Official list of Philippine holidays for 2009 and 2008
January 16, 2008
Do you know that it looks like we have a long, 11-day Christmas holiday again this 2009? Look at the list of 2009 Philippine holidays here.
Below is a list of official holidays in the Philippines in 2008.
Official List of Philippine Holidays for 2008
(based on Republic Act 9492 or “An Act Rationalizing the Celebration of National Holidays”)
(exact dates for holidays in 2008 as provided for in Proclamation No. 1463, “Declaring the Regular Holidays and Special (non-working) Days for the Year 2008″)
A. Regular Holidays 2008
- Maundy Thursday / Good Friday – March 20 / 21 (Thursday / Friday)
- Araw ng Kagitingan – April 7 (Monday), in lieu of April 9
- Labor Day – May 1 (Thursday), will not be moved
- Independence Day – June 9 (Monday), in lieu of June 12
- National Heroes Day – August 25 (Monday), last Monday of August
- Bonifacio Day – December 1 (Monday), in lieu of November 30
- Christmas Day – December 25 (Thursday)
- Rizal Day – December 30 (Tuesday), will not be moved
B. Special (non-working) holidays 2008
- Ninoy Aquino Day – August 18 (Monday), in lieu of August 21
- All Saints’ Day – November 1 (Saturday)
- Additional Special Non-Working Holiday – December 26 (Friday)
- Additional Special Non-Working Holiday – December 29 (Monday)
- Last Day of the Year (Special Holiday) – December 31(Wednesday)
The date of the observance of Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadhan) will be issued after the approximate date of the Islamic Holiday has been determined. This will be confirmed by the Office of Muslim Affairs.
UPDATE: The observance of Eid al Fit’r will be on October 1, 2008, Wednesday.
UPDATE: January 2, 2009 has been officially declared a special, non-working holiday.
Copy of Proclamation No. 1463
Note that December 24 is almost always made into a holiday (or at least a half-day working day), December 25 is Christmas Day, December 26 is a special non-working day, December 27 and 28 are weekends, December 29 is again a special non-working day, December 30 is Rizal Day, December 31 is a special holiday, January 1 is New Year, January 2 has just been declared a non-working holiday, while January 3 and 4 are weekends — which means the Christmas season is going to be a 12-day holiday for most people!
No work, just play from December 24, 2008 until January 4, 2009. See you at work on January 5!
Happy holidays!
Looking for the 2009 Philippine holidays list? Just click!
October 29th, 2008 at %I:%M %p
hope n madeclare n holiday ang oct. 31…pra we can spend enough time sa fmily …bcoz during nov 1..ngka2ron tlga ng reunion hlos lhat …..
October 30th, 2008 at %I:%M %p
hello. i just want to confirm yung Dec. 1, confirmed na po ba talaga? thanks po
October 31st, 2008 at %I:%M %p
October 31, 2008 is not a public holiday
Malacanang announced that Oct. 31, 2008, the eve of All Saints’ Day, will not be declared a public holiday.
“Oct. 31 will not be declared a public holiday,” said Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita when asked on the possible declaration of the said date as nationwide public rest day in pre-celebration of the All Saints’ Day on November 1.
Ermita said that the government is giving the employers the prerogative to allow their workers and employees to go on half day.
- http://www.gov.ph/news/?i=22595
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@kei, yes it’s confirmed, December 1 is a holiday.
November 2nd, 2008 at %I:%M %p
If Nov 01 was Special Holiday, Nov 02 will no longer be a holiday. Previously Nov 1 was the regulat holiday while Nov 2 was the Special Holiday
November 16th, 2008 at %I:%M %p
un po bang regular holiday sa december1, walang pasok ang mga students?
nid ko lng po ung answer asap,,
thanks!
November 19th, 2008 at %I:%M %p
For private companies who have work during saturdays, i just want to kno if december 27 already declared as a non-working holiday? usually the government always assumes that saturdays is already non-working day but in reality a lot of Filipinos have work on Saturdays. Can you give me an idea if it is also included?
November 24th, 2008 at %I:%M %p
For Benise:
Of course! All students won’t have classes at this date. Hehe =)
January 5th, 2009 at %I:%M %p
This last Christmas break in the Philippines was a blast for those who are salaried, but a bummer for the daily worker. Here’s what happened:
Christmas Day (25th) was on a Thursday, so Friday (26th) was declared a “special non-working holiday” (SNWH). Rizal Day (30th) fell on a Tuesday, so Monday (29th) was declared another SNWH. New Year’s Day was on another Thursday, so Wednesday (31st) and Friday (January 2, 2009) were declared SNWHs as well.
The result was that except for the big malls and grocery stores, the country was practically shut down from December 25, 2008 through January 2, 2009. This stands out as another Philippine oddity: most people have lost their respect for holidays, even religious ones; malls open half-day even on Christmas Day and New Year.
The total official holidays for 2008 was 15 days: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, April 9 (Fall of Bataan), Labor Day (May 1), Independence Day (June 9, moved from June 12), Ninoy Aquino Day (August 21), National Heroes Day (August 25), All Saints’ Day (November 1), Bonifacio Day (December 1, moved from November 30), Christmas Day, Rizal Day, plus December 26, 29, 31 and the end of Ramadan. In addition, the poor daily workers lost a few days due to typhoons.
Here’s what I propose to minimize the number of holidays, to increase productivity:
Eliminate these holidays: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Fall of Bataan, Rizal Day.
Grounds: These three holidays only accentuate the Filipino sentimental, melodramatic and defeatist culture. The death and resurrection of Christ should be celebrated together on Easter Sunday and on every Lord’s Day. And why celebrate the surrender of Bataan (and formerly of Corregidor) and the execution of the national hero?
Combine these holidays into one day: Bonifacio Day (birthday – November 30) and Ninoy Aquino Day (birthday – November 27) should be combined into a National Heroes Day (to be celebrated on the last Monday in November); Independence Day and Rizal Day (June 12)
Grounds: These holidays are so close together they should be combined. And what better way is there to celebrate the national hero than celebrating his birthday on the nation’s independence day?
Eliminate Ninoy Aquino Day on August 21 and replace it with a “Philippine Revolution Day.”
Grounds: Since Aquino’s birthday will be celebrated together with Bonifacio’s birthday on the last Monday in November, there is no need for another Ninoy Aquino Day. I propose instead a “Philippine Revolution Day” on the last Monday in August to commemorate the start of the Philippine Revolution with the Cry of Pugadlawin on August 23, 1896. This holiday would inculcate something that is lacking in the Filipino consciousness: the rich heritage of the Philippine Revolution.
Bottom line, the following is my suggested 9-day holiday schedule, assuming that Rizal Day is still celebrated, a huge improvement from the 15 holidays in 2008:
New Year (January 1)
Labor Day (May 1)
Independence Day (June 12)
Rizal Day (3rd Monday in June)
Philippine Revolution Day (last Monday in August)
End of Ramadan (variable)
All Saints’ Day (November 1)
National Heroes Day (last Monday in November)
Christmas (December 25)
And here are a few other food for thought:
* Why not move Independence Day to January 21, to celebrate the real inauguration of the First Philippine Republic by the First Philippine Congress in Malolos, Bulacan in 1899? We can cite as a parallel to this the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress of the United States on July 4, 1776. The Declaration of Independence read on June 12, 1898 in Kawit, Cavite, on the other hand, was written by a single individual, and signed by 98 individuals, not ratified by a congress in session.
* I’m also for changing the national hero from Rizal to Bonifacio. Rizal may be a genius and a reformer, but he was not a leader of the Philippine Revolution. I do not know of any country in the world that has for its national hero one who was adamantly against a revolution for independence. He disowned it in a manifesto, “From the very beginning, when I first had notice of what was being planned, I opposed it, fought it, and demonstrated its absolute impossibility.” The case could be made that he was a traitor to his countrymen during the last days of his life, when he volunteered to serve as a doctor in the Spanish army in Cuba to avoid being implicated in the revolution. His move was in vain, because he was nevertheless implicated and arrested on his way to Cuba, taken back to Manila, and executed.
* However, if his execution is to be “celebrated,” it could be held on January 1, since it is very close to New Year’s Day.
* The Balintawak Monument should be renovated to make it at least as beautiful, dignified and signified as the Rizal Monument at the Luneta Park.
* Finally, the most dimwitted holiday of all was when the Independence Day holiday was moved to June 9, Monday, because June 12, the real day, fell on a Thursday! In the U. S., there would be a revolution if, for example, the Independence Day holiday in 2007 was moved from July 4th (Wednesday) to July 2nd (Monday).