What Are The Public Holidays in Cape Verde in 2026?

List of Public Holidays in Cape Verde (2026)

Here is a quick overview of the nationwide public holidays in Cape Verde for 2026 so you can plan staffing, payroll, and leave policies for your team in advance.

Do Employers Have to Provide Paid Leave on Public Holidays?

Yes, under Cape Verdean labour practice, public holidays are generally treated as paid non-working days for employees, unless the employment contract or a collective agreement clearly provides otherwise in a way that still respects minimum protections in national law. In practice, full-time employees who normally work on the day of the week on which the holiday falls are entitled to their regular pay even if they do not work that day.

If your operations require staff to work on a public holiday, you should provide compensatory benefits, typically either premium pay for hours worked on the holiday or a substitute paid rest day, in line with the employment contract or applicable collective bargaining agreement. Where rules are not explicit, the safest approach is to treat work on a public holiday as exceptional and to compensate it more favourably than ordinary workdays.

Part-time employees are usually entitled to paid public holidays on a pro rata basis when the holiday falls on a day they would normally work. If the public holiday falls on a non-working day for that employee, there is generally no additional entitlement, unless your internal policy or a collective agreement grants more generous treatment.

When a public holiday falls on a Sunday, Cape Verde does not automatically shift the observance to Monday by law. Many employers still keep Sunday as the observed day, while some may voluntarily grant an additional weekday off as a matter of company policy. To stay consistent and avoid disputes, you should set out in writing how your company will handle holidays that fall on weekends and communicate this clearly to employees.

Legal Penalties for Not Providing Paid Holiday Leave

Failure to respect public holiday entitlements can expose your company to administrative sanctions in Cape Verde. Labour authorities can investigate complaints from employees and review your time records, payslips, and internal policies to confirm that public holidays are correctly recorded and paid.

Where violations are found, employers may face fines that scale with the seriousness and duration of the breach, as well as the number of affected employees. In addition, you can be ordered to pay back wages, including any unpaid holiday pay and premium rates, plus potential default interest. Repeated or intentional non-compliance can lead to higher penalties and closer monitoring by the authorities.

Common mistakes include treating public holidays as ordinary working days without premium pay, failing to pay employees who are off on a holiday that falls on their normal workday, and inconsistent treatment of part-time or shift workers. Keeping clear written policies, accurate attendance and payroll records, and ensuring local HR and managers understand the rules will significantly reduce your risk.

How Do Holidays Affect Overtime Thresholds?

In Cape Verde, work performed on a public holiday is generally treated more protectively than ordinary hours. While specific overtime thresholds and rates can depend on the Labour Code, sectoral rules, and collective agreements, the safest practice is to treat any hours worked on a public holiday as overtime or premium hours, even if the employee has not exceeded their normal weekly schedule.

Many employers apply a higher pay multiplier for holiday work than for standard overtime on regular days, reflecting the special status of public holidays. For example, you might pay 150% or 200% of the base hourly rate for hours worked on a public holiday, or grant an equivalent amount of paid time off in addition to regular pay. Where a collective agreement sets higher rates, those terms will usually prevail.

Because practice can vary by sector, you should review the applicable collective bargaining agreement, if any, and align your internal policy accordingly. Make sure your payroll system can distinguish between regular hours, overtime, and holiday hours so that premium rates are applied correctly and consistently.

Stay 100% Compliant with Leave Regulations Using Playroll

Managing Cape Verde's public holidays across a distributed team can be tricky, especially when you are also juggling different time zones, contracts, and local rules in other countries. Playroll helps you stay compliant by building Cape Verdean public holidays and leave rules directly into your employment workflows.

When you hire through Playroll, our platform automatically applies the correct public holiday calendar for Cape Verde, flags upcoming holidays for scheduling, and calculates pay so that holiday and overtime rules are respected. You get locally compliant employment contracts, clear documentation of working time and leave, and payslips that reflect any holiday premiums or substitute rest days you choose to grant.

Instead of tracking legal updates and collective practices yourself, you can rely on Playroll's in-house experts and local partners to keep your Cape Verde employment arrangements aligned with current requirements. That means fewer compliance risks, less admin for your HR team, and a smoother experience for your employees.

Whether you are onboarding your first hire in Praia or scaling a larger Cape Verdean team, Playroll gives you a single, compliant system to manage public holidays, leave, and payroll with confidence.