Easter Sunday 2027

Easter Sunday is the principal feast of the Christian year and the third day of the four-day Easter long weekend. It is a public holiday under state and territory law throughout Australia, with Tasmania included from 2027. The date follows the church rule: the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after 21 March. In 2027 it falls on Sunday 28 March, and in 2028 on Sunday 16 April.

Shops, schools and work

Easter Sunday is a public holiday everywhere, but because it falls on a Sunday most offices, banks and government services would be closed in any case. Hospitals, emergency services, hospitality and transport staff work their usual rosters. Shop trading rules differ by state: some states restrict trading by large stores on Easter Sunday, while in others shops open on Sunday or public holiday hours. Public transport typically runs to a Sunday or public holiday timetable. No part-day public holiday applies. In Tasmania, Easter Tuesday is an extra day off for the state public service only.

History

Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus. Early Christian communities disagreed on when to keep it, and the Council of Nicaea in 325 moved the churches towards a common Sunday date after the spring full moon. Western churches calculate Easter with the Gregorian calendar and fixed church tables rather than direct astronomical observation. This places Easter Sunday between 22 March and 25 April. Orthodox churches keep the older Julian reckoning, so their Easter often falls one or more weeks later than the Western date.

In colonial and post-Federation Australia, Good Friday and Easter Monday were the established Easter holidays, while Easter Sunday was observed mainly as a religious day. States and territories later named Easter Sunday as a public holiday in their own Acts, which settled the entitlements of employees rostered on that day. Tasmania was the last to do so, through the Statutory Holidays Amendment Act 2026 (No. 18 of 2026), which applied from 9 October 2026.

How Australians spend the day

Churches hold their main services of the year on Easter Sunday, including outdoor sunrise services in parks, on beaches and at lookouts. Many families organise Easter egg hunts for children in the morning, and chocolate eggs and bunnies are the usual gifts. Chocolate bilbies are sold as an Australian alternative, and some makers donate part of the proceeds to bilby conservation. A shared lunch with extended family is common. Autumn weather is usually mild in much of the country, so the long weekend is a popular time for camping, road trips and coastal holidays, and roads and caravan parks are often busy. In Sydney the Royal Easter Show usually runs over the Easter period.

Facts

• Easter Sunday always falls on a Sunday, so it never needs a substitute or additional public holiday in any state or territory.
• Tasmania's Statutory Holidays Amendment Act 2026 made Easter Sunday a statutory holiday there, first observed on Sunday 28 March 2027.
• Under Western Australia's Public and Bank Holiday Amendment Act 2026, Easter Saturday also becomes a public holiday in WA from 2028, giving the state four consecutive Easter public holidays.
• Orthodox Easter, kept by Greek, Serbian, Russian and other communities, is often later than the Western date but is not a separate public holiday.