TASMAC dry days 2026: the full list, and is it open today?
Twelve days in 2026, not four — "leave days", as most people call them. Four of them repeat every year and you can plan around them; the rest were declared — Thiruvalluvar Day, a memorial day, two religious observances, and four days of election silence. Here is the whole calendar, and the one our own data noticed before we did.
Is TASMAC open today?
Yes — all twelve 2026 dry days below have passed. The last was Gandhi Jayanti on 2 October; the next fixed TASMAC leave day is Tuesday 26 January 2027, Republic Day, a full closure in all 38 districts. On every other day of the year the shops keep their ordinary hours, 12 noon to 10 pm, Sundays included. There is no "TASMAC holiday today" that arrives without notice: fixed dry days are on this list and election closures are announced a few days ahead.
Already passed in 2026: 16 January, 26 January, 1 February, 31 March, 21–23 April, 1 May, 4 May, 15 August, 26 August and 2 October. Nothing else is scheduled for 2026; the calendar rolls to Republic Day, 26 January 2027.
Is TASMAC open tomorrow?
Yes, unless tomorrow is a dry day. The next fixed one is Tuesday 26 January 2027, Republic Day, when every shop in Tamil Nadu stays shut from midnight to midnight. On every other day the shops open 12 noon to 10 pm, Sundays included. Thiruvalluvar Day, around 15–16 January, is usually declared before it.
"Leave days" and "dry days" are the same thing — the dates the shops do not trade at all. The four below repeat every year; everything else is declared, and election closures arrive with only a few days' notice. This page is updated when a new date is announced.
The whole of 2026
| Date | Occasion | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 16 January | Thiruvalluvar Day | Declared · statewide |
| 26 January | Republic Day | Every year |
| 1 February | Vallalar Memorial Day | Declared · statewide |
| 31 March | Mahavir Jayanti | Declared · statewide |
| 21–23 April | Assembly election — polling on 23 April | Election |
| 1 May | May Day | Every year |
| 4 May | Counting day | Election |
| 15 August | Independence Day | Every year |
| 26 August | Eid Milad | Declared · statewide |
| 2 October | Gandhi Jayanti | Every year |
A dry day is a full midnight-to-midnight closure — not shortened hours. TASMAC outlets, bars, clubs and every licensed establishment stay shut.
The four you can plan around
Strip out what was specific to 2026 and four dates remain, fixed and statewide, year after year:
Which is why the honest answer to "how many dry days are there" is at least four, usually more. An election year is the expensive one: 2026 lost four days to the poll alone.
Election dry days are the ones that catch people out
The Election Commission bans liquor sales for roughly the 48 hours before polling closes, plus counting day. In 2026 that meant shops shut on 21, 22 and 23 April for the Assembly poll, and again on 4 May when the votes were counted.
Two things make these harder to plan for than the fixed dates. They are announced rather than scheduled, so there is no calendar to check a year ahead. And they can be district-specific — shops shut where the polling is happening while the rest of the state trades normally. If there is a by-election in your district, that is a dry day for you and nobody else.
The one we noticed before anyone told us
We count stock movement across every TASMAC shop in Tamil Nadu, several times a day. That produces an odd side-effect: a dry day is visible in the data as an absolute flatline — not a quiet day, a zero. Nothing moves anywhere in 38 districts.
On 26 August 2026 our counts went to zero statewide and the system flagged a closure automatically, with no notice, no announcement and nothing in our calendar. It was Eid Milad. We had recorded it as an unexplained statewide shutdown a full day before we understood what it was.
That is the useful property of measuring the whole state at once: a dry day cannot hide. Whether or not it reached a calendar, the shelves stop moving, everywhere, at the same moment.
What happens the day after
Demand does not disappear on a dry day — it is deferred. Across our data the day after a statewide closure runs about 59% above a normal day: 15 August produced the single largest trading day we have measured, and 27 August ran clearly above baseline after the 26th.
Two practical consequences. If you plan to drink on a dry day, buy the day before, not the morning of — and expect company, because the day before also runs hot. If you are shopping the day after, go early: the surge lands in the first session back and the popular lines clear first. Stock depth is worth checking on both days, which is what the app is for.
On every other day of the year the answer is the ordinary one: 12 noon to 10 pm, in every district.
Common questions
Is TASMAC open today?
Yes. All twelve 2026 dry days listed above have passed; the next fixed closure is Tuesday 26 January 2027. Every other day, 12 noon to 10 pm.
Is tomorrow a TASMAC dry day?
Only if tomorrow is on the list — the next fixed one is Republic Day, Tuesday 26 January 2027.
Is TASMAC open tomorrow?
Yes, unless tomorrow is a dry day. The next fixed one is Tuesday 26 January 2027 (Republic Day). Otherwise, 12 noon to 10 pm, every day.
When is the next TASMAC dry day?
Republic Day, Tuesday 26 January 2027, with Thiruvalluvar Day usually declared a few days before it. The last dry day of 2026 was Gandhi Jayanti, 2 October.
Is TASMAC open on Diwali?
Yes. Deepavali is not on the dry-day list, so the shops keep their ordinary hours, 12 noon to 10 pm. In 2026 Deepavali falls on 8 November.
Is TASMAC open on Pongal?
Yes, on Pongal day itself. The dry day is Thiruvalluvar Day, the day after — 16 January in 2026 — which the state declares each year.
Is TASMAC open on August 15?
No. Independence Day is one of the four fixed dry days, with Republic Day, May Day and Gandhi Jayanti; every shop in the state is shut.
What are TASMAC leave days?
The everyday name for dry days: four fixed dates a year plus whatever the state or the Election Commission declares.
Is a dry day shorter hours or a full closure?
A full closure — no shop, bar or club sells liquor from midnight to midnight.
Four dates are certain. The rest arrive by announcement — and the shelves know before the calendars do.