Public holidays and days off
in Slovakia 2027

Slovakia has a ban on retail sales on specific public holidays — and, unlike the Czech Republic, it does not depend on the store's size. This means both hypermarkets and small grocery stores will be closed.

There are exceptions, but they are narrower than they seem: pharmacies, gas stations, train and bus stations, and airports, some catering establishments. Therefore, popping into the corner store often doesn't work on a holiday.

The practical conclusion is simple: shop in advance. In the calendar above, each date is labeled — showing whether it's a rest day with a sales ban or a regular working day.

Working on a holiday entitles you to your salary plus a supplement of at least 100% of your average earnings — meaning effectively double pay (Zákonník práce, §122).

By agreement with the employer, the supplement can be replaced by time off in lieu at a 1:1 ratio. This is an agreement, not a unilateral decision: the employer cannot simply 'give a day off instead of money' if you have not agreed to it.

A significant detail for 2026: May 8 and September 15 are working days, but the rule for holiday pay applies to them. This is a rare case where a date is formally a working day, but the pay is for a holiday.

Formally, these are different categories: public holidays (štátne sviatky) are linked to historical events of the state, while rest days (dni pracovného pokoja) include religious dates and Sundays.

For an employee, the difference is mostly legal: both are usually non-working days, and the rules for working on them are the same regarding supplementary pay. Therefore, in the calendar above, we label each date by its actual status — working day or not — rather than by its formal category name.

Confusion arises precisely when a date has a prominent name but remains a working day. So, look at the label next to the date, not the name of the holiday.

The most advantageous dates are those falling on a Tuesday or Thursday: by taking one day of vacation, you get four consecutive days off. These 'bridge' holidays are immediately visible in the calendar above.

But there's a practical warning: you are not the only one thinking about these dates. Tickets to Ukraine sell out quickly for long weekends, accommodation becomes more expensive, and queues at the border grow. If you plan a trip, book in advance.

And remember that some holidays are movable (Easter and related dates change every year) — so next year's calendar cannot be simply copied from the current one. We update the dates after official publication.

Government offices are closed on public holidays — this applies to migration offices and social security offices. If your document submission deadline is approaching, consider the holidays in advance: they do not automatically extend the deadline.

Polyclinics usually do not operate, but emergency services and pharmacies do. Ambulance (155) and 112 operate at all times, without exception.

Public transport usually runs on a weekend schedule on holidays — less frequently than on weekdays. This is precisely the detail that causes people to be late: the schedule changes, even though the calendar date looks like a regular day.