2026 Hong Kong Statutory Holidays Guide: The Day Following the Mid-Autumn Festival, Rostering and Pay Arrangements

What should employers do when a statutory holiday falls on a Saturday?

When a statutory holiday falls on a Saturday, this is more than just a date on the calendar for businesses that operate on weekends, use shift work or rely on Finance to process payroll. HR should first confirm whether the date is an employee’s rest day, which holiday arrangement applies to that employee, and whether the statutory holiday and subsequent holiday information will flow correctly into payroll.

If a company still relies on several Excel files, WhatsApp messages or individual managers’ memory to handle a Saturday statutory holiday arrangement, common problems include:

• The same employee appearing with different holiday information on different lists;

• No clear record of an alternative holiday when a statutory holiday overlaps with a rest day;

• Roster changes not being passed to HR and Finance;

• An employee being required to work while the payroll system still treats the day as a rest day; and

• The company following only its “public holiday” calendar while overlooking statutory holiday requirements under the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57).

This guide summarises the 2026 statutory holiday dates, statutory holiday pay, alternative holidays and an employer preparation checklist. It also explains how businesses can review rostering, employee notifications and payroll processes when a statutory holiday overlaps with a Saturday or another rest day.

Statutory holidays and public holidays are not exactly the same

In Hong Kong, “public holidays” may refer to the holidays commonly observed by banks, schools, government departments and many office-based businesses. “Statutory holidays”, however, refer to the holiday arrangements under the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57) for employees covered by the Ordinance.

The dates and legal basis are not necessarily identical. Employers should not apply one company calendar to every employee without checking the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57), the employee’s contract and the actual working arrangement.

The Labour Department states that employees covered by the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57) are entitled to statutory holidays regardless of the number of hours worked per week or length of service. Statutory holiday pay is subject to separate eligibility requirements.

The 15 statutory holidays in 2026

According to the Labour Department’s list of statutory holidays for 2026, there are 15 statutory holidays in 2026:

From 2026, Easter Monday is added as a statutory holiday under the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57). Employers should update their annual holiday calendar, employee handbook, rostering rules and payroll settings. Do not continue using an old list of 12 or 13 statutory holidays.

Is every employee entitled to statutory holiday pay?

Employers should distinguish between being entitled to a statutory holiday and being entitled to statutory holiday pay.

Under section 39 of the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57), and the Labour Department’s statutory holiday information, employees covered by the Ordinance are entitled to statutory holidays. However, an employee generally needs to have been employed under a continuous contract for not less than three months immediately before the statutory holiday to qualify for statutory holiday pay.

Statutory holiday pay is generally calculated according to the employee’s average daily wages over the 12-month period preceding the statutory holiday. When processing payroll, employers should check:

• Whether the employee meets the continuous contract and service requirements;

• Whether wage information for the preceding 12 months is complete;

• Whether the average daily wages calculation excludes periods and payments specified by the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57);

• Whether part-time, shift-based and employees with irregular hours are classified correctly; and

• Whether statutory holiday pay will be paid within the statutory timeframe.

Do not automatically treat “part-time” as meaning that an employee has no statutory holiday or no statutory holiday pay. Eligibility should be assessed according to the applicable legislation, continuous contract status and actual working arrangement.

What if a statutory holiday falls on an employee’s rest day?

If a statutory holiday falls on an employee’s rest day, the employer must arrange another holiday in accordance with the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57). The alternative date cannot be arranged casually by overlapping it with another statutory holiday, alternative holiday, substituted holiday or rest day. The actual arrangement should be checked against the Labour Department’s requirements and the company’s roster for that year.

For example, Chung Yeung Festival falls on Sunday, 18 October 2026. An employer should not simply mark “Sunday off” in the system and treat the matter as closed. It should check the employee’s rest-day setting and determine whether a compliant alternative holiday needs to be arranged later.

The day following the Mid-Autumn Festival falls on Saturday, 26 September. Employers should pay particular attention to employees whose rest day is Saturday, and clearly record both the original statutory holiday and the subsequent holiday arrangement in payroll and rostering records.

Can employers ask employees to work on a statutory holiday?

Some industries need to operate during holidays, including catering, retail, logistics, security, hotels and healthcare-related services. If an employee is required to work on a statutory holiday, the employer must arrange an alternative holiday or other applicable holiday arrangement in accordance with the Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57). An employer cannot simply replace a statutory holiday entitlement with money where the Ordinance requires a holiday arrangement.

Before finalising the roster, employers should record:

• Which date is the original statutory holiday;

• Whether the employee is required to work;

• The actual working hours and role;

• When the alternative holiday will be arranged;

• Whether the statutory holiday pay and payment requirements are met; and

• Who is responsible for notifying the employee and updating the records.

“Company policy has always done it this way” does not necessarily mean that the arrangement complies with current requirements. New hires, last-minute roster changes, cross-store assignments and outsourced or contractor-managed work require particularly clear responsibility and records.

Seven checks HR should complete before the end of September

1. Check the 2026 statutory holiday list

Confirm that HRIS, payroll, rosters and the employee handbook include Easter Monday and the other 2026 statutory holidays. Also confirm whether the company has selected the Chinese Winter Solstice Festival or Christmas Day where the employer has a choice.

2. Keep statutory holidays, public holidays and company holidays separate

Do not place different holiday categories in a single undifferentiated field. Otherwise, employees, managers and Finance may find it difficult to identify the relevant legal and payroll treatment.

3. Identify employees whose rest days overlap with statutory holidays

Pay particular attention to weekend workers, employees with Saturday or Sunday as a fixed rest day, and employees whose rest days change each week. Arrange and record alternative holidays in advance.

4. Check statutory holiday pay data

HR and Finance should jointly review service length, continuous contract status, the preceding 12 months’ wage data and the average daily wages calculation settings.

5. Standardise the roster-change process

Define who approves the holiday roster, who notifies employees, who updates HRIS and the deadline by which Payroll must receive the final information.

6. Notify employees early

Employees should understand the original holiday, any work requirement, the alternative holiday, pay treatment and the channel for questions. Clear communication can reduce disputes shortly before the holiday.

7. Keep supporting records

Retain holiday calendars, rosters, alternative holiday notices, employee confirmations, payroll calculation records and roster-change history. If a later review is needed, oral instructions alone will not be sufficient to reconstruct what happened.

Should a business use an HRIS to manage statutory holidays?

Not every SME needs to purchase a large HRIS immediately. However, continued reliance on Excel may increase the risk of duplicated follow-up and data errors where a company has multiple locations, shift workers, different rest-day patterns, frequent roster changes or several people processing payroll.

Employers can first check whether their HRIS or existing system can:

• Set holidays by employee category and work location;

• Distinguish statutory holidays, alternative holidays and company holidays;

• Record rest days and roster changes;

• Connect holiday, attendance and payroll data;

• Set approval permissions and change history; and

• Remind HR, managers and Finance about incomplete tasks.

A system can reduce duplicate data entry and manual follow-up, but it cannot replace the employer’s judgment about legislation, contracts, actual working arrangements and individual circumstances. Before implementation, the company should map its current holiday policy, data fields, approval responsibilities and exception scenarios.

How Get More can help

If the company has to rebuild its holiday arrangements from scratch every time, or HR, managers and Finance apply different approaches to holiday pay, the issue may not simply be which date to enter. It may indicate that the HR process and responsibilities need to be clarified.

Get More can assist with:

• Reviewing statutory holiday, company holiday and alternative holiday policies;

• Structuring rostering, roster-change, holiday application and notification workflows;

• Reviewing HRIS or payroll data and permission settings;

• Clarifying responsibilities between HR, managers and Finance; and

• Checking consistency between the employee handbook, employment documents and internal guidelines.

Contact Get More to discuss your employee categories, rostering model and current holiday process:

📞 Phone: (852) 2333 1090

📧 Email: HR@getmore.com.hk

💬 WhatsApp: 9699 0665

Further reading

• 2026 Hong Kong SME HRIS Readiness Guide

• What Does HR Outsourcing Include? Hong Kong SME Guide

• Hong Kong Employment Ordinance Reform: Continuous Contract Definition

Legal references and official sources

• Labour Department:Statutory Holidays for 2026

• Labour Department:Increase in Statutory Holidays

• Labour Department:Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57) — Frequently Asked Questions on Statutory Holidays

• Hong Kong e-Legislation:Employment Ordinance (Cap. 57), sections 39 to 41

Disclaimer

This content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, please consult a qualified HR consultant or legal professional.

Statutory holidays, statutory holiday pay and alternative holiday arrangements may be affected by legislative amendments, employment contracts, employee categories and actual working arrangements. Please recheck the latest information from the Labour Department and Hong Kong e-Legislation before publication.