Uganda bank holidays 2026 and 2027
Uganda has 16 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), Fri 1 Jan 2027 (New Year's Day).
Currency: UGX · Time zone: Africa/Kampala · Subscribe to this calendar (.ics)
Why this matters for prefunding
When Uganda 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 | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Friday. |
| Sat 26 Dec 2026 | Boxing Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Saturday. No weekend substitution: the Act as revised to 2023 contains no Sunday rule, and Office Holidays notes weekend holidays stay on their date. |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year's Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Friday. |
| Tue 26 Jan 2027 | NRM Liberation Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Listed as a public holiday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and widely observed, but not shown in the Public Holidays Act schedule on ULII (2023 revision); see caveats. |
| Tue 16 Feb 2027 | Archbishop Janani Luwum Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Tuesday. |
| Mon 8 Mar 2027 | International Women's Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Monday. |
| Tue 9 Mar 2027 | Idd el-Fitr | public holiday | Expected | Islamic calendar date; depends on moon sighting. Date shown is an estimate from published calendars and can move by a day or more. Other calendars give 10 Mar 2027. |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Good Friday | public holiday | Confirmed | |
| Mon 29 Mar 2027 | Easter Monday | public holiday | Confirmed | |
| Sat 1 May 2027 | Labour Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Saturday. No weekend substitution: the Act as revised to 2023 contains no Sunday rule, and Office Holidays notes weekend holidays stay on their date. |
| Sun 16 May 2027 | Idd al-Adha | public holiday | Expected | Islamic calendar date; depends on moon sighting. Date shown is an estimate from published calendars and can move by a day or more. Other calendars give 17 May 2027. |
| Thu 3 Jun 2027 | Uganda Martyrs' Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Thursday. |
| Wed 9 Jun 2027 | National Heroes' Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Wednesday. |
| Sat 9 Oct 2027 | Independence Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Saturday. No weekend substitution: the Act as revised to 2023 contains no Sunday rule, and Office Holidays notes weekend holidays stay on their date. |
| Sat 25 Dec 2027 | Christmas Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Saturday. |
| Sun 26 Dec 2027 | Boxing Day | public holiday | Confirmed | Falls on a Sunday. No weekend substitution: the Act as revised to 2023 contains no Sunday rule, and Office Holidays notes weekend holidays stay on their date. |
"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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNISS / UNIS RTGS (Uganda National Interbank Settlement System) | Bank of Uganda | Business days only (bank notices say late items clear the next business day). The current timetable was not published on the Bank of Uganda pages fetched. A FINCA Uganda notice from April 2020 cited a 14:00 RTGS cut-off during COVID restrictions; treat that as outdated. | no source |
| EFT via Kampala Automated Clearing House | Bank of Uganda | Batch processing in morning and afternoon sessions on business days; exact times not confirmed. | unknown source |
| Mobile money (MTN MoMo, Airtel Money) | MTN Uganda, Airtel Uganda (licensed by Bank of Uganda) | 24/7 | unknown source |
Uganda does not move weekend holidays, so Dec 2026 bank closures are Fri 25 Dec and Fri 1 Jan only, plus Tue 26 Jan 2027 (Liberation Day). Source conflict: the Public Holidays Act schedule on ULII (2023 revision) does not show NRM Liberation Day (26 Jan), while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs list, Office Holidays and Wikipedia all include it; it is observed in practice. The ULII text also lists a Prophet's birthday holiday that government lists omit, so it is not included here. The government can declare one-off holidays at short notice (in 2026: election days 15 and 16 Jan, inauguration 12 May, local elections 28 Jul). BoU RTGS hours could not be confirmed from a BoU page, and mobile money 24/7 availability comes from a secondary source only. BoU's national instant payment switch was still being implemented as of the April 2025 UNCDF report. Mobile money wallet-to-wallet transfers generally run continuously, but bank-to-wallet legs depend on bank systems and holiday availability is not confirmed by an operator or the Bank of Uganda.
Other calendars
Sources
- Public Holidays Act (revised edition, 31 Dec 2023) · Uganda Legal Information Institute (ULII)
- Embassy holidays · Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Uganda (Mombasa Consulate)
- Public holidays in Uganda · Wikipedia
- National Holidays in Uganda in 2026 · Office Holidays
- Uganda public holidays 2027 · Q++Studio
- Uganda National Interbank Settlement (UNIS) · Bank of Uganda
- RTGS and EFT changes (April 2020) · FINCA Uganda
- Uganda infrastructure assessment report (April 2025) · UNCDF Migrant Money
- Instant payments Uganda · Lightspark
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