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Public holidays in South Korea each belong to one or more of three categories:
- National day ()
- National flag raising day ()
- Public holiday (): on these days, the general working population gets a day off, and employers are legally required to pay their employees.
Each category has a different legal basis. All national days are also flag-raising days.
List of public holidays in South Korea
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! English name
! Korean name
! Transliteration
! Date
! class="unsortable" | Remarks
! National celebration day
! Flag raising
! Day off
|-
| New Year's Day
| 신정
| Sinjeong
|
| The official name of the holiday means New Calendar New Year's Day
| no
| no
| yes
|-
| Korean New Year
| 설날
| Seollal
| 1st day of 1st lunar month
| Also called Seol (설) or Gujeong (). The first day of the Korean lunar calendar. It is one of the most important of the traditional Korean holidays, and is considered a more important holiday than the Gregorian New Year's Day.
| no
| no
| yes (3 days)
|-
| Independence Movement Day
| 3ㆍ1절
| Samiljeol
|
| This day commemorates the March 1st Movement in 1919. On March 1 of this year, 33 Korean nationalists and students declared their nation's independence in Seoul. It started a nationwide civil protest and was a catalyst for the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (April 13, 1919).
| yes
| yes
| yes
|-
| Labor Day
| 노동절
| Nodongjeol
|
| The day on which given to the workers for their hard work and further boost their motivation. Formerly known as "Workers Day" (근로자의 날) from 1963 to 2025. The Day changed to "Labor Day" in 2025, and became a public holiday in 2026.
| no
| no
| yes
|-
| Children's Day
| 어린이날
| Eorininal
|
| The day on which to esteem the personalities of children and plan for their happiness. In Korea, Children's Day started on May 1, 1922, when 8 people including Bang Jeong-hwan (방정환) declared the Day and held an anniversary. In 1946, the Day changed to May 5, and became a public holiday in 1975.
| no
| no
| yes
|-
| Buddha's Birthday
| 부처님 오신 날
| Bucheonnim Osinnal
| 8th day of 4th lunar month
| Formerly called Seokgatansinil (); also referred to as Sawol Chopail (). The birthday of Gautama Buddha.
| no
| no
| yes
|-
| Memorial Day
| 현충일
| Hyeonchung-il
|
| The day commemorates the men and women who died while in military service or in the independence movement. On this day, a national commemoration ceremony is held at the Seoul National Cemetery and Daejeon National Cemetery.
| no
| half mast
| yes
|-
| Constitution Day
| 제헌절
| Jeheonjeol
|
| The day celebrates the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea in 1948.
| yes
| yes
| yes
|-
| Liberation Day
| 광복절
| Gwangbokjeol
|
| The day celebrates the national liberation from the Empire of Japan in 1945. On the same day in 1948, the government of the Republic of Korea was established. The word Gwangbok () means "restoration of light".
| yes
| yes
| yes
|-
| Chuseok
| 추석
| Chuseok
| 15th day of 8th lunar month
| Also called Han-gawi (). Korean traditional harvest and Mid-Autumn Festival. With Korean New Year, it is one of the most important Korean traditional holidays. As a celebration of the good harvest, Koreans visit their ancestral hometowns and feast on traditional food.
| no
| no
| yes (3 days)
|-
| National Foundation Day
| 개천절
| Gaecheonjeol
|
| The day celebrates the foundation of Gojoseon, the first state of the Korean nation. According to the Samguk Yusa, Dangun founded Gojoseon on the 3rd day of 10th lunar month, 2333 BC. Today, South Koreans celebrate their national foundation on October 3 according to the Gregorian calendar, for convenience sake. Gaecheonjeol means "Heaven-opened Day".
| yes
| yes
| yes
|-
| Hangul Day
| 한글날
| Hangeullal
|
| The day commemorates the invention (1443) and the proclamation (1446) of hangul, the native alphabet of the Korean language. King Sejong the Great, inventor of hangul, is one of the most honored rulers in Korean history.
| yes
| yes
| yes
|-
| Christmas
| 크리스마스/성탄절
| Keuriseumaseu/Seongtanjeol
|
| Commonly called Seongtanjeol (), especially among Korean Christians.
| no
| no
| yes
|-
| Election days for elections on the termination of terms of office referred to in Article 34 of the Public Official Election Act
| 「공직선거법」 제34조에 따른 임기만료에 의한 선거의 선거일
| See Elections in South Korea. It is commonly called Seongeoil () or Seongeonal () (Election Day), in short. The date of this holiday is limited to regular presidential election day, legislative election day, and local election day (excluding early voting day, by-election day, referendum day or unscheduled election day caused by things like impeachment).
| no
| no
| yes
|}
National celebration days
These days celebrate events considered joyous to Korea. In the beginning, Independence Declaration Day (March 1) was first stipulated in 1946. After the establishment of the Government of the Republic of Korea in 1948, four major National Celebration Days (Independence Declaration Day, Constitution Day, Liberation Day, National Foundation Day) were provided by "The Law Concerning the National Celebration Days" (국경일에관한법률) in 1949.
In 2005, Hangul Day became the 5th National Celebration day.
National flag raising days
All the National Celebration Days, Memorial Day (half staff), Armed Forces Day are provided by Article 8 of the "National Flag Law" (대한민국국기법 제8조). On these days, the raising of the taegukgi at every house and along every roadside is promoted.
Public days off
They are provided by the "Regulations on Holidays of Public Agencies" (관공서의 공휴일에 관한 규정)