What Are The Public Holidays in Mozambique in 2026?

List of Public Holidays in Mozambique (2026)

Mozambique recognises a set of nationwide public holidays that apply to most employees across the country. Use the table below to plan staffing, leave, and payroll for your Mozambique-based team in 2026.

Do Employers Have to Provide Paid Leave on Public Holidays?

Yes, Mozambican labour law generally treats official public holidays as paid days off for employees with ongoing employment contracts, meaning your company should pay employees their normal daily wage when a holiday falls on a scheduled workday. If a public holiday falls on a Sunday, it is typically observed on the following Monday, and employees who would normally work that Monday should still receive paid time off or the applicable compensation. Part-time employees are usually entitled to paid public holidays on a pro rata basis when the holiday falls on a day they would ordinarily work, while casual or daily workers are typically paid only for days actually worked unless a more generous contractual arrangement applies. When employees must work on a public holiday to maintain essential operations, you should provide both the normal holiday pay and an additional premium or compensatory rest in line with the employment contract, collective agreement, or company policy, and you should clearly document these rules in local employment agreements to avoid disputes.

Legal Penalties for Not Providing Paid Holiday Leave

Failure to respect public holiday rights in Mozambique can expose your company to administrative fines, back-pay orders, and potential damages. The Ministry of Labour and related labour inspectorates are responsible for monitoring compliance and can investigate complaints from employees or unions, review payroll records, and order corrective measures if they find that public holiday pay or time off has been withheld. Common employer mistakes include treating public holidays as unpaid leave, misclassifying employees as contractors to avoid holiday obligations, or failing to compensate staff who work on holidays with the correct premium or compensatory rest. In disputes, labour courts can order payment of outstanding wages, interest, and sometimes additional penalties, so it is safer to adopt a conservative, employee-friendly interpretation where the law or practice is unclear and to keep clear written records of holiday schedules and payments.

How Do Holidays Affect Overtime Thresholds?

In Mozambique, public holidays are generally treated as rest days, so any hours worked on these days are usually considered exceptional and should be compensated at a higher rate than ordinary hours. While specific premium percentages may be set by statute, collective bargaining agreements, or company policies, a common approach is to pay at least the normal daily wage plus an overtime or holiday premium for hours worked on a public holiday, without reducing the employee's entitlement to the paid holiday itself. Holiday work should also count toward weekly working time calculations, which means that if employees exceed the standard weekly limit because they worked on a holiday, those extra hours may trigger overtime obligations. To stay compliant, you should track hours worked on each public holiday separately, apply the correct premium rate, and ensure that managers do not schedule routine work on holidays without planning for the additional cost or offering compensatory time off.

Stay 100% Compliant with Leave Regulations Using Playroll

Managing Mozambican public holidays from abroad can be tricky, especially when you are juggling multiple countries, different calendars, and evolving local rules. Playroll helps you stay ahead of compliance by centralising your Mozambique employment data, automating holiday calendars, and applying country-specific rules to payroll and leave.

When you hire in Mozambique through Playroll, our platform automatically applies the correct list of statutory public holidays, flags observed days when a holiday falls on a Sunday, and ensures that paid holiday entitlements are reflected in payslips. We work with local experts to keep track of legislative changes, so if the government adds or amends a public holiday, your settings are updated without you needing to monitor the Official Gazette.

Playroll also makes it easier to coordinate global teams. Your HR and finance teams can see Mozambican holidays alongside those of other countries, plan project timelines around local rest days, and avoid accidentally scheduling key deadlines on days when your Mozambique-based employees are off. Clear records of holiday pay, overtime premiums, and compensatory rest are stored in one place, helping you respond quickly to audits or employee queries.

If you want to hire in Mozambique without setting up a local entity, Playroll can act as your employer of record, handling employment contracts, statutory benefits, and public holiday compliance on your behalf. That means you can focus on building your team and growing your business, while we take care of the complex, country-specific details.