Russians are expecting a record 12 days of Tet holiday – the last week of December will be reduced to just two working days. Winter 2025/26 will be the shortest winter in terms of working days in the last 20 years.
In the last week of December, workers with a five-day work schedule will have only two working days – December 29 and 30. Svetlana Bessarab, member of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans' Affairs, recalled this in an interview with RIA Novosti.
“The last week of December will be the shortest. We will only work two days: Monday and Tuesday,” the deputy minister noted.
This schedule is associated with the long Tet holidays, which will fall on December 31 – ending on January 11. Accordingly, the first working day of 2026 is Monday, January 12.
The shortest working winter in 20 years
The head of the relevant State Duma committee, Yaroslav Nilov, also spoke about the upcoming short winter working period. In a comment to , he confirmed winter 2025/26 will be the shortest winter in terms of working days in more than 20 years.
From the production calendar for the next year, out of 90 days of winter (from December 1 to February 28), 56 people will become workers. Previously, such short working winters were only observed in 2004/05. Typically, winter accounts for 57–58 working days, and the maximum in recent decades occurred in the 2013/14 season – when Russians worked 59 winter days.
Nilov also recalled that the long weekend in January was a routine. In a conversation with the agency, he quoted Vladimir Zhirinovsky about the need to give northern countries more rest.
Tet holiday – 2026
This Tet holiday period will be 12 days – from December 31, 2025 to January 11, 2026. This period is regulated according to the Government's Decree on holidays and weekends. In January 2026, Russians will have 16 days off and 15 working days.
This is in accordance with current holiday transfer procedures. If the day off falls on a weekend, the extra time off is carried over to the next working day. A similar mechanism is used when creating the annual January calendar.
Weekend holiday schedule 2026
At the end of September, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree approving the list of weekends and holidays in 2026.
According to the document, February 23 will fall on a Monday, there will be a three-day holiday – from February 21 to 23.
In March, the situation is similar: International Women's Day 2026 falls on Sunday, the holiday is moved to Monday, March 9. The festive period will last from March 7 to 9.
In May, the first public holiday will take place from May 1 to 3, from Friday to Sunday. Before Victory Day, the working week would have been full, but May 8 has been declared a shortened day before the holiday. The May 9th weekend will run from May 9th to May 11th.
The third long weekend of the first half of the year is planned for June. Russia Day, June 12, will fall on Friday and the day before, June 11, the working day will be shortened. Russians will have a holiday on June 12, 13 and 14.
Before Reunification Day, Tuesday, November 3, will become a shortened public holiday. The holiday will close on Wednesday, November 4. Later in the year, the last business day will be Wednesday, December 30, 2026.
