Sri Lanka bank holidays 2026 and 2027
Sri Lanka has 29 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: Wed 23 Dec 2026 (Unduvap Full Moon Poya Day), Fri 25 Dec 2026 (Christmas Day), Fri 15 Jan 2027 (Tamil Thai Pongal Day).
Currency: LKR · Time zone: Asia/Colombo · Subscribe to this calendar (.ics)
Why this matters for prefunding
When Sri Lanka 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 8 Nov 2026 | Deepawali Festival Day | public holiday | Confirmed | In the Central Bank of Sri Lanka 2026 bank holiday list (public and bank holiday). Falls on a Sunday, a weekend day. |
| Tue 24 Nov 2026 | Il Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | In the Central Bank of Sri Lanka 2026 bank holiday list (public and bank holiday). Tuesday. |
| Wed 23 Dec 2026 | Unduvap Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | In the Central Bank of Sri Lanka 2026 bank holiday list (public and bank holiday). Wednesday. |
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Christmas Day | public holiday | Confirmed | In the Central Bank of Sri Lanka 2026 bank holiday list (public and bank holiday). Also a mercantile holiday. Friday. |
| Fri 15 Jan 2027 | Tamil Thai Pongal Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Also a mercantile holiday (CBSL 2027 list). Friday. |
| Fri 22 Jan 2027 | Duruthu Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Friday. |
| Thu 4 Feb 2027 | Independence Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Also a mercantile holiday (CBSL 2027 list). Thursday. |
| Sat 20 Feb 2027 | Navam Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Falls on a Saturday, a weekend day. |
| Sat 6 Mar 2027 | Maha Shivarathri Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Falls on a Saturday, a weekend day. |
| Wed 10 Mar 2027 | Id-Ul-Fitr (Ramazan Festival Day) | public holiday | Expected | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Islamic calendar date; depends on moon sighting. Wednesday. |
| Mon 22 Mar 2027 | Medin Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Monday. |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Good Friday | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Friday. |
| Tue 13 Apr 2027 | Day prior to Sinhala and Tamil New Year Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Tuesday. |
| Wed 14 Apr 2027 | Sinhala and Tamil New Year Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Wednesday. |
| Tue 20 Apr 2027 | Bak Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Tuesday. |
| Sat 1 May 2027 | May Day (International Workers' Day) | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Falls on a Saturday, a weekend day. |
| Mon 17 May 2027 | Id-Ul-Alha (Hadji Festival Day) | public holiday | Expected | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Islamic calendar date; depends on moon sighting. Monday. |
| Wed 19 May 2027 | Vesak Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Wednesday. |
| Thu 20 May 2027 | Day following Vesak Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Also a mercantile holiday (CBSL 2027 list). Thursday. |
| Fri 18 Jun 2027 | Poson Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Friday. |
| Sun 18 Jul 2027 | Esala Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Falls on a Sunday, a weekend day. |
| Sun 15 Aug 2027 | Milad-Un-Nabi (Holy Prophet's Birthday) | public holiday | Expected | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Islamic calendar date; depends on moon sighting. Also a mercantile holiday (CBSL 2027 list). Falls on a Sunday, a weekend day. |
| Mon 16 Aug 2027 | Nikini Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Monday. |
| Wed 15 Sep 2027 | Binara Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Wednesday. |
| Fri 15 Oct 2027 | Vap Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Friday. |
| Thu 28 Oct 2027 | Deepawali Festival Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Thursday. |
| Sat 13 Nov 2027 | Il Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Falls on a Saturday, a weekend day. |
| Mon 13 Dec 2027 | Unduvap Full Moon Poya Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Full moon Poya day. Monday. |
| Sat 25 Dec 2027 | Christmas Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Public and bank holiday in Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05 of 16 Jun 2026. Also a mercantile holiday (CBSL 2027 list). Falls on a Saturday, a weekend day. |
Expected: the date depends on an annual declaration or moon sighting.
Payment rails and operating hours
| Rail | Operator | Hours | Runs on holidays |
|---|---|---|---|
| RTGS (LankaSettle) | Central Bank of Sri Lanka | Open on business days; settles payment instructions between participants from 8:00 to 16:50. All Saturdays and Sundays are bank holidays. | no source |
| CEFTS (Common Electronic Fund Transfer Switch) | LankaPay, under Central Bank of Sri Lanka supervision | 24/7 | yes source |
| SLIPS (Sri Lanka Interbank Payment System) | LankaPay | Same-day (T+0) settlement on each business day for instructions submitted before each institution's cut-off. | no source |
What to watch
Sri Lanka has a holiday almost every month because each full moon (Poya) is a public and bank holiday, and the gazette lists no substitute days for holidays that fall on a weekend. The densest windows in 2027 are mid-April (Sinhala and Tamil New Year on Tuesday 13 and Wednesday 14 April, then Bak Poya on Tuesday 20 April) and mid-May (Hadji Festival Day on Monday 17, Vesak on Wednesday 19 and the day after Vesak on Thursday 20 May, leaving Tuesday 18 and Friday 21 May as the only working days that week). The weekend is Saturday and Sunday. CEFTS runs 24/7 for transfers up to Rs 5 million, but interbank settlement for CEFTS happens in two cycles in the RTGS on business days only, and the RTGS settles from 8:00 to 16:50. The three Islamic holidays are gazetted in advance and depend on moon sighting.
Other calendars
Sources
- Gazette Extraordinary No. 2493/05: Public and Bank Holidays for 2027 (Holidays Act No. 29 of 1971) · Department of Government Printing, Sri Lanka
- Bank Holidays for 2027 · Central Bank of Sri Lanka
- Bank Holidays for 2026 · Central Bank of Sri Lanka
- 2027 public and bank holidays gazetted · Daily Mirror
- Payments Bulletin, First Quarter 2026 · Central Bank of Sri Lanka
- Payments and Settlements Systems · Central Bank of Sri Lanka
- Real Time Payments (CEFTS) for business · LankaPay
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