Holiday Guide for Belgium in 2020

Belgium information

List of Public Holidays in Belgium in 2020

	Wednesday January 1st New Year's Day Belgium: New Year's Day is a public holiday in all countries that observe the Gregorian calendar, with the exception of Israel
	Sunday April 12th Easter Sunday Belgium: Easter Sunday is the most important date in the Christian church. In the bible, it is the day when Mary Magdalene found that an empty tomb in the cave in which Jesus had been placed.
	Monday April 13th  Long Weekend!  Easter Monday Belgium: Easter is probably the most important holiday of the Christian year, celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus
	Friday May 1st  Long Weekend!  Labour Day Belgium: This holiday is most commonly associated as a commemoration of the achievements of the labour movement
	Thursday May 21st Ascension Day Belgium: This day observes the departure of Jesus from earth after his resurrection. It is perhaps the earliest observed celebration in Christianity.
	Monday June 1st  Long Weekend!  Pentecost Monday Belgium: Commemorates the coming of the Holy Spirit in the form of flames to the Apostles.
	Saturday July 11th Celebration of the Golden Spurs Antwerpen, Limburg, Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams-Brabant, West-Vlaanderen: In 1302 the French king Philip IV of France dispatched an army to punish the rebellious Flemish towns, led by Bruges.
	Tuesday July 21st Independence Day Belgium: Independence Day celebrates the separation of Belgium from the Netherlands in 1831
	Saturday August 15th Assumption Day Belgium: The Feast of the Assumption is the principal feast of the Blessed Virgin, the mother of Jesus Christ
	Sunday September 27th French Community Holiday Brabant wallon, Hainaut, Liège, Luxemburg, Namur: On 24 June 1975, the date of 27 September was selected by the French Community as French Community Day. It was first celebrated later that same year
	Sunday November 1st All Saints' Day Belgium: Pope Boniface IV dedicated the day as a holiday to honour the Blessed Virgin Mary and all martyrs
	Wednesday November 11th Armistice Day Belgium: Observed on 11th November to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918 and honor the veterans of both World Wars.
	Sunday November 15th German Community Day Liège: Day of the German-speaking Community of Belgium
	Friday December 25th  Long Weekend!  Christmas Day Belgium: Christmas celebrates the Nativity of Jesus which according to tradition took place on December 25th 1 BC

Notes

• If a public holiday coincides with a Sunday or an ordinary day of inactivity in the undertaking (usually Saturday), it should before or after that date be replaced by another day of rest (substitute day) which must be fixed on an ordinary day of activity. In this case, the public holiday loses its character of public holiday and the substitute day becomes the actual public holiday.
• In Belgium there are twelve 'official' public holidays, though two of them fall on a Sunday - Easter Sunday and Whitsun (Pentecost).
• The three community days are holidays for their government and administrative employees and may also be observed by banks in the community.