The Philippines have so many holidays in the last few months of the year.
Here in the US, we have Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year. That’s it.
In the Philippines, there are so many holidays it can feel like there’s a holiday every week starting at the end of October.
We have a Philippine holiday calendar that you can subscribe to to help you keep track of them. We update that calendar every year based on the holiday calendar released by the Philippine government.
But I also want to give you an idea of how many holidays really are there so you can prepare for the 13th month or anticipate your OFS asking for days off. So here they are:
Regular holidays
November 30 – Saturday – Bonifacio Day
December 25 – Wednesday – Christmas Day
December 30 – Monday – Rizal Day
Regular holidays are the official holidays.
These days are when the banks, government offices and most businesses close.
But the Philippines also has special holidays. They’re holidays celebrated because of tradition. Businesses are mostly open, but schools and some government agencies might be closed to celebrate.
If your OFS has kids, there’s a big possibility that they might ask for days off for these days, but not always.
Special non-working holidays
November 1 – Friday – All Saints’ Day
November 2 – Saturday – All Souls’ Day
December 8 – Sunday – Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary
December 24 – Tuesday – Christmas Eve
December 31 – Tuesday – Last Day of the Year
Because of special holidays, expect a couple of long weekends at the end of the year.
Three days
November 1 (Friday): All Saints’ Day
November 2 (Saturday): All Souls’ Day
November 3 (Sunday)
Five days
December 28 (Saturday)
December 29 (Sunday)
December 30 (Monday): Rizal Day
December 31 (Tuesday): Last Day of the Year
January 1 (Wednesday)
With Christmas on a Wednesday…wow…that makes for a lot of people wanting to take a lot of time off. If someone takes Monday off, Tuesday is a special holiday, Wednesday Christmas…it makes going home on December 21 and coming back on January 1 really compelling.
I’m not saying you need to allow this, but it’s something you should prepare to talk with your OFS about. Maybe they can work while travelling? Maybe they can keep up on important work?
It’s a lot.
John