How Bank Holidays Affect ACH Payments and Wire Transfers

Short answer: Bank holidays stop ACH payments and wires from moving. The ACH network and Fedwire both run on the Federal Reserve's schedule, so nothing settles on a bank holiday. A payment sent the day before a holiday arrives at least one business day later than usual. Checks slow down too, because the Post Office and banks are closed. Real-time networks like RTP and FedNow keep running every day of the year.

If you get paid by ACH or pay vendors by ACH or wire, bank holidays change when your money moves. Here's how each payment type behaves on a holiday, how many days a holiday adds, and how to time invoices and vendor payments so nothing lands late. For every 2026 and 2027 date, see Nickel's bank holiday schedule.

How bank holidays affect ACH payments

ACH payments move in batches. Banks send them to the ACH network, the network sorts them, and the Federal Reserve settles them between banks. That last step only happens on business days. A business day is Monday through Friday, minus Federal Reserve holidays.

So a bank holiday works like an extra Saturday. Any ACH payment that's in flight sits still until the next business day. Nothing is lost or returned. It just arrives later.

Here's what that means in practice:

• A holiday adds at least 1 business day. If a payment normally takes 2 business days, it still takes 2 business days. The holiday just doesn't count as one of them.
• Monday holidays turn into 3-day weekends. An ACH payment sent on the Friday before Labor Day doesn't move until Tuesday. In 2027, 7 bank closures create 3-day weekends.
• Mid-week holidays split the week. Thanksgiving always falls on a Thursday. A payment sent Wednesday counts Friday as its first business day, then skips the weekend.
• Back-to-back holidays stack. Christmas and New Year's Day both fall on a Friday in 2026–27. An ACH payment sent on Christmas Eve won't settle until the following week.

For the full breakdown of normal ACH timing, see how long ACH transfers take. For weekends specifically, see whether ACH transfers go through on Saturdays and when an ACH sent on Friday arrives.

How bank holidays affect wire transfers

Domestic wire transfers run through Fedwire, the Federal Reserve's wire system. Fedwire is closed on bank holidays, so a wire sent on a holiday goes out on the next business day. A few details make holiday wires easy to get wrong:

• The cutoff the day before matters most. Each bank sets a daily cutoff for same-day wires. A wire that misses the cutoff on the day before a holiday waits until the next business day.
• Monday holidays stretch the wait. A wire that misses Friday's cutoff before Labor Day doesn't go out until Tuesday.
• International wires face two calendars. A holiday in the receiving country can hold a wire even when U.S. banks are open, and so can a holiday at any bank that relays it along the way.

For normal wire timing, see how long a wire transfer takes.

How bank holidays affect cards and checks

• Card payments: card networks approve payments every day, holidays included. The payout to your bank account still moves on business days, so it lands a day later than usual.
• Paper checks: the Postal Service doesn't deliver on federal holidays, and banks don't process deposits on bank holidays. A mailed check loses a day in the mail and can lose another day at the bank.

RTP and FedNow: the payment rails that don't close

RTP, run by The Clearing House, and FedNow, run by the Federal Reserve, are real-time payment networks. Both run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, bank holidays included. A payment over either network settles in seconds.

The catch is that both banks have to be on the network. Thousands of U.S. banks and credit unions support at least one of them, but not every bank does, and your own business account has to be able to send real-time payments.

Pay vendors on a holiday with Nickel Balance

Nickel Balance is Nickel's business account. Payments you send from Nickel Balance arrive instantly when the recipient's bank supports RTP or FedNow, and same day when it doesn't. Same-day payments follow the business-day schedule, so one sent on a holiday arrives the next business day. Instant and same-day payments are free on every plan, just like ACH.

• Pay on the due date, even on a holiday. When your vendor's bank supports instant payments, you don't have to count business days backward around a long weekend.
• Keep your cash longer. Paying instantly instead of 2 or 3 business days early keeps money in your account, earning 2% APY, until the bill is due.
• No minimums or lockups. Keep $100 or $1M, and withdraw at any time with no fees.

Nickel is a financial technology company, not a bank. Funds in Nickel Balance are held at Grasshopper Bank, N.A., Member FDIC, and are eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance up to $250,000 per depositor, subject to FDIC requirements.

Bank holidays and getting paid

When your customers pay by ACH, a holiday pushes back the day the money hits your account. That matters most at month-end and year-end, when you're covering payroll, materials, and your own vendors.

Ways to keep cash coming in around holidays:

• Send invoices earlier in holiday weeks. If you normally invoice on Thursday, move it to Monday or Tuesday during Thanksgiving week.
• Don't set due dates on holidays. A due date of Nov 26 or Dec 25 means your customer's payment can't settle until the next business day anyway. Pick a business day.
• Remind customers before long weekends. A short reminder before a 3-day weekend gets payments started before the banks close.
• Give customers a card option. A customer can pay by card on the holiday itself. The payout waits for the next business day, but the payment is done.

Example: A customer pays your invoice by ACH on Wednesday, Nov 25, 2026, the day before Thanksgiving. With 2-business-day settlement, Friday, Nov 27, is day 1 and Monday, Nov 30, is day 2. The money lands Monday instead of Friday. With 3-business-day settlement, it lands Tuesday, Dec 1.

Bank holidays and paying vendors

When you pay vendors, the risk runs the other way. A payment that's on time in a normal week can arrive late in a holiday week. Late payments strain the relationships you rely on for materials, rentals, and subs.

To pay on time around a holiday, count backward from the date your vendor needs the money. Count business days only, and skip weekends and bank holidays.

Example: A supplier needs to be paid by Monday, Jan 4, 2027. Christmas Day (Fri, Dec 25) and New Year's Day (Fri, Jan 1) are both bank holidays.

If the vendor's bank supports RTP or FedNow, an instant payment from Nickel Balance can go out on Monday, Jan 4, itself.

Year-end makes this tighter. If you want vendor payments to clear before Dec 31 so they close out with this year's books, schedule them in the second week of December. That way a holiday can't push them into January.

Frequently asked questions

Do ACH payments go through on bank holidays?

No. ACH payments don't settle on Federal Reserve holidays. A payment started on a holiday, or still in flight when one arrives, settles on the next business day.

If I send an ACH payment the day before a holiday, when will it arrive?

Add 1 business day to the normal timing. If your ACH normally takes 2 business days and you send it the day before Thanksgiving, it arrives the following Monday instead of Friday.

Do wire transfers go through on bank holidays?

Not domestic wires. Fedwire is closed on Federal Reserve holidays, so a wire sent on a holiday goes out on the next business day. International wires can also be held by holidays in the receiving country.

Do card payments work on bank holidays?

Yes. Card networks approve payments every day. The payout to the business's bank account waits for the next business day.

Can I send money on a bank holiday?

Yes, through a real-time network. RTP and FedNow run 24/7/365. If the receiving bank supports one of them, the money arrives in seconds. With Nickel Balance, payments go out over these networks when the recipient's bank supports them.

Which days are bank holidays in 2026 and 2027?

The Federal Reserve observes 11 holidays a year. See Nickel's bank holiday schedule for every 2026 and 2027 date and how holidays that fall on a weekend are handled.