What Are The Public Holidays in Gambia in 2026?

List of Public Holidays in Gambia (2026)

Gambia’s public holidays combine fixed civil dates with Islamic religious festivals that follow the lunar calendar. The Islamic holidays below use widely accepted projected dates for 2026, but you should confirm final dates with official government announcements closer to the time.

Do Employers Have to Provide Paid Leave on Public Holidays?

Yes, in practice Gambian labor standards expect employers to treat official public holidays as paid days off for employees who would normally be scheduled to work on those days. While Gambia’s labor legislation is less prescriptive than in some jurisdictions, government practice and common collective arrangements treat public holidays as part of normal paid time, not as unpaid leave.

If a public holiday falls on a non‑working day for a particular employee, there is generally no additional entitlement, although some employers voluntarily offer a substitute day off. When the government declares an “observed” day because a holiday falls on a weekend, you should follow the official notice and treat that observed weekday as the paid holiday.

For part‑time staff, the safest approach is to provide paid time off on a pro‑rated basis when the holiday falls on a day they are normally scheduled to work. If your operations require staff to work on a public holiday, best practice in Gambia is to provide either premium pay for the hours worked or a paid day off in lieu, as set out in the employment contract or company policy.

Legal Penalties for Not Providing Paid Holiday Leave

Gambia’s labor authorities can investigate complaints where employees allege that public holiday rights or agreed benefits have not been honored. Non‑compliance can lead to orders to repay underpaid wages or provide compensatory time off, and in more serious or repeated cases, administrative fines or prosecution under general labor and wage protection provisions.

Enforcement is typically handled by the Ministry responsible for labor and its inspectors, who may review time‑and‑pay records, contracts, and internal policies. Common employer mistakes include failing to update practices when the government announces additional or shifted holidays, treating public holidays as unpaid leave without clear contractual basis, and applying inconsistent rules to different groups of employees.

To reduce risk, keep written records of holiday policies, ensure contracts clearly describe public holiday entitlements, and align your payroll calculations with official holiday declarations for each year.

How Do Holidays Affect Overtime Thresholds?

Gambian law does not set a single nationwide overtime rule specific to public holidays, but general working‑time and overtime principles still apply. If employees work on a public holiday, those hours count toward their weekly working‑time totals and may attract overtime premiums if they exceed the normal daily or weekly limits set in law, collective agreements, or contracts.

Many employers in Gambia choose to pay a higher‑than‑normal rate for work performed on public holidays – for example, time‑and‑a‑half or double time – or to grant a paid day off in lieu. Where your contracts or internal policies promise premium pay or compensatory leave for holiday work, those commitments are enforceable and should be applied consistently.

To stay compliant, define in writing how you treat hours worked on public holidays, how those hours interact with your standard overtime thresholds, and what premium, if any, applies. Make sure your payroll system can flag holiday work separately so you can demonstrate that you have met both statutory and contractual obligations.

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Managing public holidays and leave rules in Gambia doesn’t have to be complex. Playroll keeps you 100% compliant by automatically tracking local holidays, observed days, and pay requirements –  so your team is paid correctly and on time, every time.

Whether you’re hiring your first employee or scaling a growing team, Playroll lets you employ talent without setting up a local entity. We handle compliant contracts, benefits, and payroll in one platform, so you can reduce compliance risk and focus on growing your business while we take care of the heavy-lifting in the background. Book a chat with our team to get started.