Holidays and celebrations in Bulgaria: official and traditional
Official holidays in Bulgaria are listed in the Labour Code (Кодекс на труда, art. 154); traditional celebrations such as Baba Marta or Surova are not official holidays but appear in UNESCO's lists. This page reads the two lists separately.
Culture and language · Last reviewed: 2026-10-08
Official holidays (Labour Code art. 154)
| Date | Day |
|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year |
| 3 March | Day of the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule, national holiday |
| 1 May | Labour Day and International Workers' Solidarity Day |
| 6 May | St George's Day (Gergyovden), Day of Bravery and the Bulgarian Army |
| 24 May | Day of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the Bulgarian alphabet, education and culture |
| 6 September | Unification Day |
| 22 September | Independence Day |
| 1 November | Day of the National Revival Figures; a non-working day only for all educational institutions |
| 24 December | Christmas Eve (Бъдни вечер) |
| 25 and 26 December | Christmas (Рождество Христово) |
| Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday and Monday | On the dates set for that year |
When a holiday falls on a weekend
Under art. 154 para. 2, when official holidays other than Easter fall on a Saturday and/or Sunday, the first one or two working days after are non-working. The Council of Ministers may also declare other one-off non-working days for significant events or professional days (para. 3).
Religious holidays
The Labour Code list does not include Islamic religious holidays. Whether you can take that day off depends on your employment contract and the leave rules; see the related articles.
Tradition and UNESCO
UNESCO's Bulgaria page lists these entries: cultural practices associated with 1 March (2017, Representative List), the Surova folk feast in the Pernik region (2015, Representative List), the Koprivshtitsa folklore festival (2016, register of good safeguarding practices) and Nestinarstvo (2009). None of these days is an official holiday in the list above; that does not lessen their importance, it only separates the legal status.
Dates and detail
Frequently asked questions
Is 1 November a holiday in Bulgaria?
The Labour Code lists 1 November (Day of the National Revival Figures) as a non-working day for all educational institutions; the list does not say it is a general holiday for other workplaces.
What if a holiday falls on a weekend?
Apart from Easter, when an official holiday falls on a Saturday and/or Sunday, the first one or two working days after it are non-working (art. 154 para. 2).
Sources
The information on this page is based on the official sources listed below. Legislation changes — open the links and verify the current position.
- Кодекс на труда — чл. 154 (lex.bg, 8 Ekim 2026'da okunan birleştirilmiş metin) — https://lex.bg/laws/ldoc/1594373121 · 2026-10-08
- UNESCO Somut Olmayan Kültürel Miras — Bulgaristan sayfası — https://ich.unesco.org/en/state/bulgaria-BG · 2026-10-08
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