Brazil public holidays in 2019 and 2020 - calendar of public holidays in Brazil

The calendar of public holidays in Brazil is a very complex one, including nationwide public holidays, federal holidays (different in the 27 Brazilian states), as well as municipal holidays, instituted locally.

Carnival is the most festive holiday in Brazil.

Eight holidays are common to all of Brazil. See below the list of public holidays / bank holidays in Brazil in 2019 and 2020.

Carnival - a public holiday in Brazil?
Although Carnival is not declared by law a public holiday, it is common that employees are granted a day off on a Tuesday preceding the Ash Wednesday, which is the proper Carnival day. In some municipalities also Monday is a work-free day, allowing full four days of celebration. In 2019 Carnival is celebrate between 28th of February and 5th of March and in 2020, between 21st and 26th of February. 

Carnival, together with some other religious holidays not declared general public holidays, is considered optional holidays (or ponto facultativo); the employers are free to consider it a day off, or not. The ponto facultativo days are, however, work free days for public employees.

Find up-to-date information about Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

Besides Carnival, other holidays considered optional, yet commonly celebrated in most of the Brazilian states are Good Friday and Corpus Christi.

In 2019, Good Friday is on 19th April and in 2020, on 10th of April. The dates for Corpus Christi are: 20th of June in 2019 and 11th of June in 2020.

Federal holidays Brazil
In addition to the nationwide public holidays, Brazil celebrates also a large number of federal holidays of religious, ethnic or social character. Furthermore, according to the law, every municipality in Brazil may declare up to four holidays, which makes it very difficult to list all of Brazil work free days. Below is the list of federal public holidays in some of the Brazilian states.

Rio de Janeiro public holidays
Apart from the eight public holidays listed in the table above, in the state of Rio de Janeiro days off are:

• Carnival Tuesday
• St. George’s Day / Dia do São Jorge – always on 23 April
• Black Consciousness Day / Dia de Consciência Negra – always on 20 November

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São Paulo public holidays
The state of São Paulo celebrates as federal public holiday the Day of Constitutional Revolution (Dia da Revolução Constitutional) on 9 of June.

Bahia public holidays
2 of July is a public holiday in the state of Bahia, commemorating Independência da Bahia – Bahia’s independence from the Portuguese colonial empire.