Public holidays in South Africa - wikipedia Public holidays in South Africa Part of a series on the Culture of South Africa History People Languages Afrikaans English Ndebele Northern Sotho Sotho Swazi Tswana Tsonga Venda Xhosa Zulu Cuisine Festivals Public holidays Religion Art Literature Writers Poets Music and performing arts Music Media Television Cinema Sport Monuments World Heritage Sites Symbols Flag Coat of arms South Africa portal A list of current public holidays in South Africa : Date Name Instituted 1 January New Year 's Day 1910 21 March Human Rights Day The Friday before Easter Sunday Good Friday 1910 The Monday following Easter Sunday Family Day 1980 27 April Freedom Day 1 May Workers ' Day 1910 16 June Youth Day 1995 9 August National Women 's Day 1995 24 September Heritage Day 1995 16 December Day of Reconciliation 1995 25 December Christmas Day 1910 26 December Day of Goodwill ( formerly Boxing Day ) 1910 The Public Holidays Act ( Act No 36 of 1994 ) states that whenever a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the Monday following it will be a public holiday. Contents 1 Once - off holidays 2 Religious public holidays 3 Historical public holidays 4 References 5 External links Once - off holidays Since 1994 election days have been declared ad hoc public holidays : National and provincial government elections -- 2 June 1999 National and provincial government elections -- 14 April 2004 Local government elections -- 1 March 2006 National and provincial government elections -- 22 April 2009 Local government elections -- 18 May 2011 National and provincial government elections -- 7 May 2014 Local government elections -- 3 August 2016 31 December 1999 and 2 January 2000 were declared public holidays to accommodate the Y2K changeover, and 3 January 2000 was automatically a public holiday because the previous holiday was a Sunday. 2 May 2008 was declared a public holiday when Human Rights Day and Good Friday coincided on 21 March 2008. 27 December 2011 was declared a holiday by deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe as Christmas Day fell on a Sunday which generally makes the following Monday a public holiday. However, the following Monday, 26 December 2011, was the Day of Goodwill and therefore decreased the number of paid public holidays for the year. Initially this day was not to be declared a public holiday but in mid-December the decision was changed. Religious public holidays The Christian holidays of Christmas Day and Good Friday remained in secular post-apartheid South Africa 's calendar of public holidays. The Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities ( CRL Rights Commission ), a chapter nine institution established in 2004, held countrywide consultative public hearings in June and July 2012 to assess the need for a review of public holidays following the receipt of complaints from minority groups about unfair discrimination. The CRL Rights Commission stated that they would submit their recommendations to the Department of Home Affairs, the Department of Labour, various Portfolio Committees and the Office of the Presidency by October 2012. On 10 November 2012 the Minister of Home Affairs Naledi Pandor told Christian protesters objecting to the removal of Christian public holidays that she had not received any enquiries from the CRL Rights Commission yet. The CRL Rights Commission published its recommendations on 17 April 2013, including the scrapping of some existing public holidays to free up days for some non-Christian religious public holidays. On 18 January 2015 the South African Law Reform Commission published a discussion document on legislation administered by the Department of Home Affairs in which it suggested `` that either these holidays be reviewed or that equal weight be given to holidays of other faiths ''. Historical public holidays South Africa 's present calendar of public holidays was introduced in 1994. During the period between Union in 1910, and the establishment of the present republic in 1994, the following were the official public holidays : Date English Name Period 1 January New Year 's Day 1910 -- present The Friday before Easter Sunday Good Friday 1910 -- present The Monday following Easter Sunday Easter Monday Family Day 1910 -- 1979 1980 -- present 6 April Van Riebeeck 's Day Founder 's Day 1952 -- 1974 1980 -- 1994 1st Friday in May Workers ' Day 1987 -- 1989 1 May Workers ' Day 1990 -- present 40th day after Easter Ascension Day 1910 -- 1993 24 May Victoria Day / Empire Day 1910 -- 1951 31 May Union Day Republic Day 1910 -- 1960 1961 -- 1993 2nd Monday in July Queen 's Birthday 1952 -- 1960 10 July Family Day 1961 -- 1974 1st Monday in August King 's Birthday 1910 -- 1951 1st Monday in September Settlers ' Day 1952 -- 1979 10 October Kruger Day 1952 -- 1993 16 December Dingaan 's Day Day of the Covenant Day of the Vow Day of Reconciliation 1910 -- 1951 1952 -- 1979 1979 -- 1994 1995 -- present 25 December Christmas Day 1910 -- present 26 December Boxing Day Day of Goodwill 1910 -- 1979 1980 -- present References ^ Jump up to : `` NO. 36 OF 1994 : PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ACT, 1994. ''. Government Communications ( GCIS ). 28 March 2008. Retrieved 29 March 2008. ^ Jump up to : `` Government Website : Public Holidays Archive ''. www.gov.za. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` First celebration of May Day in South Africa ''. South African History Online. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` Speech by President Nelson Mandela on South Africa Youth Day Ladysmith, 16 June 1995 ''. South African History Online. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` South Africa celebrates the first National Women 's Day ''. South African History Online. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` First celebration of National Heritage Day ''. South African History Online. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT : NO. 36 OF 1994 : PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ACT, 1994 '' ( PDF ). info.gov.za. 7 December 1994. Retrieved 16 November 2012. Jump up ^ `` Media Advisory ''. Department of Provincial and Local Government. 27 January 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` VOTING DAY A PUBLIC HOLIDAY ''. Department Home Affairs. 8 April 2004. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` Media release on public holidays ''. Government Communications ( GCIS ). 1 June 1999. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` President declares 22 April a public holiday throughout the Republic ''. The Presidency. 19 March 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` President declares a public holiday ''. The Presidency. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` Proclamation by the President of the Republic of South Africa ''. President. 25 February 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` President Zuma declares 3 August 2016 a public holiday ''. The Presidency. 24 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016. Jump up ^ `` Media release on public holidays ''. Government Communications ( GCIS ). 25 October 1999. Retrieved 29 March 2008. Jump up ^ `` T Mbeki declares 2 May 2008 public holiday ''. Government Communications ( GCIS ). 25 March 2008. Retrieved 29 March 2008. Jump up ^ `` Tuesday 27 December not a public holiday ''. Department of Home Affairs. 13 October 2005. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` Acting President Kgalema Motlanthe declares 27 December 2011 a public holiday ''. The Presidency. 14 December 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Jump up ^ `` crl rights commission continues with the consultative community hearings on the possible review of public holidays ''. info.gov.za. 26 June 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2012. Jump up ^ `` Fight over religious holidays ''. crlcommission.org.za. Retrieved 2 November 2012. Jump up ^ `` Hands off Christmas, protesters say ''. news24.com. 10 November 2012. Retrieved 10 November 2012. Jump up ^ `` Recommendations : Public Holidays vs Religious / Cultural Holydays '' ( PDF ). CRL Rights Commission. Retrieved 23 April 2013. Publication date per link to document from home page : `` Investigation and Conflict Resolution Reports : The ICR Reports were launched on Wednesday 17 April 2013 '' Jump up ^ `` Public holidays scrutinised ( video ) ''. eNCA. 29 April 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2013. Jump up ^ `` Media statement by the South African Law Reform Commission concerning its release of Discussion Paper 133 on statutory law revision in respect of legislation administered by the Department of Home Affairs '' ( PDF ). Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015. Jump up ^ Discussion Paper 133 ( Project 25 ) ( PDF ). South African Law Reform Commission. 2015. ISBN 9780621432800. Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015. Jump up ^ Soobramoney, Candice ( 25 June 2015 ). `` Public holiday outcry ''. The Post. Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015. External links South African National Holidays in iCalendar format Public holidays in Africa Sovereign states Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde ( Cabo Verde ) Central African Republic Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast ( Côte d'Ivoire ) Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Swaziland Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe States with limited recognition Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Somaliland Dependencies and other territories Canary Islands / Ceuta / Melilla / ( see also plazas de soberanía ) ( Spain ) Madeira ( Portugal ) Mayotte / Réunion ( France ) Saint Helena / Ascension Island / Tristan da Cunha ( United Kingdom ) Western Sahara South Africa articles History Timeline ( nl ) Years Early history Cape Colony Orange Free State Transvaal First Boer War Second Boer War Great Depression World War II Apartheid Border War Since 1994 By topic Economy Military Geography Districts Earthquakes Estuaries Forests Islands Lakes Mountain ranges Municipalities National parks Populated places Provinces Rivers Wildlife Politics Constitution Courts Elections Foreign relations Government Human rights Law Parliament Political parties President State security and intelligence Minister Co-ordinating committee ( NICC ) Intelligence agency ( NIA ) Communications centre ( NCC ) Communications security ( COMSEC ) Secret Service ( SASS ) Intelligence academy ( SANAI ) Law enforcement Department of Police Police Service Criminal intelligence ( SAPS ) Special Task Force National Intervention Unit NFDD Municipal Police Independent Complaints Directorate Department of Correctional Services Biometrics use Military Department of Defence Defence Force Air Force Army Navy Military Health Service Special Forces Commando System Intelligence Economy Agriculture Communications Economic history Energy Foreign trade Mining industry Rand ( currency ) Stock exchange Taxation Tourism Trade unions Transportation Water and sanitation Society Crime Education Feminism Health Healthcare Immigration Intersex Languages LGBT Racism Religion Sexual violence Social movements Xenophobia Culture Architecture Art Cinema Cuisine Flag HIV / AIDS Homelessness Literature Media Music Public holidays Sports Demographics Asian Indian Chinese Bantu Ndebele Pedi Sotho Swazi Tsonga Tswana Venda Xhosa Zulu Coloured Cape Coloured Cape Malay Griqua Khoisan White Afrikaner British Outline Index Category Portal Public holidays in South Africa New Year 's Day Human Rights Day Good Friday Family Day Freedom Day Workers ' Day Youth Day National Women 's Day Heritage Day Day of Reconciliation Christmas Day Day of Goodwill Life in South Africa Crime Cuisine Culture Demographics Education Health care Income inequality Languages Politics Poverty Public Holidays Racism Religion Social issues Social structure Sports Standard of living Trade unions Religion in South Africa Religions African Traditional Belief San religion Zulu religion Bahá'í Faith Buddhism Hinduism Irreligion Islam Shia Judaism Paganism Christianity Afrikaans Protestant Church Afrikaner Calvinism Anglican Church Apostolic Faith Mission Assemblies of God Baptist Union Christian Reformed Church Church of Jesus Christ of Latter - day Saints Dutch Reformed Church NGK NHK GKSA Evangelical Lutheran Church Evangelical Presbyterian Church Free Church Methodist Church Nazareth Baptist Church Presbyterian Church of Africa Protestantism Reformed Church in Africa Reformed Evangelical Anglican Church Roman Catholic Church United Congregational Church Uniting Presbyterian Church Uniting Reformed Church Zion Christian Church Zionist Churches People 's Church of Africa Related Freedom of religion SAHRC CRL Rights Commission Equality Act, 2000 Marriage Act, 1961 Witchcraft Suppression Act, 1957 Traditional healers SACC NICSA Public holidays Satanic panic Category Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Public_holidays_in_South_Africa&oldid=786972248 '' Categories : Lists of public holidays by country South Africa - related lists South African culture South African society Observances in South Africa Hidden categories : EngvarB from July 2016 Use dmy dates from July 2016 Interlanguage link template link number Talk Contents About Wikipedia Languages Afrikaans Deutsch Lietuvių Bahasa Melayu Português Русский Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 22 June 2017, at 17 : 38. 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Question: when is the next public holiday in sa
Answer: 16 December