As per the holiday timetable of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), banks all over India will remain shut for a total of fifteen days in January 2026 including the days set aside for states and the regular Sundays and the particular make-shift Saturdays. Digital services like mobile banking, internet banking, ATMs, and others will be accessible during these periods.
Significant dates: national and state holidays
Some of the key holidays during which branches will be closed are New Year’s Day/Gaan-Ngai (January 1), Makar Sankranti and Magh Bihu (January 14), Pongal/Uttarayana (January 15), Thiruvalluvar Day (January 16), Uzhavar Thunal (January 17) – local days, celebrets and Saraswati Puja (January 23) – birthday observances and Republic Day (January 26).
Weekend closures in January 2026
Apart from the festival and regional holidays that are unique to a particular state, banks will be on holiday every Sunday and on the second and fourth Saturdays. The dates for January 2026 are the following: Sunday, January 4th, Saturday, January 10th (second Saturday), Sunday, January 11th, Sunday, January 18th, Saturday, January 24th (fourth Saturday), and Sunday, January 25th.
Highlights per city and state
The RBI calendar is the source of the holidays listed by state, so the cities have a different situation because of the particularities in states. The date 1st of January, for example, was a day off in Mizoram, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, West Bengal, and Meghalaya.
Similarly, on the 2nd the above-mentioned places were banks closed, and in Kerala, people observed both the New Year celebration and Mannam Jayanthi. The 3rd of January was celebrated as the birthday of Hazrat Ali by the people of Uttar Pradesh.
The 12th of January noted Swami Vivekananda’s birthday and a few states like Gujarat, Odisha, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh celebrated the holiday of Makar Sankranti/Magh Bihu on the 14th.
– Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana observed Pongal/Maghe Sankranti on January 15.
– The celebrations in Tamil Nadu had a Deemed holiday on the day of Thiruvalluvar Day on 16thand a public holiday on 17th January declared as Uzhavar Thunal.
– Tripura, Odisha, and West Bengal are celebrating Netaji Jayanti, Saraswati Puja, and related observances on January 23, therefore there will be no business in those states on that day.
– Republic Day which falls on January 26 is a national bank holiday and the country gets dressed up in the patriotic tri-color decorations and events.
Due to the fact that the festivals are specific to a state, a bank closing in a particular state is not foreseen to control the working capacity of the branches in another state. For example, the RBI has discriminated a few places which will have the day off for special occasions even though elsewhere in the system will not be the case.
RBI holiday categories and impact on services
The RBI divides bank holidays into three categories: holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act; holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act with Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) impacts; and the closing of banks’ accounts. It is worth knowing that restrictions for cheque clearing, RTGS/NEFT processing, and the end-of-day accounting depend on the type of holiday. For example, those holidays which are on the list for RTGS will make the day not working for large-value interbank transfers.
The online banking, UPI, and ATM networks are typically working, but the collection of cheques, in-branch teller services, and to some extent interbank settlements might be affected. Customers are advised to check with their bank the cut-off times and settlement schedules for important transactions in advance.
How to plan around January closures
Prepone salary credits, EMI deductions, and fund transfers before the holiday period to prevent the late arrivals of money or the imposition of fines. Make use of mobile applications, internet banking, and UPI for urgent payments, and do not forget to save messages of the successful completion of the transactions. If you make use of cheque deposits or RTGS transfers, finish them prior to the sanctioned holiday or get the timetable for that holiday from your bank in advance, or in other words consult the bank.
Banks have their holiday lists publicized state-wise, which is why you should always check the one from your bank or get in touch with the branch to have the holiday list of that particular city. Doing what the RBI calendar says and doing so a bit earlier will guarantee that everything will be smooth for you during the January 2026 holiday season.
