Vernal Equinox Day

Vernal Equinox Day is a national holiday with a stated purpose of appreciating nature and living things. Its date follows the astronomical equinox, so it changes slightly from year to year; the Cabinet Office publishes the annual calendar, while the National Astronomical Observatory provides the underlying calendar information.

The holiday also sits near the traditional Buddhist Higan period, when many families visit graves and remember ancestors. That mixture of public nature appreciation and family remembrance gives the date a distinctly seasonal character, often arriving as Japan’s early spring landscape begins to change.

Vernal Equinox Day is governed by Japan’s Act on National Holidays, and the Cabinet Office’s official calendar confirms its 2026 date. A statutory national holiday falling on Sunday creates a holiday on the nearest following day that is not already a national holiday; a weekday between two national holidays is also a holiday. These rules, not an informal “Mondayisation” assumption, produce May 6 and September 22 in 2026. Bank of Japan offices additionally close from December 31 through January 3, but those banking closures do not turn December 31 or January 2–3 into national holidays for all workers and businesses.