New Year's Day 2027

When is New Year's Day observed?

New Year's Day is always January 1, but the day off can shift when the date lands on a weekend. Under federal holiday rules applied by the Office of Personnel Management, a holiday that falls on a Saturday is observed on the Friday before, and one that falls on a Sunday is observed on the Monday after.

For New Year's Day, the Saturday rule moves the federal day off into the previous calendar year. January 1, 2022, was a Saturday, so federal offices closed on Friday, December 31, 2021. January 1, 2023, was a Sunday, so the holiday was observed on Monday, January 2, 2023.

In 2027, January 1 is a Friday, so the federal observance is Friday, January 1, 2027. Private employers are not bound by the federal rule and set their own holiday schedules. See January working days for how the holidays affect the 2027 business-day count.

Is New Year's Day a federal holiday?

Yes. New Year's Day is one of the 11 annual federal holidays listed in 5 U.S.C. 6103(a). Congress first made January 1 a holiday for federal employees in Washington, D.C., in 1870, in a law that also covered Independence Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Outside the US, January 1 is a public holiday in the UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and most other countries. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a weekend New Year's Day is replaced by the following Monday, and Scotland adds a second bank holiday on January 2. The January bank holidays page lists the 2027 dates by country.

What's open and closed on New Year's Day

On the observed federal holiday, expect these closures in the US:

• Government: federal offices are closed, along with most state and local government offices.
• Mail: post offices are closed and the US Postal Service does not deliver regular mail.
• Banks: Federal Reserve Banks are closed, and most banks and credit unions follow the same schedule.
• Stock markets: the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are closed.
• Schools: most schools are still on winter break.

The Saturday case has one notable exception. When January 1 is a Saturday, the NYSE and Nasdaq stay open on Friday, December 31, because NYSE rules keep the market open when that Friday ends an accounting period such as the year. Federal Reserve Banks also open that Friday, while federal offices close.

Many supermarkets, pharmacies, restaurants, movie theaters and shopping centers open on January 1, often with shorter hours. Private shipping carriers publish their own holiday schedules. Schedules can change, so confirm with the specific office or business before you go.

Why is January 1 New Year's Day?

The date goes back to ancient Rome. In 153 BC, Rome began installing its two new consuls, the top elected officials, on January 1, which made it the start of the civil year. The month is named for Janus, the Roman god of beginnings and doorways, who was shown with two faces looking to the past and the future.

Julius Caesar's Julian calendar, introduced in 46 BC and in effect from 45 BC, kept January 1 as the first day of the year. In medieval Europe, many Christian regions began the year on other dates instead, most often March 25 (the Feast of the Annunciation) or December 25. Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar in 1582 to correct the drift of the Julian calendar, and it is the calendar most of the world uses today.

England, Wales and the British colonies in America changed late. Until 1751, their legal year began on March 25. The Calendar (New Style) Act 1750 made January 1, 1752, the start of the year, so 1751 ran only from March 25 to December 31. The same law moved Britain to the Gregorian calendar by dropping 11 days in September 1752. Scotland had already begun its year on January 1 since 1600.

Not every new year starts on January 1. Lunar New Year falls between January 21 and February 20, and some Orthodox Christians mark the "Old New Year" on January 14, which is January 1 on the Julian calendar. The Orthodox Christmas page explains the 13-day gap.

New Year's Day traditions

• Times Square ball drop: the midnight countdown in New York City, which first ended with a ball drop on December 31, 1907, opens the new year.
• Rose Parade: the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California, first held in 1890, is followed by the Rose Bowl Game, the oldest college football bowl game. Under a long-standing "never on Sunday" rule, both move to Monday, January 2, when January 1 is a Sunday.
• College bowl games: several major college football bowl games are traditionally played on or around January 1.
• Black-eyed peas: in the US South, black-eyed peas, often cooked with rice as Hoppin' John, are eaten for luck, usually with collard greens and cornbread.
• Polar bear plunges: crowds run into icy water at events in many coastal and lakeside towns; the Coney Island Polar Bear Club in Brooklyn holds one of the best known.
• Resolutions: many people set goals for the year ahead, and Dry January, a month without alcohol, starts on January 1.

New Year's Day dates 2020–2040

The table shows the weekday of January 1 for each year, the US federal observed date and the UK bank holiday date.

Track the days left with the New Year countdown or print a January 2027 calendar.

Related

• January holidays
• January 1
• Bank holidays
• Countdown
• MLK Day
• Dry January
• January 2027 calendar