The fourth quarter of a calendar year is a great time to begin planning for the upcoming year. For payroll and HR professionals, part of preparing for the next year is making note of the federal banking holidays and determining if they will fall within your payroll processing schedule.
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System maintains a list of federal banking holidays for the current year and the following four years. Bank files, including direct deposit files, do not move on federal banking holidays. So, if a holiday falls during your payroll processing period, you’ll want to move up the processing schedule to ensure your workers are paid on time. If your check date falls directly on a holiday, it is common practice to adjust your payday to the previous business day.
Below is a table of holidays, payroll processing dates, and check dates. Our table is based on the following assumptions:
- Your scheduled check date falls on a holiday (or the Friday after Thanksgiving)
- You would like to pay your employees the business day before
- You follow a two-day processing timeline
Visit the Federal Reserve website for all banking holiday dates through 2024.
Holiday | Date | Process Payroll | Check Date |
New Year’s Day 2021 | Friday, January 1, 2021 | December 29, 2020 | December 31, 2020 |
Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. | Monday, January 18, 2021 | January 13, 2021 | January 15, 2021 |
Washington’s Birthday | Monday, February 15, 2021 | February 10, 2021 | February 12, 2021 |
Memorial Day | Monday, May 31, 2021 | May 26, 2021 | May 28, 2021 |
Independence Day | Sunday, July 4, 2021
Observed Monday, July 5, 2021 |
June 30, 2021 | July 2, 2021 |
Labor Day | Monday, September 6, 2021 | September 1, 2021 | September 3, 2021 |
Columbus Day | Monday, October 11, 2021 | October 6, 2021 | October 8, 2021 |
Veterans Day | Thursday, November 11, 2021 | November 9, 2021 | November 12, 2021 |
Thanksgiving Day | Thursday, November 25, 2021 | November 22, 2021 | November 24, 2021 |
The day after Thanksgiving is not a banking holiday but is likely a check date for many employers. | November 22, 2021 | November 24, 2021 | |
Christmas Day | Saturday, December 25, 2021 | December 22, 2021 | December 24, 2021 |
New Year’s Day 2022 | Saturday, January 1, 2022 | December 29, 2021 | December 31, 2021 |