Legal Regulations
During national and religious holidays, government institutions and offices are closed and employees are given a paid day off. Regional holidays, such as those specific to Kurdistan, are designated as working days for the rest of the country. The labor code defines these non-working days for government offices, banks, and most businesses.
The Labor Law No. 37 of 2015 regulates working hours, holidays, and leave. The standard workweek is 40 hours, typically spread over 5 days (Friday and Saturday are the official weekend). Employees are entitled to paid annual leave and paid public holidays as declared by the government.
Insights
A common cultural practice is to create 'bridge days' by taking leave between a holiday and a weekend to extend time off. The day after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday, is not a federal holiday but is a paid day off for many employees and marks the start of the holiday shopping season. Strategic vacation planning around public holidays to maximize time off is popular, as highlighted by articles suggesting the 'best days to take off' in a given year.
Iraq observes a dual holiday system with secular national holidays and Islamic holidays following the lunar Hijri calendar. This creates extended weekend breaks, such as a four-day weekend in late March combining Nowruz and Eid al-Fitr. Celebrations for holidays like Republic Day and Army Day often include military parades, cultural shows, songs, and dances.
Iraq observes a dual holiday system with secular national holidays and Islamic holidays following the lunar Hijri calendar, which are subject to moon sighting. The Kurdistan Region observes additional regional holidays not recognized nationwide. The typical work schedule is from 8:00 or 9:00 AM to 3:00 or 4:00 PM, with a break during the hottest part of the day.
2026 Working days summary for Basra, Iraq
Basra, Iraq has 249 working days in 2026. This is calculated from 365 total calendar days, minus 97 weekend days (Saturday-Sunday), and minus 19 holidays. The standard work week runs Monday through Friday.
249
Working Days
97
Weekend Days
19
Holidays
Monthly Breakdown
| Month | Working | Weekend | Holidays | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19 | 10 | 2 | 31 |
| February | 20 | 8 | 0 | 28 |
| March | 21 | 5 | 5 | 31 |
| April | 22 | 8 | 0 | 30 |
| May | 19 | 8 | 4 | 31 |
| June | 19 | 8 | 3 | 30 |
| July | 21 | 9 | 1 | 31 |
| August | 21 | 9 | 1 | 31 |
| September | 22 | 8 | 0 | 30 |
| October | 21 | 9 | 1 | 31 |
| November | 22 | 8 | 0 | 30 |
| December | 22 | 7 | 2 | 31 |
| Total | 249 | 97 | 19 | 365 |
2026 Calendar for Basra, Iraq
January 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 New Year's Day New Year's Day | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
5 | 6 Army Day Army Day | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
19 working days, 10 weekend days, and 2 holidays in January 2026.
February 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ||||||
2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
20 working days, 8 weekend days in February 2026.
March 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ||||||
2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 National Day of Tolerance and Coexistence National Day of Tolerance and Coexistence | 7 | 8 |
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
16 Halabja Chemical Attack Commemoration Halabja Chemical Attack Commemoration | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 Eid al-Fitr Eid al-Fitr | 21 Nowruz / Eid al-Fitr Holiday Nowruz / Eid al-Fitr Holiday | 22 Eid al-Fitr Holiday Eid al-Fitr Holiday |
23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
30 | 31 |
21 working days, 5 weekend days, and 5 holidays in March 2026.
April 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
22 working days, 8 weekend days in April 2026.
May 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Labour Day Labour Day | 2 | 3 | ||||
4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
25 | 26 | 27 Eid al-Adha Eid al-Adha | 28 Eid al-Adha Holiday Eid al-Adha Holiday | 29 Eid al-Adha Holiday Eid al-Adha Holiday | 30 | 31 |
19 working days, 8 weekend days, and 4 holidays in May 2026.
June 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 Eid al-Ghadeer Eid al-Ghadeer | 5 | 6 | 7 |
8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
15 | 16 Islamic New Year Islamic New Year | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
22 | 23 | 24 | 25 Ashura Ashura | 26 | 27 | 28 |
29 | 30 |
19 working days, 8 weekend days, and 3 holidays in June 2026.
July 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
13 | 14 Republic Day Republic Day | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
21 working days, 9 weekend days, and 1 holiday in July 2026.
August 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | |||||
3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
24 | 25 Mawlid al-Nabi Mawlid al-Nabi | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
31 |
21 working days, 9 weekend days, and 1 holiday in August 2026.
September 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
28 | 29 | 30 |
22 working days, 8 weekend days in September 2026.
October 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 Independence Day Independence Day | 4 | |||
5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
21 working days, 9 weekend days, and 1 holiday in October 2026.
November 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ||||||
2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
30 |
22 working days, 8 weekend days in November 2026.
December 2026
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
7 | 8 | 9 | 10 Victory Day Victory Day | 11 | 12 | 13 |
14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 Christmas Day Christmas Day | 26 | 27 |
28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
22 working days, 7 weekend days, and 2 holidays in December 2026.
Changelog
| 2026-05-17 22:25:11 | The holiday set for Basra in 2026 has been updated to reflect a few name changes and the addition of new commemorative observances. |
| 2026-05-05 10:50:15 | The holiday set for Basra in 2026 has been expanded to include several new observances while retaining the majority of existing holidays. |