Everyone looks forward to a holiday, especially when it’s paid time off. However, many employees are shocked to learn that no federal law or regulation mandates employers to offer this benefit. Private employers, including health and dental practice owners, are under no legal obligation to offer paid holidays to their employees.
That said, your employees probably wouldn’t turn down a break now and then. And if that break happens to coincide with a holiday? Vacations are proven to improve employee well-being and productivity, and if you pair them with PTO, your employees are going to have some very happy holidays.
The 11 Federal Holidays Observed in 2026
There are 11 federal holidays observed in the United States. Again, you don’t have to set these as paid holidays for your employees, but many health and dental practices choose to close on these dates. Ultimately, it’s up to you and how you want to run your practice!
- New Year’s Day: Thursday, January 1
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Monday, January 19
- Presidents’ Day (George Washington’s Birthday): Monday, February 16
- Memorial Day: Monday, May 25
- Juneteenth: Friday, June 19
- Independence Day: Friday, July 3 (observed)
- Labor Day: Monday, September 7
- Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Columbus Day): Monday, October 12
- Veterans Day: Wednesday, November 11
- Thanksgiving Day: Thursday, November 26
- Christmas Day: Friday, December 25
IRS Deadlines to Add to Your Calendar
Unless you’re a tax professional, these are basically the opposite of paid holidays for you. But you still need to know these 2026 IRS deadlines:
Individual Filers
- February 2, 2026: Deadline for filing W-2 forms with the IRS
- March 31, 2026: Deadline for filing Form 1099-MISC with the IRS
- April 15, 2026: Deadline for filing individual income tax returns
- October 15, 2026: Extended deadline for filing individual income tax returns
Quarterly Estimated Tax Payments
- April 15, 2026: Deadline for first quarter estimated tax payment
- June 15, 2026: Deadline for second quarter estimated tax payment
- September 15, 2026: Deadline for third quarter estimated tax payment
- January 15, 2027: Deadline for fourth quarter estimated tax payment
Businesses
- March 15, 2026: Deadline for filing S corporation income tax returns (Form 1120-S)
- April 15, 2026: Deadline for filing C corporation income tax returns (Form 1120)
- April 15, 2026: Deadline for filing partnership income tax returns (Form 1065)
Quarterly Payroll and Excise Tax Returns
- January 31, 2026: Deadline for fourth quarter 2025 payroll and excise tax returns
- April 30, 2026: Deadline for first quarter 2025 payroll and excise tax returns
- July 31, 2026: Deadline for second quarter 2025 payroll and excise tax returns
- October 31, 2026: Deadline for third quarter 2025 payroll and excise tax returns
Happy Health and Dental Holidays!
These may not be paid holidays, but they’re great to celebrate anyway! Here’s a mix of recognition days for health and dental employees, as well as awareness days and weeks. There are a lot more to explore, so we encourage you to find (or create!) even more opportunities to celebrate.
February
- February 9: Toothache Day
- February 28: Tooth Fairy Day
March
- March 1–7: Dental Assistants Recognition Week
- March 6: Dentist Day
April
- April 2: World Autism Awareness Day
- April 7: World Health Day
- April 12: Radiology Nurses Day
- April 25: National Prescription Drug Take Back Day
May
- May 6–12: National Nurses Week
- May 13: National Root Canal Appreciation Day
- May 10–16: National Mental Health Awareness Week
- May 10–16: National Skilled Nursing Care Week
- May 10–16: National Women’s Health Week
- May 11–June 11: National Smile Month
- May 12: International Nurses Day
June
- June 2: National I Love My Dentist Day
- June 8–14: Men’s Health Week
August
- August 2–8: National Health Center Week
September
- September 8: Health Empowerment Day
- September 17: World Patient Safety Day
October
- First full week of October: National Pharmacist Week
- Second full week of October: National Mental Illness Awareness Week
- Third full week of October: National Allied Health Professionals Week
- Third full week of October: Medical Assistants Recognition Week
- October 24: National Drug Take Back Day
November
- November 1: National Brush Day
- November 13: World Kindness Day
December
- First full week of December: National Influenza Vaccination Week
- December 3: International Day of Persons with Disabilities
- December 12: National Universal Health Coverage Day
Looking for 2027 Paid Holiday Dates? Here You Go!
2027 Federal Holidays
- Friday, January 1 — New Year’s Day
- Monday, January 18 — Martin Luther King, Jr., Day
- Monday, February 15 — Presidents’ Day
- Monday, May 31 — Memorial Day
- Friday, June 19 — Juneteenth
- Monday, July 5 — Independence Day (observed)
- Monday, September 6 — Labor Day
- Monday, October 11 — Indigenous Peoples/Columbus Day
- Thursday, November 11 — Veterans Day
- Thursday, November 25 — Thanksgiving Day
- Friday, December 25 — Christmas Day
Do You Have to Acknowledge Holidays You Don’t Celebrate?
Paid holidays are a perk, not a right, but there are some laws about making religious accommodations. According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it’s mandatory for you to make accommodations for sincerely held religious beliefs, unless it would cause undue hardship to your practice. But whether you consider it a paid holiday or not… that’s not always so clear.
You might have noticed that Christmas, which is a predominantly Christian holiday, is on the short list of federally observed holidays. Even though it has religious roots, it was one of the first to become federally recognized. Now it’s just a cultural expectation. On the other hand, recognizable holidays like Easter, Halloween, St. Patrick’s Day, and Valentine’s Day don’t have that same status. On the other other hand, very few employers actually close for Presidents’ Day. The mail pauses, but mattress stores are most definitely open! Most health and dental practices stay open, too.
All that is to say, you, your patients, and your employees may have different definitions of what’s a holiday worth celebrating, and what’s just another day. This is where your practice can step up and create crisp, clear policies on when you’re closed, when you’re open, and how you handle days off.
Try the HR Solution Worth Celebrating
Let’s get those holidays and policies added to your employee handbook, shall we?
Start with your free federal employee handbook, then the pros at HR for Health can help you layer in all your PTO accruals and usage policies, sick leave, and even employee schedule details. That’s not all HR for Health can do. Schedule your own demo for a sneak peek.
