Columbus Day 2026: Date, Federal Holiday Status, and What’s Open or Closed

Columbus Day 2026 falls on Monday, October 12, 2026, the second Monday of the month, and it is one of 11 permanent federal holidays observed by the United States government.

This guide covers the exact date and the rule that sets it, federal and bank holiday status, a full open-and-closed breakdown for banks, USPS, UPS, FedEx, the stock market, schools, and DMV offices, the direct-deposit and bill-payment timing effects of the holiday, a side-by-side comparison with Indigenous Peoples’ Day, state-by-state and institution-by-institution observance patterns, the holiday’s history, and the political developments from 2025 that shape how it will be marked in 2026.

This page does not cover municipal services in Columbus, Ohio, or Columbus, Georgia, such as trash collection or local weather forecasts. Those cities share a name with the holiday but have no connection to its observance.

When Is Columbus Day 2026?

Columbus Day 2026 is Monday, October 12, 2026. The date is not fixed to a specific calendar number; instead, federal law defines Columbus Day as the second Monday in October, so the exact date shifts each year between October 8 and October 14.

Columbus Day 2026 is Monday, October 12, 2026. It is a federal holiday under 5 U.S.C. § 6103, meaning federal offices, the Federal Reserve, and most banks close, while the stock market and most private employers remain open.

An October 12 date is notable this year for a historical reason most calendar pages omit: Christopher Columbus made landfall on October 12, 1492, but that date was recorded under the Julian calendar in use at the time. Converted to the Gregorian calendar used today, the equivalent date is October 21, 1492.

This is why President Benjamin Harrison’s 1892 proclamation for the 400th anniversary designated Friday, October 21, 1892, rather than October 12, as the official commemorative day (Proclamation 335, The American Presidency Project).

Columbus Day 2026 lands on the Julian-calendar anniversary date, not the Gregorian-calendar equivalent.

Why the Columbus Day 2026 Date Changes Every Year

The date changes every year because Congress fixed Columbus Day to a weekday rather than a calendar date. The Uniform Monday Holiday Act (Public Law 90-363), enacted in 1968 and effective in 1971, moved Columbus Day and several other federal holidays to designated Mondays to create three-day weekends for federal employees.

Before that shift, Columbus Day had been observed annually on October 12 under a joint resolution of Congress approved April 30, 1934, which first directed the President to proclaim it each year (36 U.S.C. § 107, as amended).

Because the second Monday of October can fall anywhere from the 8th to the 14th, the date has ranged from Monday, October 14, 2024, to Monday, October 12, 2026, to Monday, October 11, 2027, in consecutive years.

Is Columbus Day a Federal Holiday?

Yes, Columbus Day is one of 11 federal holidays recognized under 5 U.S.C. § 6103. Federal executive branch offices close, federal employees receive paid leave, and the Federal Reserve System suspends check clearing, ACH processing, and wire transfer services for the day.

In years with a presidential inauguration, a twelfth observance (Inauguration Day) applies only to federal employees in the Washington, D.C. area; 2026 is not an inauguration year, so the standard count of 11 applies.

What a Federal Holiday Guarantees, and What It Does Not

A federal holiday guarantees paid leave for federal government employees and the closure of federal offices; it does not require private employers to give workers the day off.

The U.S. Department of Labor does not mandate paid or unpaid leave for federal holidays in the private sector. As a result, most private-sector employees continue working on Columbus Day, and only federal workers, most banks, the postal service, and public schools that follow state or district holiday calendars reliably close.

Is Columbus Day 2026 a Bank Holiday?

Yes, Columbus Day is a Federal Reserve holiday, and most U.S. banks close their branches as a result.

Commercial banks, savings banks, and most credit unions depend on the Federal Reserve for check clearing, ACH settlement, and wire transfers, so when the Federal Reserve closes, banks generally close branches on the same day even though they are not legally required to (Federal Reserve Financial Services, frbservices.org).

ATMs, debit and credit cards, mobile banking apps, and peer-to-payment services such as Zelle continue to function normally.

What Is Open and Closed on Columbus Day 2026?

The table below shows the operating status of major institutions and services on Monday, October 12, 2026.

Are Banks and ATMs Closed on Columbus Day 2026?

Bank branches are generally closed on Columbus Day 2026, but ATMs, debit cards, and digital banking remain available.

Major retail banks, including Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Capital One, and US Bank, typically close branch lobbies and drive-throughs while keeping mobile apps, online banking, and card networks operating without interruption.

A small number of institutions, such as TD Bank, have historically kept select branches open on lower-impact federal holidays like Columbus Day, so hours can vary by bank and location.

Is There Mail on Columbus Day 2026?

USPS does not deliver regular mail on Columbus Day 2026, though Priority Mail Express continues on its normal schedule. Post office retail locations are closed for walk-in service. This closure applies specifically to the U.S. Postal Service; it does not extend to private carriers.

Are UPS and FedEx Open on Columbus Day?

UPS and FedEx both operate on their normal delivery schedules on Columbus Day, since neither is a government entity bound by the federal holiday calendar. Ground, air, and express shipments proceed without the delays that affect USPS.

Is the Stock Market Open on Columbus Day 2026?

Yes, the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq trade a full, normal session on Columbus Day 2026, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern time.

Columbus Day and Veterans Day are the two dates each year when the stock market and bond market diverge: equities trade normally while the bond market closes.

The bond market follows a separate schedule recommended by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), which adds Columbus Day and Veterans Day as full closures beyond the ten holidays it shares with the stock market.

Treasury auctions and bond ETF pricing can be affected on days when the bond market is closed, but equities continue trading.

Are Schools and DMV Offices Closed on Columbus Day?

School and DMV closures vary by state and depend on whether the jurisdiction treats the second Monday of October as a paid state holiday.

States that do not designate Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day as an official paid holiday, including Florida, Texas, and California, generally keep public schools and DMV offices open on a normal schedule.

States and districts that do observe the day, whether under the name Columbus Day, Indigenous Peoples’ Day, or another designation, typically close both.

Are Costco, Walmart, and Target Open on Columbus Day?

Major retailers, including Costco, Walmart, and Target, remain open on Columbus Day and generally operate on normal business hours, since the holiday is not among the small set of dates, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, when large retailers close nationwide.

Does Columbus Day 2026 Affect Direct Deposits and Bill Payments?

Yes, Columbus Day 2026 can delay direct deposits and ACH-based bill payments by one business day. Because the Federal Reserve closes for the holiday, the ACH network that processes payroll deposits, autopay debits, and bank-to-bank transfers does not settle transactions on Monday, October 12, 2026.

Any deposit or payment scheduled for that date posts instead on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, the next business day. Wire transfers behave the same way: domestic wires route through Fedwire, which is also closed on federal holidays, so a wire initiated on October 12 settles on October 13.

Monday holidays such as Columbus Day carry an added wrinkle for payroll processing. FedACH file processing typically ends early on the Saturday before a Monday federal holiday, around 3:00 a.m.

Eastern Time, to give the Federal Reserve time to close for the three-day weekend, which means payroll files need to be submitted by the preceding Friday afternoon to post on schedule.

What to Do If Your Payment Date Falls on Columbus Day 2026

If a bill or paycheck is scheduled for Monday, October 12, 2026, expect the transaction to post on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, instead.

1. Check whether your paycheck or automatic bill payment is scheduled for October 12, 2026, several days in advance.
2. Confirm with your bank or payroll provider whether the deposit will arrive early, on the Friday before, or late, on the Tuesday after; policies vary by employer and institution.
3. Avoid scheduling new outgoing wire transfers or ACH payments for October 12, since they will not settle until October 13.
4. Fund brokerage accounts before the holiday if you plan to trade on Columbus Day, since you cannot wire new funds from a closed bank into a brokerage account that same day.
5. Build in a one-business-day buffer for any bill due on or immediately after October 12 to avoid a late fee triggered by processing delays rather than a missed payment.

Columbus Day 2026 vs. Indigenous Peoples’ Day: What Is the Difference?

Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day fall on the same calendar date but commemorate different subjects: Columbus Day honors the 1492 voyage of Christopher Columbus and, historically, Italian-American heritage, while Indigenous Peoples’ Day honors the history, culture, and survival of Native American and Indigenous communities.

Both are observed on the second Monday of October, but they are not interchangeable names for a single legal holiday at the federal level; only Columbus Day carries federal holiday status under 5 U.S.C. § 6103.

What Is Indigenous Peoples’ Day?

Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a commemorative observance that honors Native American and Indigenous history and culture, positioned by its advocates as an alternative to celebrating Columbus.

It is not a federal holiday. As of the Pew Research Center’s October 2025 analysis, 17 states and the District of Columbia officially observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day on the second Monday of October, either as a standalone holiday or paired with Columbus Day.

President Joe Biden issued the first presidential proclamation recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ Day in 2021, alongside a separate proclamation for Columbus Day, a dual-proclamation approach that his predecessor and successor did not continue.

Why Some States Use Both Names, or Neither

States and territories use varied naming conventions because holiday designation happens at the state and local level, independent of the federal calendar.

South Dakota calls the day Native American Day, a designation dating to 1990. Hawaii observes Discoverers’ Day, an unpaid observance honoring Polynesian navigators rather than Columbus. Virginia pairs Columbus Day with Yorktown Victory Day.

Alabama recognizes the date as Columbus Day, American Indian Heritage Day, and Fraternal Day simultaneously. Some states, including Florida, Texas, and California, do not designate a paid state holiday on the second Monday of October under any name, meaning the date functions as a regular working day for state employees and public schools in those states.

Columbus Day vs. Indigenous Peoples’ Day: Side-by-Side Comparison

Which States, Cities, and Schools Observe Each Holiday in 2026?

Observance of the second Monday of October is not uniform across the United States; it varies by state law, city ordinance, school district policy, and, for private institutions, individual institutional decision.

States That Recognize Columbus Day Without Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Thirteen states continue to recognize Columbus Day as a paid state holiday without an accompanying Indigenous Peoples’ Day designation, according to Pew Research Center’s October 2025 analysis: Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Utah, and West Virginia.

States That Pair Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Six states designate the second Monday of October as a paid holiday under both names simultaneously: Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Alabama, where the dual designation is called American Indian Heritage Day rather than Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

States That Have Replaced Columbus Day With Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Several states, including New Mexico and Maine, have replaced Columbus Day entirely with a paid Indigenous Peoples’ Day holiday rather than observing both names concurrently.

South Dakota uses the name Native American Day for the same purpose. States such as Florida, Texas, and California do not observe either holiday as a paid state holiday, though the governors of California and American Samoa have in recent years issued routine gubernatorial recognitions of Indigenous Peoples’ Day without making it an official paid day off (Pew Research Center, October 2025).

Colleges and Universities: Closed vs. Open

Private and Catholic-affiliated universities are more likely to remain closed for Columbus Day specifically, while many secular research universities have shifted to Indigenous Peoples’ Day or a differently named fall break.

Institutions such as Boston College, Villanova University, Fordham University, Providence College, and the Catholic University of America typically remain closed for Columbus Day.

Institutions such as Brown University, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, and Tufts University have replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day on their academic calendars, several since 2016.

K-12 School Districts to Know

Large urban districts are more likely to have adopted Indigenous Peoples’ Day, while many suburban and East Coast districts continue to close for Columbus Day.

Chicago Public Schools, Seattle Public Schools, Denver Public Schools, and San Francisco Unified School District close for Indigenous Peoples’ Day. New York City Public Schools, Philadelphia School District, and Fairfax County Public Schools close under the Columbus Day designation, with New York City using the combined name “Italian-American Heritage/Indigenous Peoples’ Day” on its official calendar.

The History of Columbus Day

Columbus Day traces to a local 1792 commemoration and did not become a fixed annual federal holiday until 1971, a gap of nearly 180 years. The earliest recorded observance took place in New York City in 1792, marking the 300th anniversary of Columbus’s landing.

Italian American communities began organizing regular Columbus celebrations in the 1860s, decades before the holiday gained any government recognition.

How Columbus Day Became a Federal Holiday

Columbus Day became a national commemorative day in 1892, under a joint resolution of Congress that President Benjamin Harrison used to proclaim a one-time national holiday for the 400th anniversary, observed on Friday, October 21, 1892, to align with the Gregorian-calendar equivalent of the 1492 landing date.

Columbus Day did not become a fixed federal holiday until 1934, when a joint resolution approved April 30 of that year directed the President to proclaim October 12 as Columbus Day annually.

The holiday moved to its modern date rule in 1968, when the Uniform Monday Holiday Act (Public Law 90-363) fixed it to the second Monday of October effective 1971, replacing the annual proclamation-only tradition with a permanent statutory holiday codified at 36 U.S.C. § 107.

The Origins of Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Indigenous Peoples’ Day originated as a proposal at a 1977 United Nations conference and became an official municipal holiday for the first time in 1992.

Delegates at the International NGO Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas, held in Geneva in 1977, first proposed replacing Columbus Day with a day honoring Indigenous peoples.

South Dakota adopted a related designation, Native American Day, in 1990. Berkeley, California, became the first U.S. city to formally adopt the name Indigenous Peoples’ Day, doing so in 1992 to coincide with the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s voyage, with the city’s first observance under that name held on October 11, 1992.

Why Is Columbus Day Controversial?

Columbus Day is controversial because it sits at the intersection of two distinct historical narratives: one honoring Italian-American heritage and exploration, and one documenting the harm Columbus’s voyages caused to Indigenous populations. Coverage of the debate typically presents two competing cases.

The Case for Keeping Columbus Day

Supporters of retaining Columbus Day frame it primarily as a recognition of Italian-American heritage and identity rather than an endorsement of Columbus’s personal conduct.

Advocates, including Representative Michael Rulli of Ohio, have connected the holiday’s 1892 origins to a specific act of anti-Italian violence: the lynching of 11 Italian immigrants in New Orleans in 1891, which Harrison’s proclamation the following year is widely understood to have addressed in part.

Under this framing, the holiday represents parades, family traditions, and cultural pride for Italian-American communities in cities such as New York and San Francisco, independent of how Columbus himself is judged historically.

The Case for Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Supporters of Indigenous Peoples’ Day argue that continuing to honor Columbus overlooks the documented harm inflicted on Indigenous populations following his voyages, including forced labor, violence, and disease that contributed to a sharp decline in Native populations across the Americas.

Under this framing, replacing or renaming the holiday shifts the day’s focus from an explorer whose arrival initiated colonization toward the peoples who inhabited the land before and during that colonization, and toward their continued cultural presence today.

Columbus Day 2026 and the Political Debate Over the Holiday’s Name

Columbus Day 2026 arrives amid an active political dispute over the holiday’s name and federal recognition, following developments in October 2025 that a strictly evergreen holiday page would not capture.

The October 2025 Presidential Proclamation

On October 9, 2025, President Donald Trump signed Proclamation 10980, designating Monday, October 13, 2025, as Columbus Day. The proclamation described Columbus as “the original American hero” and did not reference Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

This departed from the approach used since 2021, when President Biden issued separate, concurrent proclamations recognizing both Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day on the same date each year.

The 2025 proclamation was signed during a Cabinet meeting and published in the Federal Register on October 14, 2025 (Federal Register, Vol. 90, No. 196).

The Italian Heroes and Heritage Act and What It Could Mean for 2026

One week after the 2025 proclamation, on October 16, 2025, Representative Michael Rulli (R-OH-6) introduced the Italian Heroes and Heritage Act (H.R. 5739) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The bill would reaffirm Columbus Day as a federal holiday and prohibit federal funds from being distributed to any state or local government that has replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

As of this writing, the bill has been introduced and referred to committee; it has not been enacted into law, and no House floor vote has been scheduled.

Its ultimate effect on Columbus Day 2026 observance depends on further congressional action, and jurisdictions that currently observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day have not announced changes to their 2026 calendars as a result of the bill’s introduction.

How to Observe Columbus Day 2026

Columbus Day is marked publicly through parades, cultural events, and educational programming, most concentrated in cities with large Italian-American populations.

New York City’s Columbus Day Parade along Fifth Avenue and San Francisco’s Italian Heritage Parade are among the longest-running annual events tied to the holiday.

Italian-American cultural organizations, including chapters of the Knights of Columbus, hold heritage events, museum exhibits, and community dinners around the date.

In jurisdictions observing Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the date is instead marked with events centered on Native American history, culture, and advocacy, including programming organized by tribal nations and Indigenous cultural organizations.

Frequently Asked Questions About Columbus Day 2026

Key Takeaways

Columbus Day 2026 falls on Monday, October 12, 2026, and remains one of 11 federal holidays, closing federal offices, the Federal Reserve, and most banks while leaving the stock market, UPS, FedEx, and most private employers open. Whether schools, DMV offices, and state government offices close depends entirely on state and local policy, which now splits between Columbus Day, Indigenous Peoples’ Day, both, or neither, following state-by-state Pew Research Center data from October 2025.

The 2025 presidential proclamation and the pending Italian Heroes and Heritage Act mean the debate over the holiday’s federal designation remains active heading into 2026, even though no legal change to Columbus Day’s federal status has taken effect.