Flag days in Italy, 2026 and 2027

Many public buildings fly the Tricolore and the European flag on every day their offices are open. On other buildings housing public offices and institutions, D.P.R. no. 121 of 7 April 2000 provides for flags on specific days. Added to these are the civil solemnities set by specific laws and the days set by the Government from time to time. Below are the flag days and public holidays of 2026 and 2027, with the weekday and the rule that applies.

Flag days and holidays each year

Sundays do not appear in the table, although they are public holidays. Easter and Easter Monday change date every year. On the days marked as a "public holiday", no national rule provides for flags on public buildings, but on many buildings the flag is flown every day anyway.

What D.P.R. no. 121/2000 provides

Article 1, paragraph 2, of the regulation distinguishes three cases:

Paragraph 5 provides that, on the same occasions, further copies of the national and European flags may be flown on buildings that already fly them every day.

The civil solemnities

Law no. 260 of 27 May 1949 calls days on which public buildings fly flags without being public holidays "civil solemnities" (solennità civili). Besides 11 February and 28 September, two later laws added 10 February, the Day of Remembrance of the foibe and the Istrian-Dalmatian exodus (Law no. 92/2004), and 12 November, the Day of Remembrance of the military and civilians who fell in international peace missions (Law no. 162/2009).

7 January is the national flag day, established by Law no. 671 of 31 December 1996 on the anniversary of the birth of the first Tricolore in Reggio Emilia; the law provides that it is not a public holiday. 17 March marks the proclamation of the unification of Italy in Turin in 1861: Law no. 222/2012 recognises it as the Day of National Unity, the Constitution, the Anthem and the Flag, and the State Ceremonial Office lists flags on public buildings for that day.

The public holidays

The list of public holidays in Law no. 260/1949 has been amended several times. Today the public holidays are every Sunday, 1 and 6 January, Easter Monday, 25 April, 1 May, 2 June, 15 August, 1 November, 8, 25 and 26 December, and in each municipality the day of its patron saint. From 2026, 4 October, the national feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, is once again a public holiday under Law no. 151 of 8 October 2025.

The National Unity Day of 4 November is officially celebrated on the first Sunday of November, but 4 November remains a flag day under D.P.R. no. 121/2000. The meaning of the occasions is explained in the guide to flags on holidays.

The regional days

Regional laws set their own days for the regional flag, always together with the Tricolore and the European flag. According to the collection of regulations published by the State Ceremonial Office, for example:

• Sardinia: 26 February, the anniversary of the Special Statute, and 28 April, "Sa die de sa Sardigna" (regional law no. 10/1999).
• Sicily: 15 May, the Feast of Sicilian Autonomy, and 25 May, the anniversary of the first sitting of the Regional Assembly (regional law no. 1/2000).
• Aosta Valley: 26 February or the last Sunday of February, and 7 September, the Feast of the Aosta Valley (regional law no. 6/2006).

The regional flags are described in the guide to flag types.

Hours on flag days

Under article 4 of D.P.R. no. 121/2000, flags are as a rule not raised before sunrise and are lowered at sunset. Flying them at night is permitted only if the place is adequately lit. More information is in the guide to the flag rules.

When a flag day coincides with mourning

When the Government orders half-mast for national mourning, the flags on public buildings are flown at half-mast for the period stated, even on a feast day. In April 2025, for example, the national mourning for the death of Pope Francis included 25 April. The subject is covered in the guides to half-mast and national mourning.