The legal holiday in Romania is a minimum of 21 working days, but careful planning can add up to many more days, if taken at certain times of the year.
To get more days off in 2026, take advantage of statutory days off by “bridging” (taking an extra 1-2 days off) for mini-holidays and negotiate your holiday in large blocks, strategically planning alongside bank holidays.
Strategies for more days off in 2026
Take advantage of the “deck”:
- When a public holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, take a day off (Monday or Friday) to create a 4-5 day mini holiday.
Likely examples for 2026:
- May 1 (Friday): 3-day weekend (no additional leave).
- Easter (Sunday/Monday): The Easter holidays fall on the weekend, but you can link to them.
- December 1 (National Day): Probably a Monday or Friday, ideal for a deck.
Plan your Vacation (21 days) Strategically:
- Block leave: Instead of 21 separate days, take them in two or three longer periods (eg 2 weeks + 1 week).
Combine with the holidays. You can have 7 weeks of vacation if you split it into three stages around the Holidays. Thus, you can enjoy 34 working days of vacation, “spending” only 15 days of the vacation.
- Take a week off after Easter (Mon-Fri) to have 10 days (including weekends).
- Take a week around May 1st (Friday) for a 10-12 day vacation.
- Take a week around December 1st to enjoy an extended vacation of almost 10-12 days.
Choose periods with more legal holidays: 2026 will have many holidays during the week, which makes “decks” very profitable.
Negotiate with your employer: Talk to your manager ahead of time to block the periods you want, especially if you want to take leave in bulk.
Key tip: Use statutory days off as a base (approx. 16 in 2026) and add 1-2 days off from the 21 to maximize holidays, turning 5 days off into 9-10 days off.
12 working days are legally free in 2026
In 2026, Romanian employees will have 17 legal days off in 2026, 12 of which coincide with working days. Students, in turn, will benefit from extended winter and spring breaks that overlap with the holiday periods, ensuring rest before and after classes resume.
January is the month with the most days off. The New Year will be celebrated on January 1, Thursday, followed by New Year’s Day, Friday. Epiphany falls on Tuesday, January 6, and Saint John the Baptist on Wednesday, January 7. Thus, by including the weekend of January 3 and 4 and taking an extra day off on January 5, employees can benefit from a mini-vacation. The Day of the Union of the Romanian Principalities, on January 24, falls on a Saturday, so it does not offer an additional benefit to those who already have the weekend off.
Spring brings rest periods for employees and students
Catholic Easter will be celebrated on April 5, and the following day, Monday, April 6, is a non-working day. Good Friday for Catholics will be on April 3.
As for Orthodox Easter, it falls on April 12, Sunday, and the day after Easter, April 13, is a legal holiday. Orthodox Good Friday will be marked on April 10. Thus, employees can benefit from mini-vacations of four consecutive days, and students will be on vacation between April 4 and 14, covering the entire period of Easter and spring vacation.
Labor Day, May 1, falls on a Friday, allowing for an extended three-day weekend.
At the end of May and the beginning of June, Pentecost will be celebrated on May 31, Sunday, and the following day, Monday, June 1, is a non-working day and coincides with Children’s Day.
Therefore, employees can have a three-day mini-vacation. Assumption of the Virgin Mary, celebrated on August 15, falls on a Saturday and does not bring additional days off.
The end of 2026 also offers opportunities for mini-vacations. Saint Andrew’s Day, Monday, November 30, followed by Romania’s National Day, December 1, together with the weekend, form a four-day mini-holiday.
Christmas falls on Friday, December 25, and the day after Christmas is Saturday, so Romanians can enjoy a year-end with an extended period of rest.
