Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is a nationwide Holiday in the Philippines for 2021.
For the day of Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan to be declared as a non-working Holiday in the Philippines, the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) has to recommend a date to the Office of the President and then the Office of the President shall issue a proclamation.
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Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan Holiday Celebration
What does Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan celebrate?
Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is a religious holiday in the Islamic faith and it celebrates the end of Ramadan. Eid'l Fitr can be translated as "Festival of the breaking of the fast" or "Feast of Ramadan".
When is Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan celebrated in 2021?
The official date for the observance of the national holiday for Eid'l Fitr is on 13 May 2021.
Employees, regardless of faith, who worked on Eid'l Fitr is entitled to additional compensation.
Is Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadan) a fixed or movable Holiday?
Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is a movable holiday and is dependent on the Islamic Lunar calendar. The day is always after the 9th month of the Islamic Lunar calendar, which is the month of Ramadan.
As stated in Section 2 of Proclamation No. 986, series of 2020 regarding the proclamation date to be issued:
The proclamations declaring national holidays for the observance of Eidul Fitr and Eidul Adha shall hereafter be issued after the approximate dates of the islamic holidays have been determined in accordance with the Islamic calendar (Hijira) or the lunar calendar, or upon Islamic astronomical calculations, which ever is possible or convenient. To this end, the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos shall inform the Office of the President of the actual dates on which these holidays shall respectively fall.
Specifically, Eid'l Fitr is the first day of Shawwal, which is the tenth month of the Islamic Calendar.
Holiday Pay for Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan
Is Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadan) a Regular Holiday or a Special Non-Working Day?
Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is declared as a Regular Holiday in the Philippines.
How to compute for Regular Holiday Pay for Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan
The computation of the Regular Holiday Pay for Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is dependent upon several factors such as if it was also a scheduled Rest Day or overtime work has been performed.
Legal Basis for the declaration of Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan as a Holiday
When was Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan first started to be celebrated as a Holiday?
Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan is a religious holiday by those adhere to the Islamic faith and therefore celebrated by Muslims even before any law or proclamation in the Philippines.
The first issuance that instituted Eid'l Fitr as a holiday was under Book Five of the Presidential Decree No. 1083, series of 1977, also known as Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines. However, the issuance primarily made it a regional holiday as stated in Article 170 of the aforementioned issuance:
Provinces and cities where officially observed. – (1) Muslim holidays shall be officially observed in the Provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur, and in the Cities of Cotabato, Iligan, Marawi, Pagadian, and Zamboanga and in such other Muslim provinces and cities as may hereafter be created.
Presidential Decree No. 1083 has also provided a provision that allows it to be expanded to other provinces and cities.
Article 170 (2) Upon proclamation by the President of the Philippines, Muslim holidays may also be officially observed in other provinces and cities.
In additional Article 172, Book Five of Presidential Decree No. 1083 allows Muslim government officials and employees outside the aforementioned provinces in Article 170 to be excused from reporting to work in observance of Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan, among other Muslim holidays not mentioned here.
Likewise, Article 172 (2) also provides powers for the Holiday to cover private sector employees outside the aforementioned provinces without reduction to the usual compensation, provided that the Office of the President to issue a proclamation.
In 2002, Republic Act No. 9177 was passed under President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo which declares Eid'l Fitr as a national holiday and amends Section 2, Section 26, Chapter 7 of Executive Order No. 292, otherwise known as the Revised Administrative Code of 1987.
Law or Republic Act that declares Eid’l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan as a Regular Holiday
Republic Act No. 9177 is the law that declares Eid'l Fitr or Feast of Ramadan as a nationwide Regular Holiday.
What spelling variation is used by laws for Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadan)?
The Arabic script for Eid'l Fitr (Feast of Ramadan) is عيد الفطر.
A google search would reveal different spellings for the romanization of the script such as Eid'l Fitr, Eid al-fitr, Eidul Fitr, and Eid ul-Fitr.
In the Philippines, there are inconsistencies in the writing of official government documents used.
Spelling Variation | Issuance Date | Documents |
‘Id-ul-Fitr | 4 February 1977 | Presidential Decree 1083, series of 1977 |
Eidul Fitr | 13 November 2002 | Republic Act No. 9177 |
- | 24 July 2007 | Republic Act No. 9492 |
- | 11 December 2009 | Republic Act No. 9849 |
- | 2017 - 2021 | Nationwide Proclamations |
Eid'l Fitr | 2009 - 2016 | Nationwide Proclamations |
- | 2009 - 2020 | Proclamations declaring Eid'l Fitr |
This article uses Eid'l Fitr due to the recent usage of National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) in its external affairs publication of the President of the Philippines' message for Eid'l Fitr for 2018 on their website, NCMF's use of the variation on their Facebook Page posted on 8 March 2021, and the consistent usage in proclamations declaring the actual date of Eid'l Fitr as a Regular Holiday in the Philippines since 2009.
Proclamations that declare Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadan) as a Regular Holiday
Vyron earned his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology degree from De La Salle University – Manila and placed 9th in the 1st Psychometrician Board Exam held on 2014. A Human Resource Practitioner and an aspiring Attorney. He writes and answers questions regarding Human Resource Management for fun.
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