Slovakia Public Holidays 2027

About Slovakia Public Holidays

Slovakia's public holidays are established under Act No. 241/1993 Coll. on State Holidays, Public Holidays and Memorial Days, as amended. The law distinguishes between štátne sviatky (state holidays), which carry the highest ceremonial significance and include days such as the Day of the Establishment of the Slovak Republic (January 1), the Slovak National Uprising Day (August 29), and the Constitution Day (September 1), and sviatky (public holidays), which include religious observances like Epiphany, Good Friday, Easter Monday, and Christmas. On all of these days, employees are entitled to paid rest, and those required to work are compensated at a premium rate as specified by the Labour Code.

Slovakia's holiday calendar reflects the country's dual identity: a young sovereign state that declared independence on 1 January 1993 after the peaceful dissolution of Czechoslovakia, and a deeply Catholic nation with centuries of religious tradition. The inclusion of Good Friday as a public holiday was introduced in 2017, making Slovakia the last Central European country to grant this status. The commemoration of Sts. Cyril and Methodius on 5 July honours the two Byzantine missionaries who brought literacy and Christianity to the Slavic peoples in the 9th century — a heritage shared with neighbouring Czech Republic. November 17 marks the anniversary of the 1989 Velvet Revolution, when peaceful protests ended four decades of communist rule, a date also commemorated in the Czech Republic as a reminder of the shared democratic awakening of both nations.