Vanuatu Public Holiday 2019

Public Holidays in Vanuatu for 2019

Vanuatu has 83 islands, making it an active archipelago and a natural playground for beautiful coral reefs, volcanoes, and vibrant rainforest. Those who want to relax can go to the bountiful beaches of Vanuatu, which are picturesque and breath-taking. The food in Vanuatu is always well-prepared, and you can expect to have a good meal each time.

This country is very warmth to tourists, and you will feel welcome enough to even think of setting up a business there. However, you need to know about the public holidays that are celebrated there.

Vanuatu has a total of 21 holidays that they celebrate and observe every year. As an employer, you must know what your employees need during these times because there are laws regarding their entitlement to annual leaves.

 

What Employers Must Know About Vanuatu Public Holidays

No employee must work for more than 44 hours and six days a week, and must not exceed eight hours a day, including the time for meals and tea.

If an employee did not volunteer to work on a public holiday or Sunday, he or she is not required to report to work. An employee who must work on a Sunday shall be given time off on another day.

When it comes to taking leave, the employer must grant it to an employee if he or she has been with the company for 12 months. They are to receive full payment at the same rate as their average salary per day for each employment month.

The annual leave date is to be decided by the employer, and it must also comply with the request of the employee.

 

Dates of the Vanuatu Public Holiday 2019

Date	Day/s	Holiday	Type
1 January	Tuesday	New Year’s Day	Public
21 February	Thursday	Father Lini Day	Public
22 February	Friday	Day off for Father Lini Day	Public
5 March	Tuesday	Custom Chief’s Day	Public
21 March	Thursday	March Equinox	Season
19 April	Friday	Good Friday	Public
22 April	Monday	Easter Monday	Public
1 May	Wednesday	Labor Day / May Day	Public
30 May	Thursday	Ascension Day	Public
22 June	Saturday	June Solstice	Season
24 July	Wednesday	Children’s Day	Public
30 July	Tuesday	Independence Day	Public
15 August	Thursday	Assumption of Mary	Public
16 August	Friday	Day off for Assumption of Mary	Public
23 September	Monday	September Equinox	Season
5 October	Saturday	Constitution Day	Public
29 November	Friday	Unity Day	Public
22 December	Sunday	December Solstice	Season
25 December	Wednesday	Christmas Day	Public
26 December	Thursday	Family Day	Public
27 December	Friday	Day off for Family Day	Public

 

Employee Benefits During Public Holidays

No one works on a Sunday or public holidays in Vanuatu. Most of the time, employees are not obliged to report to work on public holidays or Sundays. However, an employee may choose to work on a Sunday or public holiday if he or she wants.

If an employee agrees to report to work on Sunday or public holiday, the salary he or she receives will be 50% more than the regular. Businesses are an exception because they naturally stay open on Sundays and even public holidays like restaurants, resorts, groceries, pharmacies, etc. Employees who work in these industries might not be entitled to take a day off or an increase in their salary.

Those who are working in public utilities like gas, water, electricity supply or generation, communication and postal services, sewerage, and other similar fields of service are not included.

The employee can also choose to have a paid day off instead to compensate for working on a Sunday or public holiday. Also, employees must receive the contract must stipulate the annual leave of an employee, and when it will start.

 

Doing Business in Vanuatu

If you want to know why you must set up a business in Vanuatu, there are concrete reasons why you should. They have great tax laws because they do not tax your corporate nor personal income, making it an excellent opportunity for business people and entrepreneurs.

The government actively supports the foreign investors. It makes it easier to own a business and real estate in Vanuatu. They also have an expanding economy because it has outperformed a lot of other countries in the region. It is because of any structural reforms that were built.

There are plenty of business opportunities in Vanuatu you must consider.