Kansas state holidays come in two layers: ten legal public holidays set by statute, and a longer list of closure days the Governor sets each year for executive branch employees. For 2026, state workers get eleven paid closure days plus a discretionary day they can use any time in a roughly year-long window. Private employers in Kansas are not required to follow either list or to pay extra for holiday work.
The Ten Legal Public Holidays in Kansas
K.S.A. 35-107 names ten permanent legal public holidays:1Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 35-107 – Legal Public Holidays Designated
- New Year’s Day, January 1
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, third Monday in January
- President’s Day, third Monday in February
- Memorial Day, last Monday in May
- Independence Day, July 4
- Labor Day, first Monday in September
- Columbus Day, second Monday in October
- Veterans’ Day, November 11
- Thanksgiving Day, fourth Thursday in November
- Christmas Day, December 25
These ten stay on the books unless the legislature changes them, and any other Kansas statute referring to “legal holidays” points back to this list.
What State Offices Actually Close For in 2026
The statute is only the floor. Under Kansas Administrative Regulation 1-9-2, the Governor can designate additional closure days each year, and does so routinely.2Legal Information Institute. Kansas Administrative Regulations 1-9-2 – Holidays The Kansas Department of Administration publishes the official list for executive branch employees. For 2026, the observed days are:3Kansas Department of Administration. Holidays for 2026
- New Year’s Day, Thursday, January 1
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, January 19
- Memorial Day, Monday, May 25
- Juneteenth National Independence Day, Friday, June 19
- Independence Day (observed), Friday, July 3
- Labor Day, Monday, September 7
- Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11
- Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26
- Day After Thanksgiving, Friday, November 27
- Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24
- Christmas Day, Friday, December 25
- Discretionary Day, usable between December 21, 2025, and December 19, 2026
A few things to notice. Juneteenth, Christmas Eve, the Friday after Thanksgiving, and the discretionary day are not in K.S.A. 35-107; they are on the calendar because the Governor added them. President’s Day and Columbus Day sit in the statute but are not on the 2026 closure calendar, so state offices stay open those days even though they qualify as legal public holidays.
The discretionary day works differently from the others. State offices do not close on it. Instead, each eligible employee gets paid time off equal to their regularly scheduled hours and picks a day inside the window to use it.
When a Holiday Lands on a Weekend
If a legal holiday falls on a Saturday, state offices observe it the preceding Friday. If it falls on a Sunday, they observe the following Monday. That is why Independence Day in 2026 is marked for Friday, July 3: July 4 is a Saturday.2Legal Information Institute. Kansas Administrative Regulations 1-9-2 – Holidays
For employees on nonstandard schedules who end up working both the actual holiday and the observed day, holiday treatment attaches to whichever day they work more hours. If the hours are equal, the employee gets whichever treatment is more favorable to them.4Kansas Department of Administration. Bulletin 05-03 – Clarification of Holiday Issues
Holiday Pay Rules for State Employees
Every full-time state employee earns holiday credit for each observed holiday. The credit matches the hours the employee was regularly scheduled to work that day, not a flat eight. A ten-hour shift produces ten hours of credit; a four-hour shift produces four. The appointing authority decides whether that credit is paid out at straight time or taken as paid time off.2Legal Information Institute. Kansas Administrative Regulations 1-9-2 – Holidays
To earn the credit, the employee must be in pay status, meaning either working or on approved paid leave. Taking leave without pay on the last workday before the holiday or the first workday after it costs the credit unless the appointing authority approves an exception.4Kansas Department of Administration. Bulletin 05-03 – Clarification of Holiday Issues
When an agency requires non-exempt employees to work on an observed holiday, they get their holiday credit plus holiday compensation at time-and-a-half for the hours worked. The agency decides whether to pay that out or bank it as holiday compensatory time. Holiday hours that also push the employee into overtime earn holiday compensation at a half-time rate rather than time-and-a-half, because the overtime premium is already attached.
For exempt employees, holiday compensation for working the day is not required at all. If an agency does offer it, the rate and form are up to the appointing authority.4Kansas Department of Administration. Bulletin 05-03 – Clarification of Holiday Issues
Private Employers Are Not Required to Pay Extra
This is where many Kansas workers are surprised. State law does not require private employers to offer paid holidays, to close on holidays, or to pay a premium for holiday work. The Kansas Department of Labor confirms employers have no obligation to provide holiday pay, though many do as a benefit. Overtime follows the standard federal rule: it begins after 40 hours in a workweek, and hours worked on a holiday do not count differently for that calculation.5State of Kansas Department of Labor. Workplace Laws FAQs
A private-sector employee who works Thanksgiving or Christmas is not entitled to any extra pay under Kansas or federal law. Whether you get holiday pay, premium pay, or the day off at all depends on your employer’s policy, a union contract, or your individual employment agreement.
Court Filing Deadlines That Fall on a Holiday
Holidays can push your filing deadline. Under K.S.A. 60-206, when a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the period runs to the end of the next day that is not a weekend or holiday. The same extension applies to deadlines measured in hours. If the clerk’s office is inaccessible on the last day for any reason, the deadline rolls to the first accessible day that is not a weekend or holiday.6Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Code 60-206 – Time, Computation and Extension
For deadline purposes, “legal holiday” is defined broadly. It covers any day declared a holiday by the President, Congress, or the Kansas legislature, plus any day the Kansas Supreme Court observes as a holiday. Half holidays do not count and are treated as regular business days. If a deadline is sitting near a holiday weekend, confirm whether it shifts before you rely on the later date.
Banks and the UCC Calendar
Kansas banks and trust companies may close on any day the Governor, the President, or the legislature designates for special observance. Bank officers can also close for local observances if they post notice at the main office and all branches. Any day a bank is closed under these rules counts as a holiday for commercial transactions under Chapter 84, Kansas’s Uniform Commercial Code.7Kansas Legislature. Kansas Code 9-1122 – Days of Closing Most Kansas banks follow the Federal Reserve’s holiday schedule, which overlaps with the state list but is not identical to it.