- NSW Premier Chris Minns has announced the state will be getting a new public holiday in 2026.
- The new New South Wales public holiday will take place in April, with Minns confirming the Monday after ANZAC Day will be an additional day off.
- While not all business leaders are happy with the decision, Minns has confirmed the additional public holiday will be a trial for at least 2026 and 2027.
If you needed an excuse to plan a long weekend in Sydney, consider it government-approved.
Chris Minns has confirmed New South Wales will trial an extra public holiday in 2026 and 2027 whenever Anzac Day lands on a weekend, which it does for the next two years. In short, this means the Monday after April 25 becomes a day off instead of that awkward “back to work while still in long-weekend mode” limbo.
Until now, only WA and the ACT scored the bonus break, but now, NSW (a state famously stingy with public holidays) is joining the party, moving closer to relative parity with other states. In the past, NSW has sat near the bottom of states’ public holidays, only offering 11, while others have offered closer to 15.
“NSW has fewer public holidays than other states,” Minns said in a video on social media. “Some other states have already moved to having an additional public holiday when ANZAC Day appears on the weekend, and we’re going to follow suit for 2026 and 2027.”
Minns framed it as respect rather than recreation, confirming that dawn services will stay untouched, commemorations remain sacred, and two-up still only gets a legal pass on April 25 (and Remembrance Day). The Monday after ANZAC Day isn’t about replacing the meaning; it’s about acknowledging that a Saturday remembrance shouldn’t quietly vanish into a normal work week.
Business groups have unsurprisingly mixed feelings about the move, which will require extra penalty rates and staffing headaches, which aren’t exactly thrilling for small operators. The Premier openly admitted not everyone’s cheering, but the government sees it as a cultural call worth making and has pencilled in a review for 2032 when the calendar does this again the next time.
So practically speaking, NSW residents get remembrance on Saturday, reflection on Sunday, and recovery on Monday. How good.
