not a state government holiday) and follow the Reserve Bank of India schedule for second and fourth Saturdays as paid offs. Some restricted Tamil Nadu holidays (like Karthigai Deepam) are not bank holidays. Always verify against the RBI holiday calendar for cheque clearance and EFT cut-offs.

Modern HRMS platforms (including ours) ship with the Tamil Nadu calendar pre-loaded and update it automatically every January. Holidays sync with the leave management module, attendance tracker, and payroll engine — so a Pongal day is auto-marked as paid, comp-off accrual is automatic, and lunar-calendar updates for Eid/Bakrid/Muharram are pushed within 24 hours of the government notice. See it in action.

The official Tamil Nadu holiday list is issued by the Public (DGAD) Department through a Government Order each November/December for the following year. The PDF is published on the Tamil Nadu Government website at tn.gov.in. The list on this page reflects the latest notification and is updated within 48 hours of any official revision.