Flag days in Brazil 2026 and 2027: holidays and Flag Day

Unlike countries with a long list of flag days, Brazil has a short rule. Under article 14 of Law 5,700 of 1 September 1971, the national flag is raised compulsorily on days of national celebration or mourning at all public offices, schools and trade unions. The law does not list those days. The table below brings together the national holidays declared by federal law and Flag Day, with the weekday, the time of raising and the law that sets each date.

National holidays and Flag Day by year

All the dates are fixed, so only the weekday changes from one year to the next. Since Law 14,759 of 21 December 2023, 20 November, the National Day of Zumbi and Black Consciousness, has been a national holiday, the day after Flag Day.

Where the dates come from

Law 662 of 6 April 1949, as worded by Law 10,607 of 2002, declares 1 January, 21 April, 1 May, 7 September, 2 November, 15 November and 25 December national holidays. Law 6,802 of 30 June 1980 adds 12 October, dedicated to Our Lady of Aparecida, Patroness of Brazil. Under Law 9,093 of 12 September 1995, civil holidays are those declared by federal law, each state’s main day (data magna) set by state law and, in the municipalities, the first and last days of the centenary year of their foundation. Religious holidays are set by municipal law, up to four a year, Good Friday included.

State and municipal dates are not in the table, because they vary from place to place. The guide to flags on holidays gives examples, such as 9 July in São Paulo.

Flag Day

19 November marks Decree No. 4 of 19 November 1889, with which the Provisional Government of the Republic adopted the present flag, four days after the Proclamation of the Republic. Under article 15(2) of Law 5,700, on that day the flag is raised at noon, with special ceremonies. It is also the day on which, under article 32, worn-out flags handed in to a military unit are burned, according to the proper ceremonial. More information in the guide to the flag rules.

Times of raising

Under article 15, the flag may be raised and lowered at any time of day or night. It is normally raised at 8 a.m. and lowered at 6 p.m. At night, the flag is properly lit; the guide to flag lighting covers this point. When several flags are raised or lowered at the same time, the national flag is the first to reach the top and the last to come down (article 16).

Where the flag flies every day

The dates in the table mark compulsory raising at public offices, schools and trade unions. At other places, the flag flies every day. Under article 13, these are the Presidential Palace and the President’s residence, the ministries, the two houses of the National Congress, the Supreme Federal Court, the higher courts and the audit courts, the seats of the three branches of government of the states and the Federal District, town halls and municipal councils, public offices in the border strip, diplomatic missions and merchant navy units. Since Law 12,157 of 2009, the Mercosur flag has also flown daily at these places.

On the Praça dos Três Poderes in Brasília, the flag stays permanently at the top of a special pole, in the care of the Brazilian people (article 12). It is replaced with ceremony on the first Sunday of every month, and the new flag reaches the top before the old one starts to come down.

At schools

Under the sole paragraph of article 14, at public and private schools a solemn flag raising is compulsory at least once a week during the school year, with the national anthem (article 25). Article 39 makes teaching the design and meaning of the flag compulsory at all schools.

National mourning

Days of national mourning are not in the table, because the President of the Republic decrees them case by case. Under article 18, the flag is not flown in mourning on days of national celebration. More information in the guides on half-mast and official mourning.