Bridge days 2026: what is left of the year
The year 2026 is almost over. The planner shows how best to spread your leftover leave over Christmas and the turn of the year.
Time left until Christmas Eve 2026, 24 December 2026
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North Rhine-Westphalia 2026: using 7 leave days
22 days off
Each leave day buys 3.1 consecutive days off.
| Thu 1 January – Sun 4 January | 1 → 4 days |
| Sat 28 March – Mon 6 April | 4 → 10 days |
| Thu 14 May – Sun 17 May | 1 → 4 days |
| Thu 4 June – Sun 7 June | 1 → 4 days |
1 day no longer extend a bridge: free to plan, for a summer break for instance.
| Take leave | Leave days | Off in a row | Days off | Thanks to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 2 January | 1 | Thu 1 January – Sun 4 January | 4 | New Year's Day |
| Mon 30 March – Thu 2 April | 4 | Sat 28 March – Mon 6 April | 10 | Good Friday, Easter Monday |
| Fri 15 May | 1 | Thu 14 May – Sun 17 May | 4 | Ascension Day |
| Fri 5 June | 1 | Thu 4 June – Sun 7 June | 4 | Corpus Christi |
| Take leave | Leave days | Off in a row | Days off | Holiday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 2 January | 1 | Thu 1 January – Sun 4 January | 4 | New Year's Day |
| Fri 15 May | 1 | Thu 14 May – Sun 17 May | 4 | Ascension Day |
| Fri 5 June | 1 | Thu 4 June – Sun 7 June | 4 | Corpus Christi |
| Mon 30 March – Thu 2 April | 4 | Sat 28 March – Mon 6 April | 10 | Good Friday, Easter Monday |
| Tue 7 April – Fri 10 April | 4 | Fri 3 April – Sun 12 April | 10 | Good Friday, Easter Monday |
| Mon 28 December – Thu 31 December | 4 | Fri 25 December – Sun 3 January | 10 | Christmas Day, Boxing Day (St Stephen’s Day), New Year's Day |
| Mon 27 April – Thu 30 April | 4 | Sat 25 April – Sun 3 May | 9 | Labour Day |
| Tue 26 May – Fri 29 May | 4 | Sat 23 May – Sun 31 May | 9 | Whit Monday |
| Mon 21 December – Thu 24 December | 4 | Sat 19 December – Sun 27 December | 9 | Christmas Day, Boxing Day (St Stephen’s Day) |
| Mon 11 May – Wed 13 May | 3 | Sat 9 May – Thu 14 May | 6 | Ascension Day |
| Mon 1 June – Wed 3 June | 3 | Sat 30 May – Thu 4 June | 6 | Corpus Christi |
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · state holiday acts checked on 28 October 2026
Only a few public holidays remain in 2026, but one very good bridge. Reformation Day on 31 October is a Saturday and All Saints' Day on 1 November a Sunday, so neither gives a day off. In Saxony the Day of Repentance and Prayer falls on Wednesday 18 November. Then comes Christmas: Christmas Day is a Friday, Boxing Day a Saturday, and New Year's Day 2027 falls on a Friday again. Four leave days from 28 to 31 December give ten days off, from 25 December to 3 January. Add the week before Christmas, 21 to 24 December, and eight leave days give sixteen days in a row, from 19 December to 3 January. If Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve are already off at your workplace, three leave days between the holidays buy 11 days off. Leave you cannot take in 2026 generally lapses on 31 December under the law, unless it is carried over.
Christmas 2026 step by step
The holidays at the end of 2026 and the start of 2027 fall so that two weekends, each with a holiday on the Friday, frame a single week. That week is the bridge of the winter. Add the week before Christmas and you get a break of just over two weeks.
| Option | Leave days | Off in a row | Days off |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28 to 31 December | 4 | 25 Dec 2026 – 3 Jan 2027 | 10 |
| 21 to 24 December | 4 | 19 – 27 Dec 2026 | 9 |
| both weeks | 8 | 19 Dec 2026 – 3 Jan 2027 | 16 |
| 28 to 30 December, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve off | 3 | 24 Dec 2026 – 3 Jan 2027 | 11 |
The sums hold in all sixteen states, because Christmas and New Year are nationwide holidays. In the autumn only Saxony differs, where the Day of Repentance allows a short bridge in mid-November.
Leftover leave: what the law says
Under the Federal Leave Act leave must be taken in the current year. Carrying it over into the next year is only foreseen for pressing reasons, and then until the end of March. Following rulings by the European Court of Justice and the Federal Labour Court, however, leave only lapses if the employer gave clear and timely notice. If you still have leave, plan it now.
It pays to look ahead too: 2027 is a weak year for bridges, 2028 a very good one. See the calendar 2027 and the bridge days 2028.
North Rhine-Westphalia 2026: using 3 leave days
North Rhine-Westphalia 2026: using 3 leave days
12 days off
| Thu 1 January – Sun 4 January | 1 → 4 days |
| Thu 14 May – Sun 17 May | 1 → 4 days |
| Thu 4 June – Sun 7 June | 1 → 4 days |