Will you get paid while enjoying Christmas dinner with your family this year? For many Canadian workers, Christmas Day is an important holiday that usually means paid time off. However, what you receive depends on your job status, work schedule, and where you live. This guide explains everything you need to know about this special time of the year.
When is Christmas in Canada?
Christmas Day occurs on December 25 every year, and is recognized as a statutory holiday in Canada. Many Canadians also take time off work on December 24th, Christmas Eve, to trim trees, bake treats, attend church services, and prepare festive holiday meals. Children eagerly await Santa’s arrival. Some continue celebrating until the 12th day of Christmas, January 6th, known as the Epiphany, marked by special French-Canadian Twelfth Night cake traditions.
Here are the Christmas Day observance dates from 2025 to 2030:
| Year | Date | Observance Notes |
| 2025 | Thursday, December 25 | A four-day weekend may be possible if your area recognizes Boxing Day. Check your local rules. |
| 2026 | Friday, December 25 | Normal three-day weekend |
| 2027 | Saturday, December 25 | Substitute day: Monday, December 27 |
| 2028 | Monday, December 25 | An extended weekend from Saturday |
| 2029 | Tuesday, December 25 | Mid-week observance |
| 2030 | Wednesday, December 25 | Mid-week holiday, no natural long weekend |
Source: Christmas Day in Canada – timeanddate.com
In 2025, Christmas Day is on a Thursday, which is a regular workday for most people. There are no substitute days for standard Monday-to-Friday workers.
However, if Thursday is usually your day off because of alternative schedules, you will get Friday, December 26, as a substitute day. This can be complicated for federal employees who are entitled to both Christmas and Boxing Day. Other factors, like leave status and work schedules, can also affect your holiday benefits.
What are the Employee Rights on Canada Christmas Day?
Christmas Day is one of Canada’s most widely recognized statutory holidays, protected under federal and provincial employment legislation. So, eligible employees have paid time off from work or overtime pay on this day.
The common calculation for holiday pay varies depending on the situation:
- Regular pay for the day off: Daily wage x 1
- Working on Christmas in Canada: Hourly rate x hours x premium rate (1.5x or 2x)
- If there are special agreements, the calculation may include extra provisions
If a Canadian Christmas Day falls on a rest day, it shifts to the next scheduled workday. For example, if your regular days off are Saturday and Sunday and Christmas falls on a Saturday, you will be entitled to Monday as your paid statutory holiday. Conversely, if Christmas falls on a regular working day, that day itself becomes your paid statutory holiday without any substitution.
However, check your local employment rules for details, as eligibility, pay rates, substitute days, and retail operations can vary widely by location.
| Province/Territory | Pay If Employee Works Christmas Day | Pay If Employee Does Not Work | Special Calculation Notes |
| British Columbia | 1.5x for first 12 hours, then 2x + average day’s pay | Average day’s pay | Based on 30 days before the holiday |
| Alberta | 1.5x for each hour worked on X-mas + average daily pay | Average day’s pay | Average calculated from 30 days immediately before the holiday |
| Saskatchewan | 5% of last 28 days’ wages + 1.5x regular wage | 5% of the last 28 days’ wages | Use the public holiday pay calculator, based on 28 days, not 30 |
| Manitoba | Regular wage + 1.5x regular pay (or 5% of last 4 weeks’ wages) | Regular pay OR 5% of the last 4 weeks’ gross wages | – |
| Ontario | Public holiday entitlement + hourly rate x 1.5 x hours worked | (Wages + vacation pay over 4 weeks)/20 | Complex formula accounts for vacation pay payable; use the provincial calculator |
| Quebec | Regular wages + 1/20 of wages from the last 4 weeks | 1/20 of the wages earned in the 4 weeks prior to the holiday (tips included, OT excluded); 1/60 for commissions (in the prior 12 weeks) | Use Quebec government calculator for accuracy |
| New Brunswick | Average day’s pay (less overtime) + 1.5x wage | Regular day’s pay | Overtime is excluded from calculations |
| Nova Scotia | Regular pay + 1.5x wage | Regular day’s pay or average day’s pay | Variable wage: average over 30 days |
| Prince Edward Island | Regular pay + 1.5x wage | Regular day’s pay | – |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | 1 day off (within 4 months) + 1.5x wage If time off is not granted: one day’s pay PLUS 1.5x wage | One day off in lieu (granted within 2 months). If not granted: one day’s pay required | – |
| Northwest Territories | Average day’s pay + 1.5x wage | Average day’s pay | Average calculated from 30 days before the holiday |
| Yukon | Regular wage + overtime for hours worked | Regular work: average day’s pay Irregular or less-than-standard hours: at least 10% of wages earned in the prior 2 weeks | – |
| Nunavut | 1.5x regular wage | Regular day’s pay | – |
| Federal | Statutory holiday pay as per the Canada Labour Code | Day off with pay; if it falls on a day of rest, it is moved to the first scheduled working day | Applies to federally-regulated industries only |
Source: Statutory Holidays Pay Rules and Eligibility in Canada – wagepoint.com
Disclaimer: This guide provides general information and is not legal advice. For specific issues, check your provincial employment standards or talk to a qualified employment lawyer.
How Do Canadians Celebrate Christmas?
Christmas in Canada combines traditional customs with modern celebrations, creating a festive holiday experience that celebrates both heritage and modern joy.
Traditional Celebrations on Canada Christmas Day
Nine cherished practices reflect Canada’s deep historical, religious, and cultural foundations:
Midnight Mass: Beginning at around 10 pm on Christmas Eve, Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans, and other denominations attend candlelit midnight mass to celebrate Jesus’ birth with carols like Silent Night and Hark! The Heralds Angels Sing. Churches are filled with hymns, prayer, communion, and devotion.
Christmas Eve Candlelight Services: Various Protestant churches hold reflective services on December 24th, often involving the lighting of the final candle in the Advent wreath. Readings tell the nativity story, interspersed with well-known Christmas songs.
Christmas Day Church Services: Most churches offer services on Christmas morning, including children’s pageants acting out the nativity stories from the Bible. Families attend wearing their festive best.
Outdoor Nativity Scenes: Churches, businesses, and municipalities set up scenes depicting the Holy Family, angels, Wise Men, and animals in the manger. Some hold live nativity events with real people and animals.
Lessons and Carols: Traditionally held late on Christmas Eve, these candlelit services at churches like King’s College Chapel combine bible readings about Jesus’ birth with performances of sacred choral music by choirs and soloists.
Decorating Evergreens: Trimming an evergreen Christmas tree is an integral tradition, often accompanied by sentimental ornaments, garlands, lights, and a glittering star or angel topper. The tantalizing scent of fresh fir and pine fills homes.
Baking Holiday Treats: Canadians indulge in baking and exchanging Christmas cookies, fruitcakes, mincemeat tarts, butter tarts, sugar pies, and Nanaimo bars. Recipes get passed down through generations.
Preparing Christmas Meals: A lavish Christmas dinner is ready, typically featuring roast turkey with maple glazes, bread stuffing, mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts, and buttery peas. Regional dishes also appear.
Modern Celebrations on Christmas Holidays in Canada
Besides, Canadians have adapted Christmas celebrations to fit modern life in four key ways:
Decking Halls and Homes: Canadians elaborately decorate houses inside and out, from strings of lights to Christmas wreaths. Dazzling neighbourhood displays spread cheer along snowy streets.
Christmas Crackers: These colourful paper tubes filled with small toys, jokes, paper crowns, and candies add fun when pulled at holiday meals.
Holiday Performances: Canadians enjoy Christmas carols, concerts, pageants, movies, and television specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Belief in Santa: Children eagerly await Santa Claus to deliver gifts on Christmas Eve, excited to discover presents under the tree on Christmas morning.
While some traditions have religious roots, most practices now focus on spending quality time with family and friends.
What Canadian Dishes are Part of Christmas Meals?
Canadian Christmas feasts blend traditional and regional favourites from land and sea:
Main Features of the Christmas Meal
- Roast Turkey: Turkey dinners with savoury stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, turnips, roasted vegetables such as carrots and parsnips, and cranberry sauce are ubiquitous. Other meats like ham, roast beef, and prime rib also appear in some homes.
- Seafood: Lobster, scallops, oysters, shrimp, clams, smoked salmon, whitefish, and fish such as pickerel appear, especially in coastal areas. Salmon and trout from Pacific and Atlantic waters are prized.
- Winter Vegetables: Hearty root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, beets, onions, and winter squash, along with Brussels sprouts, grace holiday tables thanks to plentiful winter harvests.
- Breads: Fresh rolls, biscuits, cornbread, and bread puddings accompany meals. Stuffing gets flavoured with sage, mushrooms, and sausage.
- Dessert: Traditional favourites like Christmas puddings, mince pies, fruitcakes, shortbread, Nanaimo bars, butter tarts, and sugar pies satisfy sweet tooths. Quality Quebec maple syrup enhances desserts.
Regional Specialties
| Region | Signature Dishes |
| Quebec | Tourtière meat pie, ragoût de pattes de cochon, Bûche de Noël cake, maple taffy on snow |
| Maritimes | Lobster, oysters, Halifax-style salmon, blueberry grunt |
| Manitoba | Kutia wheat and poppyseed pudding, pierogi dumplings, makowiec poppyseed roll |
| Alberta | Prairie oyster beef testicle dish, Saskatoon berry pie |
| British Columbia | Roasted salmon, Nanaimo bars, persimmon pudding |
Indigenous Cuisines
- Wild Game: Elk, bison, caribou, moose, and venison dishes honour indigenous hunting traditions.
- Arctic Cuisine: Northern communities like Nunavut enjoy dishes featuring whale, seal, Arctic char, and caribou.
- Bannock: This fried bread is synonymous with First Nations and Métis cuisines across Canada. It is often served at holiday meals.
- Corn: Historically, cultivated crops such as corn and wild rice have been customary. Dishes like Three Sisters Stew blend indigenous ingredients.
- Traditional Cooking: Foods cooked over open fires or using other customary cooking methods pay homage to heritage.
Canada is a multicultural country that celebrates many holidays and festivals throughout the year. Some of the major Canadian holidays include:
- New Year’s Day
- Family Day
- St. Patrick’s Day
- Good Friday
- Easter
- Victoria Day
- Canada Day
- Civic Holiday
- Labour Day
- Thanksgiving
- Remembrance Day
Why Christmas in Canada Offers a Uniquely Special Experience
Christmas in Canada promises a magical blend of winter beauty, festive celebrations, and cultural flair:
Winter Wonderland Settings
Few places can rival the idyllic settings Canadian winters provide for Christmas, where snow-covered landscapes become picturesque backdrops for holiday enchantment. Cities like Quebec dazzle, coated in glittering snow and lights.
Diverse Traditions
As a tapestry of cultures, Canada honours its rich heritage through diverse Christmas customs. French-Canadian, British, European, Indigenous, and multicultural traditions intertwine for a broad holiday experience.
Seasonal Activities
Canadians enthusiastically embrace winter with beloved seasonal activities and sports. Skating under twinkle lights or hitting the ski slopes creates festive memories.
Heartwarming Hospitality
The warmth and hospitality Canadians radiate during the holidays exceed any chill in the air. Strangers exchange cheer while homes brim with the glow of family reunions.
Charitable Spirit
Christmas inspires Canadians to give back however they can. Donations, volunteerism, fundraising, and hamper drives reveal the nation’s compassion.
Enchanting Events
Public events like concerts, markets, parades, shows, and fireworks displays give Canadians ample opportunities to experience the immutable magic of the season.
So this holiday season, experience Christmas in all its glory by venturing north to Canada’s wintery wonderland, where Christmas cheer, generously given, warms communities across the nation.
Note: Christmas in Canada has many cultural traditions and is a key holiday for workers. Knowing your holiday pay rights can help you enjoy the season without financial stress.
FAQs related to Christmas in Canada
Where are the major Christmas parades in Canada?
Some of the largest and most famous Christmas parades in Canada happen in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, and Halifax. These parades usually take place in late November or early December.
What winter activities are popular during Christmas in Canada?
Popular outdoor winter activities Canadians enjoy around Christmas include ice skating, pond hockey, tobogganing, skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, sledding, and building snow creations like snowmen.
How do Indigenous groups celebrate Christmas in Canada?
Indigenous Christmas celebrations incorporate practices like drumming, dancing, storytelling, throat singing, Indigenous language use, traditional games and foods, community bonfires, and honoring cultural heritage.
Where are the major Christmas markets located in Canada?
Well-known Christmas markets happen annually in cities like Quebec City, Montreal, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Halifax, Toronto, and Ottawa. Markets feature shopping, food, drinks, music, and holiday ambiance.
Why do Canadians decorate their homes and communities for Christmas?
Decorating for Christmas allows Canadians to set a festive mood, show holiday spirit, spread cheer, and celebrate the magic of the season through displays of Christmas trees, lights, wreaths, banners, and more.
What charitable activities happen at Christmastime in Canada?
Canadians give back through holiday volunteering, donations to toy and food drives, fundraising campaigns, preparing hampers, and other activities supporting those in need locally.
