SOURCE: Vacation Tracker TITLE: Iowa State Holidays 2026: Dates & Holiday Pay Rules URL: https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/iowa/2026/ LANG: en PUBLISHED: 2026-10-31 UPDATED: 2026-11-01 SUMMARY: All 11 federal and 1 Iowa state holiday for 2026, with observed dates, holiday pay rules and free calendar downloads. # Iowa Holidays 2026 Iowa has 11 federal holidays and 1 state holiday in 2026. Private employers don't have to give any of them. Last updated on Nov 1, 2026. ## All 2026 holidays in Iowa | Holiday | Date | Day of week | Notes | Type | Paid by law? | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | New Year's Day | 2026-01-01 | Thursday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Martin Luther King Jr. Day | 2026-01-19 | Monday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Lincoln's Birthday (Legal holiday in Iowa Code 1C.1 but not a paid state-employee holiday; state offices open) | 2026-02-12 | Thursday | | Observance | Not a day off | | Washington's Birthday | 2026-02-16 | Monday | Not an Iowa state holiday: Legal holiday in Iowa Code 1C.1 but not a paid state-employee holiday; state offices open | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Easter Sunday | 2026-04-05 | Sunday | | Observance | Not a day off | | Memorial Day | 2026-05-25 | Monday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Juneteenth | 2026-06-19 | Friday | Not an Iowa state holiday: Not an Iowa paid holiday; governor proclaims Juneteenth on the third Saturday in June (Iowa Code 1C.14) | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Independence Day | 2026-07-04 | Saturday | Falls on a Saturday. Observed Fri Jul 3 | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Labor Day | 2026-09-07 | Monday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Columbus Day | 2026-10-12 | Monday | Not an Iowa state holiday | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Veterans Day | 2026-11-11 | Wednesday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Thanksgiving Day | 2026-11-26 | Thursday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | Day after Thanksgiving | 2026-11-27 | Friday | | State | Not required for private employers | | Christmas Eve | 2026-12-24 | Thursday | | Commonly given | Not required | | Christmas Day | 2026-12-25 | Friday | | Federal | Not required for private employers | | New Year's Eve | 2026-12-31 | Thursday | | Commonly given | Not required | ## What employers need to know **Paid holidays.** Iowa law doesn't require employers to provide holiday pay, vacation pay or sick time. Iowa employers must follow their own policies, practices or contracts on these benefits. **Veterans Day off for veterans.** Iowa employers must give employees who are veterans time off on Veterans Day (Nov. 11) if they would otherwise have to work, paid or unpaid at the employer's choice. The veteran must give at least one month's written notice, and employers can deny it if it would affect public health or safety or cause significant disruption. **Promised holiday pay counts as wages.** Under Iowa's Wage Payment Collection Law, holiday and vacation pay owed under an agreement or employer policy counts as wages. Unused vacation is owed at separation only if the employer has a contract, policy or procedure to pay it. **Holidays that fall on a weekend.** Federal offices observe Saturday holidays on Friday and Sunday holidays on Monday. **Unused vacation when someone leaves.** In Iowa, PTO payout depends on the employer's written policy or agreement. An employer only has to pay a departing employee for unused vacation if it has a contract, policy or procedure in place to do so. (https://vacationtracker.io/leave-laws/usa/iowa/#payment-of-accrued-unused-vacation-on-termination) **Sick leave.** Iowa has no sick leave law beyond federal FMLA, and employers aren't required to provide paid or unpaid sick leave. Employers that set a sick leave policy in their handbook must comply with it. (https://vacationtracker.io/leave-laws/usa/iowa/#sick-leave-in-iowa) Full rules: Iowa leave laws: https://vacationtracker.io/leave-laws/usa/iowa/ ## Maximize your PTO in 2026 These are our suggestions for the best days to take off in Iowa. They use the 11 federal holidays plus the days Iowa state offices close for: Day after Thanksgiving. Take all 12 suggested PTO days and you get **46 days off across 11 breaks**, including 9 long weekends. Pick a break to see it on the calendar. - Take Wednesday, November 25 off to get a 5-day break from November 25 to 29 (Thanksgiving Day and Day after Thanksgiving). - Take Friday, January 2 off to get a 4-day weekend from January 1 to 4 (New Year's Day). - Take Friday, January 16 off to get a 4-day weekend from January 16 to 19 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day). - Take Friday, February 13 off to get a 4-day weekend from February 13 to 16 (Washington's Birthday). - Take Friday, May 22 off to get a 4-day weekend from May 22 to 25 (Memorial Day). - Take Thursday, June 18 off to get a 4-day weekend from June 18 to 21 (Juneteenth). - Take Thursday, July 2 off to get a 4-day weekend from July 2 to 5 (Independence Day). - Take Friday, September 4 off to get a 4-day weekend from September 4 to 7 (Labor Day). - Take Friday, October 9 off to get a 4-day weekend from October 9 to 12 (Columbus Day). - Take Thursday, December 24 off to get a 4-day weekend from December 24 to 27 (Christmas Day). - Take Monday, November 9 and Tuesday, November 10 off to get a 5-day break from November 7 to 11 (Veterans Day). ## When US teams take time off The national pattern from Vacation Tracker data. We don't have enough Iowa data for a state view yet. - Dec 21 – 27 (Week 52): 2.5× a normal week - Jun 29 – Jul 5 (Week 27): 1.5× a normal week - Jul 6 – 12 (Week 28): 1.5× a normal week - Jul 27 – Aug 2 (Week 31): 1.5× a normal week - Aug 3 – 9 (Week 32): 1.5× a normal week ## How Iowa holidays differ **State holidays.** Iowa has 1 holiday of its own in 2026 on top of the federal ones. The median across the 50 states and DC is 2; 35 have more and 4 have fewer. **Federal holidays.** Not a paid day off for Iowa state employees: Washington's Birthday, Juneteenth and Columbus Day. Neighboring states in 2026: - [Illinois](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/illinois/2026/): 3 holidays of its own - [Minnesota](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/minnesota/2026/): 1 holiday of its own - [Missouri](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/missouri/2026/): 2 holidays of its own - [Nebraska](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/nebraska/2026/): 2 holidays of its own - [South Dakota](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/south-dakota/2026/): 1 holiday of its own - [Wisconsin](https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/wisconsin/2026/): 4 holidays of its own Compare all 50 states and DC: https://vacationtracker.io/holidays/united-states/2026/#compare ## Frequently asked questions Q: Do private employers in Iowa have to give paid holidays? No. Iowa law doesn't require employers to provide holiday pay, vacation pay or sick time; employers must follow their own policies, practices or contracts. One exception: employees who are veterans get Veterans Day off (paid or unpaid) on request under Iowa Code 91A.5A. Q: What are the Iowa state holidays in 2026? In 2026, Iowa has the 11 federal holidays and 1 state holiday: Day after Thanksgiving (November 27). Washington's Birthday, Juneteenth and Columbus Day are federal holidays, but not Iowa state holidays. Q: Is Juneteenth an Iowa state holiday? No. Juneteenth is a federal holiday, but it isn't an Iowa state holiday. It isn't an Iowa paid holiday. Governor proclaims Juneteenth on the third Saturday in June (Iowa Code 1C.14). In 2026 it falls on Friday, June 19. Q: Is Columbus Day an Iowa state holiday? No. Columbus Day is a federal holiday, but it isn't an Iowa state holiday. In 2026 it falls on Monday, October 12. Q: Is the day after Thanksgiving a holiday in Iowa? Yes. The day after Thanksgiving (Friday, November 27) is an Iowa state holiday. Private employers don't have to give it. Q: Do employers in Iowa have to pay extra for working on a holiday? Federal law (the FLSA) doesn't require extra pay for work on holidays as such; holiday hours only earn overtime when they push an employee past 40 hours in the workweek. Q: Do paid holidays count toward overtime in Iowa? Under federal law (the FLSA), a paid holiday the employee takes off is not hours worked, so it doesn't have to count toward overtime. Q: What happens if a holiday falls on a weekend in Iowa? Federal offices observe Saturday holidays on Friday and Sunday holidays on Monday. In 2026, Independence Day falls on a Saturday and is observed on Friday, July 3. ## Sources - State Holidays | Iowa Department of Administrative Services: https://das.iowa.gov/state-employees/state-accounting/centralized-payroll/state-holidays - Iowa Code ch. 1C (1C.1 legal public holidays; 1C.2 paid state-employee holidays & weekend rule): https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/1c.pdf - U.S. Office of Personnel Management: Federal holidays: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/federal-holidays/ - Wage | Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, & Licensing: https://dial.iowa.gov/hearings/wage-and-child-labor/wages - Iowa Code chapter 91A, Wage Payment Collection (§ 91A.5A): https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/2026/91A.html - Fact Sheet #23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA | U.S. Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/23-flsa-overtime-pay - FLSA Hours Worked Advisor: Holidays, Vacations and Sick Time | U.S. Department of Labor: https://webapps.dol.gov/elaws/whd/flsa/hoursworked/screenEE14.asp Holiday calendar data includes date-holidays (CC BY-SA 3.0), checked against the official sources above. Holiday dates come from public sources. Check your employment contract and the official sources above before you rely on them. CSV: https://vacationtracker.io/static/data/holiday-pages/united-states/iowa-holidays-2026.csv