Australia Public Holidays in 2012
Australia has a total of 107 holidays in 2012. In the table below, you will find the details of the holidays and when they are observed. All the information display below is also available via our API as well as downloadable as a csv. Signup here to get started.
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| Holiday | Date | Details |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day |
Sunday, January 1, 2012 | New Year's Day is the first day of the year in the Gregorian calendar used in Australia and many other countries. |
| Day off for New Year's Day |
Monday, January 2, 2012 | New Year's Day is the first day of the year in the Gregorian calendar used in Australia and many other countries. |
| Epiphany |
Friday, January 6, 2012 | Many people in countries such as Australia annually observe Epiphany on January 6. |
| Orthodox Christmas Day |
Saturday, January 7, 2012 | Many Orthodox Christian churches in countries such as Australia observe Christmas Day on or near January 7 in the Gregorian calendar. |
| Orthodox New Year |
Saturday, January 14, 2012 | Many Orthodox Christian churches in countries such as Australia celebrate New Year’s Day on January 14 in the Gregorian calendar. |
| Lunar New Year |
Monday, January 23, 2012 | Lunar New Year marks the first day of the New Year in the Chinese calendar. |
| Australia Day |
Thursday, January 26, 2012 | Australia Day is the Australian national day. It is celebrated on January 26 each year. |
| Milad un Nabi (Mawlid) |
Sunday, February 5, 2012 | Eid Milad ul-Nabi marks the anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad's birth and death. |
| Hari Maulad Nabi |
Sunday, February 5, 2012 | Mawlid, or Milad, marks the birth of the Islamic prophet Muhammed, or Mohamed, in the year 570 of the Gregorian calendar. |
| Day off for Hari Maulad Nabi |
Monday, February 6, 2012 | Mawlid, or Milad, marks the birth of the Islamic prophet Muhammed, or Mohamed, in the year 570 of the Gregorian calendar. |
| Tu B'Shevat (Arbor Day) |
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 | Tu B’Shevat is known as the “New Year for Trees”, is one of the four Jewish New Years. |
| Royal Hobart Regatta |
Monday, February 13, 2012 | The Royal Hobart Regatta is an annual public holiday in southern Tasmania, Australia, on the second Monday in February. |
| Valentine's Day |
Tuesday, February 14, 2012 | Valentine’s Day, which is annually held on February 14, is one of the most romantic days in the year for many people in countries such as Australia. |
| Carnival / Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day |
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 | Shrove Tuesday is the day before the start of the Lent period for many Christians in Australia. |
| Ash Wednesday |
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 | Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent in for many Christians in Australia. |
| Labour Day |
Monday, March 5, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Purim |
Thursday, March 8, 2012 | Purim commemorates a time when Jewish people were saved from death around the fourth century BCE, according to the Book of Esther. |
| Labour Day |
Monday, March 12, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Eight Hours Day |
Monday, March 12, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Adelaide Cup |
Monday, March 12, 2012 | Adelaide Cup is a state holiday and a horse racing event in South Australia. |
| Canberra Day |
Monday, March 12, 2012 | Canberra Day is a public holiday that celebrates Canberra’s official founding in the Australian Capital Territory. |
| St Patrick's Day |
Saturday, March 17, 2012 | St Patrick’s Day is a popular observance in Australia to honor Irish culture and commemorate one of Ireland’s patron saints, St Patrick. |
| March Equinox |
Tuesday, March 20, 2012 | March Equinox in Australia (Sydney) |
| Harmony Day |
Wednesday, March 21, 2012 | Harmony Day is a national observance that celebrates Australia’s cultural, linguistic and religious diversity on March 21 every year. |
| National Close the Gap Day |
Saturday, March 24, 2012 | |
| Daylight Saving Time ends |
Saturday, March 31, 2012 | Daylight Saving Time ends in Australia |
| Palm Sunday |
Sunday, April 1, 2012 | Palm Sunday in Australia celebrates Jesus Christ’s entry into Jerusalem. It is also the Sunday before Easter Sunday. |
| Maundy Thursday |
Thursday, April 5, 2012 | Many Christians in the Australia celebrate Maundy Thursday on the Thursday before Good Friday. |
| Self Determination Day |
Friday, April 6, 2012 | Self Determination Day is a state holiday in Australia |
| Good Friday |
Friday, April 6, 2012 | Good Friday is two days before Easter Sunday and is a national holiday in Australia. |
| First day of Passover |
Saturday, April 7, 2012 | Passover is a Jewish observance of the liberation from slavery and the Israelites' exodus from Egypt around 3000 years ago. |
| Holy Saturday |
Saturday, April 7, 2012 | Holy Saturday is the day before Easter Sunday and is a public holiday in some states and the two territories in Australia. |
| Easter Sunday |
Sunday, April 8, 2012 | On Easter Sunday, Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion. |
| Easter Monday |
Monday, April 9, 2012 | Easter Monday is the day after Easter Sunday and is a nationwide holiday in Australia. |
| Easter Tuesday |
Tuesday, April 10, 2012 | Easter Tuesday is a public holiday in the Australian state of Tasmania. |
| Orthodox Good Friday |
Friday, April 13, 2012 | Many Orthodox Christians in Australia remember the events leading up to Jesus Christ's crucifixion on Great Friday. |
| Last day of Passover |
Saturday, April 14, 2012 | The last day of Passover marks the end of the Passover period, which lasts for seven or eight days. |
| Orthodox Holy Saturday |
Saturday, April 14, 2012 | Many Orthodox Christians in Australia remember Jesus Christ’s burial and his descent into Hades on Holy Saturday. |
| Orthodox Easter |
Sunday, April 15, 2012 | Many Orthodox Christians in Australia celebrate Jesus Christ’s resurrection on Easter Sunday, also known as Pascha. |
| Orthodox Easter Monday |
Monday, April 16, 2012 | Many Orthodox churches in Australia observe Easter Monday on the day after the Orthodox Easter Sunday date. |
| Yom HaShoah |
Wednesday, April 18, 2012 | Yom Hashoah remembers the lives and sacrifices of about six million Holocaust victims who died during World War II. This observance is annually held on the 27th day of the month of Nisan. |
| ANZAC Day |
Wednesday, April 25, 2012 | ANZAC Day is the anniversary of the landing of troops from Australia and New Zealand on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during in World War I. |
| ANZAC Day Observed |
Wednesday, April 25, 2012 | ANZAC Day is the anniversary of the landing of troops from Australia and New Zealand on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during in World War I. |
| Yom HaAtzmaut |
Thursday, April 26, 2012 | Many Jewish communities in Australia celebrate Yom Ha’Atzmaut, which is Israel’s Independence Day, on the fifth day of the month of Iyar in the Jewish calendar. |
| May Day |
Monday, May 7, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Labour Day |
Monday, May 7, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Lag B'Omer |
Thursday, May 10, 2012 | Many Jewish Australians observe Lag B’Omer on the 18th day of the month of Iyar in the Jewish calendar. |
| Mother's Day |
Sunday, May 13, 2012 | Mother’s Day is celebrated in Australia on the second Sunday of May each year. |
| Ascension Day |
Thursday, May 17, 2012 | Ascension Day is the 40th day of Easter and commemorates Jesus Christ’s ascension into heaven, according to Christian belief. |
| National Sorry Day |
Saturday, May 26, 2012 | National Sorry Day is an Australia-wide observance that acknowledges the impact of Australia’s Stolen Generations. |
| Pentecost |
Sunday, May 27, 2012 | Many Christians in Australia observe Pentecost, also known as Whitsunday or Whit Sunday. |
| Shavuot |
Sunday, May 27, 2012 | Shavuot, also known as the Festival of Weeks, is one of three major Jewish festivals celebrated among many Jewish Australians. |
| Whit Monday |
Monday, May 28, 2012 | Whit Monday is a Christian observance also known as Pentecost Monday. It is the day after Pentecost, or Whitsunday. |
| Trinity Sunday |
Sunday, June 3, 2012 | Many churches in Australia observe Trinity Sunday, a Christian feast that occurs on the first Sunday after Pentecost. |
| Western Australia Day |
Monday, June 4, 2012 | Foundation Day is a public holiday in the state of Western Australia to commemorate the founding of the first British colony in the state. |
| Queensland Day |
Wednesday, June 6, 2012 | Queenslanders commemorate their state’s birthday on Queensland Day in Australia. |
| Corpus Christi |
Thursday, June 7, 2012 | Corpus Christi is a Christian observance that honors the Holy Eucharist. |
| Queen's Birthday |
Monday, June 11, 2012 | Until 2022, when Queen Elizabeth II passed away, Australians celebrated the Queen's Birthday each year. |
| Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee |
Monday, June 11, 2012 | Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee is a state holiday in Australia |
| Isra and Mi'raj |
Sunday, June 17, 2012 | Isra and Mi'raj (Isra Me'raj, Israa and Mi'raaj, Laylat Al-Isra wa Al-Miraj, Lailat al Miraj, Night Journey and Ascension to Heaven) marks the night when the Prophet Mohammad traveled from Mecca to Jerusalem, ascended to heaven and returned. |
| June Solstice |
Wednesday, June 20, 2012 | June Solstice in Australia (Sydney) |
| First Day of NAIDOC Week |
Sunday, July 1, 2012 | First Day of NAIDOC Week is a observance in Australia |
| Ramadan Start |
Friday, July 20, 2012 | Many Muslims in Australia welcome Ramadan as period of fasting, self-evaluation and spiritual growth. Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar. |
| Tisha B'Av |
Sunday, July 29, 2012 | Tisha B’Av is on the ninth day of the month of Av in the Jewish calendar. |
| New South Wales Bank Holiday |
Monday, August 6, 2012 | The New South Wales Bank Holiday falls on the first Monday of August. |
| Northern Territory Picnic Day |
Monday, August 6, 2012 | Picnic Day is a public holiday annually held in Australia’s Northern Territory on the first Monday of August. |
| Lailat al-Qadr |
Tuesday, August 14, 2012 | Laylat al-Qadr is most likely to be held on one of the last 10 days of month of Ramadan in the Islamic calendar. |
| Assumption of Mary |
Wednesday, August 15, 2012 | The Feast of the Assumption of Mary is an annual Christian observance in Australia held on August 15. It is considered a Holy Day of Obligation - a day when some Christian denominations are obliged to attend mass. |
| Royal National Agricultural Show Day Queensland |
Wednesday, August 15, 2012 | The Royal National Agricultural (RNA) Show Day is usually held in Brisbane, the capital city of the state of Queensland, Australia, on the second or third Wednesday in August. |
| Eid ul Fitr |
Sunday, August 19, 2012 | Eid al-Fitr, which is on the first day of the Islamic month of Shawwal, marks the end of the month-long fast of Ramadan. |
| Hari Raya Puasa |
Sunday, August 19, 2012 | Eid al-Fitr is a holiday to mark the end of the Islamic month of Ramadan, during which Muslims fast during the hours of daylight. |
| Day off for Hari Raya Puasa |
Monday, August 20, 2012 | Eid al-Fitr is a holiday to mark the end of the Islamic month of Ramadan, during which Muslims fast during the hours of daylight. |
| Fathers' Day |
Sunday, September 2, 2012 | Father’s Day celebrates the contribution that fathers and father figures make to their children’s lives. |
| Rosh Hashana |
Monday, September 17, 2012 | Rosh Hashana, also spelled Rosh Hashanah, is commonly known as the Jewish New Year. The event begins on the first day of Tishrei (or Tishri), which is the seventh month in the Jewish calendar. |
| September Equinox |
Saturday, September 22, 2012 | September Equinox in Australia (Sydney) |
| Yom Kippur |
Wednesday, September 26, 2012 | Yom Kippur is an important Jewish holiday that falls on the 10th day of the month of Tishrei in the Jewish calendar. |
| First day of Sukkot |
Monday, October 1, 2012 | The first day of Sukkot marks the start of the Sukkot festival for Jewish communities in Australia. |
| Territory Day |
Monday, October 1, 2012 | Territory Day is a state holiday in Australia |
| Queen's Birthday |
Monday, October 1, 2012 | Until 2022, when Queen Elizabeth II passed away, Australians celebrated the Queen's Birthday each year. |
| Labour Day |
Monday, October 1, 2012 | Labour Day in Australia celebrates workers’ role in contributing towards the nation’s economy. It is an annual public holiday but its date varies across the states and territories. |
| Feast of St Francis of Assisi |
Thursday, October 4, 2012 | Many churches in Australia celebrate the Feast of St Francis of Assisi to honor St Francis, the patron saint of animals and the environment, on October 4 each year. |
| Daylight Saving Time starts |
Saturday, October 6, 2012 | Daylight Saving Time starts in Australia |
| Hoshana Rabbah |
Sunday, October 7, 2012 | Many Jewish communities in Australia observe the last day of Sukkot, which marks the end of the Sukkot festival. |
| Shemini Atzeret |
Monday, October 8, 2012 | Shemini Atzeret (or Shmini Atzeret) is a Jewish holiday dedicated to the love of God, while Simchat Torah (Simchas Torah or Simhat Torah) marks the end of Sukkot and celebrates the completion of the annual reading of the Torah. |
| Family & Community Day |
Monday, October 8, 2012 | Family and Community Day is a public holiday in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) in Australia on the first Monday of September/October school holidays. |
| Simchat Torah |
Tuesday, October 9, 2012 | Simchat Torah (Simchas Torah or Simhat Torah) is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the completion of the annual reading of the Torah. |
| Royal Hobart Show |
Thursday, October 25, 2012 | Royal Hobart Show is a state holiday in Australia |
| Eid al-Adha |
Friday, October 26, 2012 | Many Muslims in Australia celebrate Eid al- Adha around the 10th to the 13th days of the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah. |
| Halloween |
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 | Halloween is a festive occasion that is celebrated in Australian communities on October 31 each year. |
| All Saints' Day |
Thursday, November 1, 2012 | Many churches in Australia annually observe All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day. |
| All Souls' Day |
Friday, November 2, 2012 | All Souls’ Day is observed among some Christians in Australia on November 2 each year. |
| Recreation Day |
Monday, November 5, 2012 | Recreation Day is annually celebrated in northern Tasmania, in Australia, on the first Monday of November. |
| Melbourne Cup Day |
Tuesday, November 6, 2012 | Melbourne Cup Day is Australia’s most celebrated horse racing event. It is an annual public holiday in the state of Victoria and is observed nationwide on the first Tuesday of November. |
| Remembrance Day |
Sunday, November 11, 2012 | Remembrance Day in Australia is annually observed on November 11 although it is not a public holiday. This event remembers those who died as a result of war, particularly from World War I onwards. |
| Diwali/Deepavali |
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 | Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. |
| Muharram/Islamic New Year |
Thursday, November 15, 2012 | The first day of Muharram, which is the first month in the Islamic calendar, marks the start of the Islamic New Year. |
| Ashura |
Saturday, November 24, 2012 | Ashura is a Muslim in Australia |
| First Sunday of Advent |
Sunday, December 2, 2012 | Many Christians mark the First Sunday of Advent as the start of the Advent season leading up to Christmas. |
| Feast of the Immaculate Conception |
Saturday, December 8, 2012 | Some Christians, particularly those of Catholic faith, in Australia mark the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on or around December 8. |
| First Day of Hanukkah |
Sunday, December 9, 2012 | The first day of Hanukkah is the start of the Hanukkah period, which lasts for 8 days, from the 25th day of the month of Kislev to the second day of Tevet in the Hebrew calendar. |
| Last day of Hanukkah |
Sunday, December 16, 2012 | The last day of Hanukkah marks the end of a festive Jewish occasion, known as Hanukkah or Chanukah. |
| December Solstice |
Friday, December 21, 2012 | December Solstice in Australia (Sydney) |
| Christmas Eve |
Monday, December 24, 2012 | Christmas Eve in Australia is annually celebrated on December 24, which is the day before Christmas Day. |
| Christmas Day |
Tuesday, December 25, 2012 | Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on Christmas Day, which is in the middle of summer in Australia. |
| Boxing Day |
Wednesday, December 26, 2012 | December 26 is the Boxing Day holiday celebrated in Australia. |
| Proclamation Day |
Wednesday, December 26, 2012 | Proclamation Day is a state holiday in Australia |
| New Year's Eve |
Monday, December 31, 2012 | Many Australians celebrate New Year’s Eve on December 31 each year, which coincides with the date before New Year’s Day in the Gregorian calendar. |
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