British Columbia recognizes eleven statutory holidays in 2026, and eligible employees are entitled to paid time off or premium pay for each one. The dates run from New Year’s Day on Thursday, January 1 through Christmas Day on Friday, December 25, with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30 as the newest addition to the list.
The Eleven Statutory Holidays in 2026
- New Year’s Day — Thursday, January 1
- Family Day — Monday, February 16
- Good Friday — Friday, April 3
- Victoria Day — Monday, May 18
- Canada Day — Wednesday, July 1
- B.C. Day — Monday, August 3
- Labour Day — Monday, September 7
- National Day for Truth and Reconciliation — Wednesday, September 30
- Thanksgiving Day — Monday, October 12
- Remembrance Day — Wednesday, November 11
- Christmas Day — Friday, December 25
Several of these always fall on a Monday and produce a long weekend. Others sit on fixed calendar dates and can land mid-week, as Canada Day, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and Remembrance Day all do in 2026. When Canada Day falls on a Sunday, the following Monday is observed instead.1Province of British Columbia. Entitlement to Statutory Holiday – Act Part 5, Section 44
Days That Are Not Statutory Holidays in B.C.
Some widely observed days carry no legal weight under the Employment Standards Act. Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays in B.C.2Province of British Columbia. Statutory Holidays An employer may close or pay extra on these days as a matter of company policy, but nothing in the Act requires it.
Who Qualifies for Statutory Holiday Pay
Two conditions have to be met. You must have been employed for at least 30 calendar days before the holiday, and you must have worked or earned wages on at least 15 of those 30 days.3BC Laws. Employment Standards Act – Section 44 Earned wages includes paid vacation and paid sick leave, so time off with pay still counts toward the 15 days.
A common misunderstanding is that you only need to work the shift before and the shift after the holiday. That is not the rule. The test is 15 of 30 days, and it tends to trip up employees with irregular schedules or those returning from an extended unpaid leave.4Province of British Columbia. Qualify for Statutory Holiday Pay
Pay When You Take the Day Off
Qualifying employees who don’t work on the holiday receive an average day’s pay. To calculate it, add up your total wages earned over the 30 calendar days before the holiday and divide by the number of days you actually worked in that period.5BC Laws. Employment Standards Act – Section 45
The wages that count include regular pay, salary, commissions, vacation pay received during that window, and paid sick days required by employment standards. Overtime is excluded from the calculation.6Province of British Columbia. Calculate Statutory Holiday Pay
A quick example. If you earned $3,600 in regular wages over the 30 days before the holiday and worked 20 of those days, your average day’s pay is $180. That is what you receive for the statutory holiday, even though you stayed home.
Pay When You Work the Holiday
Working on a statutory holiday produces two layers of pay. On the hours you actually work, you receive time-and-a-half for the first 12 hours and double your regular wage for anything beyond 12. On top of that, you also receive your average day’s pay calculated using the same 30-day formula.7BC Laws. Employment Standards Act – Section 46
Say your regular wage is $24 an hour and your average day’s pay works out to $192. You work an eight-hour shift on Remembrance Day. Your premium pay is $24 × 1.5 × 8, or $288. Add the $192 average day’s pay, and you take home $480 for the day.
B.C. law does not give employees a general right to refuse work on a statutory holiday. If your employer schedules you, the Act’s response is the premium pay above rather than a bar on scheduling.
When the Holiday Falls on Your Regular Day Off
This is where confusion runs highest. If a statutory holiday lands on a day you would not normally work, you still receive your average day’s pay so long as you meet the 30-day and 15-of-30 rules. The Act applies whether or not the holiday falls on a regularly scheduled workday.5BC Laws. Employment Standards Act – Section 45
Part-time workers gain the most from this. If you normally work Tuesday through Thursday and a statutory holiday falls on a Friday, you still receive average day’s pay even though Friday was never on your schedule.
Workers Who Are Excluded
Not every employee under the Employment Standards Act is covered by the statutory holiday rules. The Employment Standards Regulation excludes several categories from Part 5 of the Act:
- Managers
- High technology professionals as defined by the regulation
- Commercial fishers
- Certain commission salespeople, provided their pay-period wages exceed what the standard provisions would produce; automobile and truck salespeople instead receive 3.6% of gross earnings in place of statutory holiday pay
- Silviculture workers, who receive 3.6% of gross earnings on each paycheque in place of standard statutory holiday pay
The exclusions sit in the regulation rather than the Act itself.8BC Publications. Employment Standards Regulation The manager exclusion turns on whether you actually supervise and direct other employees and control workplace operations. A “manager” job title alone does not remove you from coverage.
If You Weren’t Paid What You’re Owed
You can file a complaint with the Employment Standards Branch online at no cost. The process takes roughly 15 minutes, and employers are prohibited from retaliating against you for filing, including by threatening termination or refusing to hire.9Province of British Columbia. File an Employment Standards Complaint
The time limits are strict. If you still work for the employer, the Branch will review issues going back up to one year before your complaint date. If you have already left the job, you must file within six months of your last day, and only issues from your final year of employment will be reviewed.9Province of British Columbia. File an Employment Standards Complaint The six-month post-employment deadline catches a lot of former employees off guard, so file sooner rather than later if you suspect you were shortchanged.