Diwali dates 2026 and 2027, and what it means for work

Year	Diwali (main day)
2026	Sunday 8 November
2027	Friday 29 October

Diwali is a five-day festival, and the main day is the one with the new moon of the month of Kartik. Regions of India sometimes mark the main day a day apart, so check the date with the people you work with.

Why the date moves

Diwali follows the Hindu lunisolar calendar: it falls on the new moon in autumn, so it moves between mid-October and mid-November on the Gregorian calendar. This year it lands in November, and next year on 29 October.

Where it is a day off

Diwali is a public holiday in India, Nepal, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, among others. In India many offices close for two or more days, and for many businesses it marks the start of the new financial year, with new accounts books opened on the day.

What it means for work

• Expect a quiet week. Even where only one day is official, many people take the whole week off to travel home and celebrate with family.
• Don't schedule launches, reviews or deadlines in the days around it for teams in India.
• Gifts and sweets are common between colleagues and with clients. A card or a short message is just as welcome.

What you could say

"Happy Diwali!" is always fine. You can also say "Shubh Deepavali", which means "auspicious festival of lights".

See it for your team

Open the places you work with and look at the calendar: India, Singapore, Malaysia and the UK on Diwali 2026, or India, Nepal and the US on Diwali 2027. Each holiday has a short card on what it is about and what you could say.