Victoria observes the national public holidays plus several with Victoria-specific rules or dates: Labour Day (second Monday in March in Victoria), the Friday before the AFL Grand Final, Melbourne Cup Day (metro Melbourne; some regional areas observe a different day instead), and the Saturday before Easter Sunday and Easter Sunday. Get any of these wrong in a P6 calendar and every downstream date — early finish, late finish, float — is quietly wrong too.
2026
| Holiday | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Thu 1 Jan 2026 | |
| Australia Day | Mon 26 Jan 2026 | |
| Labour Day | Mon 9 Mar 2026 | VIC date; other states differ |
| Good Friday | Fri 3 Apr 2026 | |
| Saturday before Easter Sunday | Sat 4 Apr 2026 | Not national; weekend day (affects 6/7-day calendars) |
| Easter Sunday | Sun 5 Apr 2026 | Not national; weekend day (affects 6/7-day calendars) |
| Easter Monday | Mon 6 Apr 2026 | |
| ANZAC Day | Sat 25 Apr 2026 | No substitute day for weekend |
| King's Birthday | Mon 8 Jun 2026 | |
| AFL Grand Final Friday | Fri 25 Sep 2026 | VIC only, date moves yearly |
| Melbourne Cup Day | Tue 3 Nov 2026 | Metro Melbourne only |
| Christmas Day | Fri 25 Dec 2026 | |
| Boxing Day | Sat 26 Dec 2026 | Substitute Mon 28 Dec 2026 |
2027 (provisional)
| Holiday | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Fri 1 Jan 2027 | |
| Australia Day | Tue 26 Jan 2027 | |
| Labour Day | Mon 8 Mar 2027 | VIC date; other states differ |
| Good Friday | Fri 26 Mar 2027 | |
| Saturday before Easter Sunday | Sat 27 Mar 2027 | Not national; weekend day (affects 6/7-day calendars) |
| Easter Sunday | Sun 28 Mar 2027 | Not national; weekend day (affects 6/7-day calendars) |
| Easter Monday | Mon 29 Mar 2027 | |
| ANZAC Day | Sun 25 Apr 2027 | No substitute day for weekend |
| King's Birthday | Mon 14 Jun 2027 | |
| AFL Grand Final Friday | Fri 24 Sep 2027 (assumed) | Not yet confirmed — depends on the AFL Grand Final date |
| Melbourne Cup Day | Tue 2 Nov 2027 | Metro Melbourne only |
| Christmas Day | Sat 25 Dec 2027 | Substitute Mon 27 Dec 2027 |
| Boxing Day | Sun 26 Dec 2027 | Substitute Tue 28 Dec 2027 |
Why this trips planners up
Two problems are worth checking for. First, a generic "Australia" calendar that only carries national holidays will miss Labour Day, AFL Grand Final Friday and Melbourne Cup Day — and, on a six- or seven-day calendar, the Saturday before Easter Sunday and Easter Sunday. Second, the AFL Grand Final Friday date isn't fixed years in advance the way Christmas is — it depends on the AFL's finals fixture for that season, so a calendar built in one year for a schedule running two or three years out needs updating once the date is confirmed, not left on last year's date. Two more that catch planners out specifically: ANZAC Day gets no Monday substitute in Victoria when it falls on a weekend (unlike some other states), and when Boxing Day falls on a Saturday the following Monday becomes a substitute holiday — on a Monday-to-Friday calendar, that Monday is the day that actually costs working time.