Euro area (TARGET2/T2 and SEPA) bank holidays 2026 and 2027
Euro area (TARGET2/T2 and SEPA) has 8 bank or public holidays listed here between November 2026 and December 2027. Over the year-end peak (1 December 2026 to 15 January 2027) the dates to plan around are: Fri 25 Dec 2026 (Christmas Day), Sat 26 Dec 2026 (Boxing Day (26 December)), Fri 1 Jan 2027 (New Year's Day).
Currency: EUR · Time zone: Europe/Berlin · Subscribe to this calendar (.ics)
Why this matters for prefunding
When Euro area (TARGET2/T2 and SEPA) banks or payment rails close, a top-up sent to a local payout partner may not land until the next business day. Remittance demand often rises around the same holidays. Fund the corridor before the closure, sized for the closed days plus your normal top-up lead time. Check your corridor runway.
Holiday calendar
| Date | Holiday | Type | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Christmas Day | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Friday. |
| Sat 26 Dec 2026 | Boxing Day (26 December) | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Saturday, so no extra weekday impact. |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year's Day | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Friday, creating a three-day T2 gap. |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Good Friday | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. T2 is closed from Good Friday through Easter Monday (four days). |
| Mon 29 Mar 2027 | Easter Monday | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. |
| Sat 1 May 2027 | Labour Day | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Saturday. |
| Sat 25 Dec 2027 | Christmas Day | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Saturday. |
| Sun 26 Dec 2027 | Boxing Day (26 December) | rail closed | Confirmed | TARGET closing day (fixed by the ECB): T2 does not settle euro payments, and SEPA Credit Transfers are not processed. SEPA Instant (TIPS and other CSMs) runs 24/7/365. Falls on a Sunday. Note: 27 and 28 December 2027 are normal TARGET days even where national holidays apply. |
"Expected" means the date depends on an annual declaration or moon sighting and may move. Check the official source before you rely on it.
Payment rails and operating hours
| Rail | Operator | Hours | Runs on holidays |
|---|---|---|---|
| T2 (RTGS and CLM, formerly TARGET2) | Eurosystem (ECB and euro area national central banks) | Monday to Friday excluding TARGET closing days. Business day starts at 19:00 CET on the previous day; RTGS payments 02:30 to 17:00 CET for customer payments and 02:30 to 18:00 CET for bank-to-bank payments (per Bundesbank acceptance times). Weekly maintenance from Saturday 02:30 to Monday 02:30, extended over closing days. | no source |
| SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT) | European Payments Council (scheme); cleared by CSMs such as EBA STEP2 and national ACHs | Processed on TARGET business days only; submission windows depend on the clearing house (example: the Bundesbank accepts SCT files from banks with a bank code in windows from 08:00 to 20:00 plus an overnight window to 08:00 the next business day; account holders without a bank code use 11:30 to 18:30 and 18:30 to 11:30 the next business day). | no source |
| SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) | European Payments Council (scheme); settled via TIPS and other CSMs | 24/7 | yes source |
| TIPS (TARGET Instant Payment Settlement) | Eurosystem | 24/7 | yes source |
This entry covers euro settlement closing days only, not national public holidays; individual banks may close on national holidays (for example 24 and 31 December in Germany, or 8 December in Italy and Spain) even though T2 is open. T2 closing days are a standing ECB rule (1 Jan, Good Friday, Easter Monday, 1 May, 25 and 26 Dec), so they are treated as confirmed. Times are CET/CEST (Europe/Berlin). The ECB plans a short T2 liquidity-transfer window on most weekends and TARGET holidays as part of its May 2026 roadmap, but no start date was given, so plan on no T2 liquidity during closures. T2 intraday cut-offs come from the Bundesbank acceptance-times sheet dated July 2024.
Other calendars
Sources
- T2 (opening hours and closing days) · European Central Bank
- TARGET Systems operating schedule, euro · European Central Bank
- TIPS · European Central Bank
- Eurosystem moves toward extending T2 operating hours (28 May 2026) · European Central Bank
- Public consultation on a possible extension of T2 operating hours · European Central Bank
- SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) · European Payments Council
- Annahmezeiten und Geschaeftstage fuer die Zahlungsverkehrsverfahren der Deutschen Bundesbank · Deutsche Bundesbank
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