Chinese New Year & Golden Week: China Factory Shutdowns 2027

(Taiwan holiday dates updated for 2027. China sections retain the 2026 information. Prepared by Titoma, an electronics ODM based in Asia.)

There’ll be a China factory shutdown in 2026, but it’s the same shutdown that happens every year.

China’s official Spring Festival holiday in 2026 lasts nine days, but manufacturing disruption can extend beyond the public holiday period. So, when is Chinese New Year 2026?

• Chinese New Year 2026 in China: The official Spring Festival holiday runs from February 15th to February 23rd, 2026, a nine-day break. Individual factory shutdown schedules may differ.
• Chinese New Year 2027 in Taiwan: the government administrative-office holiday runs from February 4th to February 10th, 2027. Private factory schedules may differ.

If you’re planning on ordering anything for the coming months, you better place orders now and expect some delays.

In practical terms, China is closed for manufacturing during this period. The China factory close date for Chinese New Year 2026 is in February, and many factories slow down from early February and only return to normal output in early to mid March.

WHAT IS THE CHINESE NEW YEAR?

Quick answer: It’s the beginning of the new year according to the lunar calendar.

The Chinese New Year begins on the second new moon after the winter solstice and ends on the full moon fifteen days later. Unlike the Western New Year, it doesn’t always occur on the same date, but it always takes place between January 21st and February 20th.

HOW WILL THE CHINESE NEW YEAR 2026 HOLIDAY AFFECT MANUFACTURING?

1. All significant businesses in China and Taiwan were completely shut down for at least 7 days, including all factories.
2. Some factories may even shut down for up to 3 weeks because Chinese New Year will block China’s transportation systems entirely as all employees return from their factory to their hometowns up to 2,000 km away.
3. All manufacturing projects will be on hold.
4. Component manufacturers and distributors also take vacations.
5. No manufacturing component orders ship out of China or Taiwan during the Chinese New Year.
6. The information flow is cut during the Chinese New Year holiday. No one will answer phone calls or emails.
7. You might experience severe production slowdowns 1 or 2 weeks before the Chinese New Year holiday because many workers leave factories early to go home—to avoid the peak time rush.
8. Before the Chinese New Year holiday, you might experience an increase in quality issues. As factories and suppliers get ready for the big holiday, they rush to finish as many orders as possible before too many workers leave for the holiday and before all businesses in China and Taiwan officially close.
9. After the Chinese New Year holiday, you might also experience increased quality issues. This happens because one-third of the factory workers don’t go back to their jobs. As a result, many inexperienced workers are promoted or hired. This phenomenon is not limited to assembly line workers; it can even extend to managers, critical firmware, and design engineers too.

As you can see, the Chinese New Year holiday sends the manufacturing industry into chaos.

HOW CAN I PREPARE FOR SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTIONS DUE TO THE CHINESE NEW YEAR?

There isn’t a magical strategy to ensure you get your orders manufactured and shipped quickly in 2026. You have to think of a long-term strategy and look for a substitute country to manufacture electronics if necessary.

Here is an article that you may find interesting: alternatives to China Manufacturing.

The best thing to do is to place orders as early as possible and have all components, materials, and/or finished products in your warehouses.

WHY DOES THE CHINESE NEW YEAR CAUSE SO MANY ISSUES IN MANUFACTURING?

If you wonder why the government and companies allow this disruption to occur every year, you have to understand that this is the most important holiday for Chinese people. So they’re all on board with the celebration.

The celebration is mainly about visiting family and friends, having special meals, watching fireworks, and giving and receiving gifts.

It’s also when people forget about work and studies and enjoy themselves and relax.

Be sure that no Chinese worker, plant manager, or even owner will be thinking of you and your manufacturing project during Chinese New Year celebrations.

Many workers will leave early and come back later

As we already mentioned, the Chinese New Year is the most important holiday for the Chinese; this is the time for families to come together.

It doesn’t matter how far away one’s family is; be sure that factory workers will return home to spend the Chinese New Year holiday with relatives and friends.

For many factory workers, this is the only time they can see their parents and sometimes even their children, who are usually raised by relatives in the countryside.

Most factory workers in mainland China are immigrants from remote and rural areas of this vast country. Going back home by public transportation (bus and train) may take 4 to 5 days in any direction.

The long journey many factory workers have to make before reaching their hometowns causes many of them to leave before the holiday officially begins.

This is possible thanks to a practice where factories allow their workers to accrue overtime throughout the year and take it as paid time off at year’s end.

With so many workers being absent from 1 to 2 weeks before a holiday week, it is inevitable for production to slow down and quality issues to increase as the factory tries to finish as many orders as possible with the few workers it has left before the holiday officially begins.

Adding to the issue of many factory workers leaving early for the holidays and therefore disrupting the manufacturing process, add the fact that many of them don’t go back to work.

The Chinese New Year has another particular impact on manufacturing.

CHINESE NEW YEAR CAUSES HIGH FACTORY WORKER TURNOVER

It’s common for factory workers in China to stay until Chinese New Year to receive their end-of-year bonus, then go home and never return to the factory.

Over a third of respondents to a Hays survey claimed their organization’s staff turnover rate was higher around the Chinese New Year period than in other months.

What is the reason behind this phenomenon?

During the holiday, workers spend time with their family and friends; during these encounters, they share information on various wage levels and new employment opportunities.

If they’re sure they’ll be able to find a higher-paying job somewhere else, they surely won’t hesitate to ghost their current employer.

As many people leave their job, it is also easy to find a new job, so this is the time for a big game of musical chairs.

Many workers make their return to work depend upon a pay raise.

Workers know that the Chinese New Year holiday is a sensitive time for the factory as orders keep coming in and customers’ pressure increases; they feel they’re in control.

Factory workers will inform the owners that they won’t return to work for the same salary; if the factory owners refuse the salary increase, they’ll have to invest a lot of time finding a new skilled worker.

This is a significant factor in production output declines and labor shortages a week or two after the holiday is over.

Getting a new factory worker up to speed should be pretty quick, but the higher the responsibilities, the more difficult it becomes.

If your account manager leaves, you may need to explain many details all over again. If a critical firmware engineer leaves, it could be so bad that no one else understands his firmware code. Not everybody follows Titoma’s good practices for embedded firmware design. 

CHINESE NEW YEAR 2026 CALENDAR AND TIMELINE

China’s official Spring Festival holiday runs from February 15 to February 23, 2026. Chinese New Year’s Eve falls on February 16, and Chinese New Year’s Day is February 17. Confirm production slowdowns and closure dates with each supplier.

(Updated with official dates announced by the State Council in November 2025)

• Early February: Factories begin ramping up production.
• Mid-February: Many suppliers stop accepting new orders.
• February 15: Official Spring Festival holiday begins.
• February 16: Chinese New Year’s Eve.
• February 17: Chinese New Year’s Day.
• February 15–23: Official 9-day public holiday for Spring Festival, as confirmed by the State Council.
• February 14 (Saturday) and February 28 (Saturday): Adjusted workdays to compensate for the long break.
• March 3: Lantern Festival.
• Late February to Early March: Gradual return to production.
• Mid-March: Full production typically resumes.

The official nine-day Spring Festival holiday runs from February 15 to February 23, 2026, including Chinese New Year’s Eve on February 16 and New Year’s Day on February 17. Businesses should confirm supplier shutdown schedules and allow for disruption beyond the public holiday. Source: State Council 2026 holiday circular. Source: Hong Kong Observatory lunar calendar.

Update: The State Council has officially announced that the 2026 Spring Festival holiday will run from February 15 to February 23, with adjusted workdays on February 14 (Saturday) and February 28 (Saturday) to compensate for the extended break.

2026 Chinese New Year Calendar (China)

CHINESE NEW YEAR 2027 TIMELINE IN TAIWAN

Taiwan’s government administrative-office calendar is confirmed. It does not establish the operating hours of every private factory. Source: DGPA announcement.

Source: official Taiwan holiday table. Source: lunar calendar dates.

Taiwan Chinese New Year Calendar 2027 — government office schedule. Individual factory schedules may vary.

China Golden Week 2026: How It Affects Manufacturing

China’s National Day Golden Week runs from October 1 to October 7, 2026. The official make-up workdays are Sunday, September 20, and Saturday, October 10. Mid-Autumn Festival has a separate holiday from September 25 to 27. These are not combined in 2026. Source: State Council holiday schedule.

For manufacturers, the disruption can extend beyond the holiday itself. Factories may reduce staffing before closing, while buyers bring shipments forward. This can put pressure on production slots, trucking and freight capacity. When factories reopen, unfinished orders and new requests can create a backlog, so reopening does not necessarily mean immediate dispatch. Source: DHL’s Golden Week planning guidance.

Shipping schedules also need checking. Maersk has announced Golden Week sailing cancellations affecting departures before and after the break. Confirm your actual booking rather than assuming normal service resumes as soon as the holiday ends. Source: Maersk’s 2026 service advisory.

Bank closures can also delay transactions that need staff processing. HSBC China, for example, lists October 1–7 as closed for branch service. Check your bank’s payment cutoffs and available services. Purchase orders may also wait for supplier approval or deposit confirmation before production is scheduled. Source: HSBC China’s holiday arrangements.

To reduce delays:

• Order early: Agree on materials, quantities and delivery requirements before the holiday.
• Confirm supplier schedules: Ask for closure dates, reopening dates and the first available dispatch date.
• Complete approvals and payments: Allow time for processing and supplier confirmation.
• Build in buffer time: Cover production, inspection, freight and the backlog after reopening.

If your order is already affected, request a revised delivery schedule covering both factory readiness and freight availability.

CHINA PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 2026

China’s official 2026 holiday schedule includes the following breaks and make-up workdays. Confirm individual supplier operating schedules separately.

Source: State Council 2026 holiday circular. Official English holiday calendar.

TAIWAN PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 2027

The following dates are official for government administrative offices, including adjacent weekends where shown. Confirm private-company schedules separately. Source: DGPA announcement. Official holiday table. Full-year calendar.

Adjusted working days: No makeup working weekends are designated in the published government calendar. The substitute dates above are days off. Source: DGPA calendar.

Selected Taiwan public holidays 2027 — government office holiday periods, including adjacent weekends. See the table above for the full list; individual factory schedules may vary.

CONCLUSION

Chinese New Year is a unique event that puts manufacturing and supply across China and Taiwan at a standstill for at least 7 days.

In Taiwan, this is generally the extent of the delay, but in China, the effects tend to be much more severe, and you should count on 2 to 3 weeks of disruption.

Factories and their providers experience a decline in output and an increase in quality issues weeks before and after the official time of the holiday.

Because of the number of factory workers that leave early for the holidays, factories rush to finish all orders at least 10 days before the beginning of the holiday; at the same time, customers that are aware of the proximity of Chinese New Year increase their order volumes.

In many instances, the tremendous pressure imposed by the increase in demand, trying to get all orders done as soon as possible, and having many workers leave results in turning a blind eye to quality control and compliance with order specifications.

So: make sure you place your manufacturing orders well ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday!

Source for Taiwan’s 2027 government holiday dates: Taiwan DGPA announcement and official calendar. The China dates above remain the 2026 information.