When the Christmas Day holiday falls on a Thursday as it does this year, usually there has been an excused absence (administrative leave) on the following day, creating a four-day weekend. In this case it'll be a five-day break. Image: Architect of the Capitol
By: FEDweek StaffFederal employees have been granted not one, but two days off for the Christmas holiday – without charge to leave. President Trump issued an executive order on Thursday stating the government would close for both Wednesday Dec 24th and Friday Dec 26th, effectively creating a five-day break.
Section 1. All executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government shall be closed and their employees excused from duty on Wednesday, December 24, 2025, and Friday, December 26, 2025, the day before and the day following Christmas Day, respectively.
Sec. 2. The heads of executive departments and agencies may determine that certain offices and installations of their organizations, or parts thereof, must remain open and that certain employees must report for duty on December 24, 2025, or December 26, 2025, or both, for reasons of national security, defense, or other public need.
When the Christmas Day holiday falls on a Thursday as it does this year, the typical practice has been to grant a full day of excused absence (administrative leave) on the following day, creating a four-day weekend. When the holiday falls on a Tuesday, the practice similarly has typically been to create a four-day weekend by granting the prior day off, as then-President Biden did last year.
In contrast, there typically has been no additional time off when the 25th falls on a Monday and the holiday is observed on that day, when it falls on a Sunday and the holiday day is the following day, or when it falls on a Saturday and the holiday day is the previous day. Practices have varied when the holiday falls on a Wednesday or Friday.
During his first administration, President Trump granted no extra time off when the 25th fell on a Monday in 2017; a full day off on the 24th when the 25th fell on a Tuesday in 2018; a full day off on the 24th when the 25th fell on a Wednesday in 2019; and a full day off on the 24th when the 25th fell on a Friday in 2020.
The latter two were notable because previously, the most common practice was to give only a half-day when the 25th fell on a Wednesday or Friday.
A grant of time off is at a President’s discretion and past practice is not binding. Keep in mind that even in years when extra time off was granted around Christmas, there was no such time off a week later before or after the New Year’s Day holiday.
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