Holiday in Cartago for civic festivities on October 29

The Executive Branch of Costa Rica granted a holiday to public employees of the Central Canton of Cartago, province of Cartago, on October 29, 2026, on the occasion of the celebration of the civic festivities of said canton. The measure was adopted through Executive Decree No. 45918-MGP, signed by the President of the Republic, Laura Fernández Delgado, and the Minister of Governance and Police, Gerald Campos Valverde, and published in La Gaceta — Official Gazette No. 171 of Thursday, September 10, 2026, page 4.

The decree is based on articles 140 paragraphs 3), 20) and 146 of the Political Constitution, as well as Law No. 6227 of May 2, 1978 (General Law of Public Administration), Law No. 6725 of March 10, 1982, regarding holidays for public offices due to civic festivities, Law No. 7974 of January 4, 2000, which reforms the law on cantonal holidays, and the Regulations to Law No. 6725 approved by Executive Decree No. 39427 of September 7, 2015. It is also supported by Act No. 171-2026, article 48, of the ordinary session held on July 14, 2026, by the Municipal Council of the Municipality of the Central Canton of Cartago.

Scope of the holiday

Article 1 of the decree grants the holiday to public employees of the canton, with the exceptions established by special laws. However, the application is not automatic for all officials, as several heads of institutions must determine via internal circular whether the day is granted as a holiday to their staff:

Ministry of Public Education: the head of the institution will decide, based on article 213 of the Education Code, if the day is granted as a holiday to officials working in the canton.
General Directorate of Customs: the head of the Ministry of Finance will determine, according to article 14 of the General Customs Law, if a holiday is granted to the officials of that directorate.
National Insurance Institute: the head of that institution will decide, based on article 6 paragraph c) of Law No. 12 of October 30, 1924, reformed by Law No. 8653 (Insurance Market Regulatory Law), if the holiday is granted to its staff.

Services excluded from the holiday

The decree establishes express exceptions to guarantee the continuity of essential services. The following are excluded from the application of the measure:

Members of the police forces of the Ministry of Public Security and the Traffic Police of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport.
Emergency services, intensive care, clinical and imaging laboratory tests, surgical interventions, and appointments and care programs for disease prevention of the Costa Rican Social Security Fund.
Officials of the Ministry of Health who are engaged in sanitary control and inspection activities, vector control, popular festivities, and in the direct care of children in the CENCINAI programs.

Furthermore, Article 6 obliges the heads of institutions to guarantee that public services considered essential, which by their nature require continuity in service delivery, are not affected.

Validity and signature

The decree was signed at the Presidency of the Republic, in San José, at eleven hours and thirty-five minutes on August three, two thousand twenty-six, and is effective as of October 29, 2026. The official publication bears the reference IN202601120974.

The measure directly affects thousands of public officials in the canton and the provision of services in the province; therefore, the heads of each institution must coordinate shifts and exceptions to avoid interrupting service to the citizenry during the holiday.

Source: La Gaceta — Official Gazette, No. 171, Thursday, September 10, 2026, Executive Branch, p. 4 (official reference: Executive Decree No. 45918-MGP, IN202601120974).