Graphic: The Philippines Web
Bonifacio Day 2026 falls on Monday, November 30, a regular holiday marking the 163rd birth anniversary of Andres Bonifacio, the Supremo of the Katipunan, the secret society that started the Philippine Revolution against Spain. We celebrate it because the country owes its first organized armed fight for independence to a working-class man from Tondo who built that movement.
The holiday is older than most people think. It was first set by law in 1921, which makes it, according to the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), the second-oldest history-based national holiday after Rizal Day. Here is the story, the law, the long-running “first president” debate, and what the day means for your pay.
Who was Andres Bonifacio?
Bonifacio was born in Tondo, Manila, on November 30, 1863, to Santiago Bonifacio and Catalina de Castro. He reached roughly the second year of high school, and after his parents died he took care of his younger siblings. According to the 1935 biography by Jose P. Santos, which the NHCP republished in English in 2024, he was a heavy reader whose shelf included lives of United States presidents, a history of the French Revolution and Rizal’s two novels.
In July 1892, on the night of Jose Rizal’s arrest by one account in the NHCP-published biography, Bonifacio and his companions founded the Katipunan (Kataas-taasan, Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan). Its goal was independence by force of arms. Bonifacio was not its first leader. The NHCP-published biography lists Deodato Arellano and then Roman Basa as presidents of its early councils. Bonifacio became Supremo later and turned the group into a mass movement, partly through its newspaper, Kalayaan, first issued in 1896.
After Spanish authorities uncovered the society in mid-1896, the Katipunan launched the revolution in late August. Where and exactly when that “Cry” happened, at Balintawak or Pugad Lawin, is still argued over by historians.
The end came within a year. At the Tejeros Convention on March 22, 1897 in Cavite, revolutionary leaders elected Emilio Aguinaldo president of a new revolutionary government. Bonifacio, who presided over the meeting, rejected the outcome after his own election to a lower post was challenged. The next day, he and his allies signed the Acta de Tejeros rejecting the result. He was arrested on April 28, 1897, tried by a council of war in Maragondon and found guilty. Based on the eyewitness account of Major Lazaro Makapagal, he and his brother Procopio were executed on May 10, 1897, near Maragondon, Cavite. He was 33.
Why is Bonifacio Day on November 30 and not the day he died?
The law itself does not say. Act No. 2946 of 1921 simply adds “the thirtieth of November” to the list of legal holidays, with no explanation.
What the record does show is a contrast. The older hero holiday, Rizal Day on December 30, marks Jose Rizal’s execution by Spanish authorities in 1896. Bonifacio’s death is a harder date to commemorate. He was killed by fellow revolutionaries, not by the colonial government, and even the NHCP-published biography notes that accounts of how he died differ. A birthday is the one date about him that no one disputes. That is our reading, not a reason stated in the law.
How did Bonifacio Day become a national holiday?
- 1921: Act No. 2946, approved on February 16, 1921 and signed by Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison, amended the Administrative Code to make November 30 of each year a legal holiday. According to the NHCP, the day was also treated as National Heroes Day at the time.
- 1931: Act No. 3827, approved on October 28, 1931, created a separate National Heroes Day on the last Sunday of August. From then on, November 30 belonged to Bonifacio alone.
- 2007 to today: Republic Act No. 9492 kept Bonifacio Day on the list of regular holidays in the Administrative Code of 1987. Each year, the President issues a proclamation fixing the exact dates. For 2026, that is Proclamation No. 1006, signed on September 3, 2025, which lists “Bonifacio Day – 30 November (Monday)” as a regular holiday.
Was Andres Bonifacio the first president of the Philippines?
This is the most searched question about him, and it has two serious answers.
The case for “yes.” Historians Milagros Guerrero, Emmanuel Encarnacion and Ramon Villegas argue that on August 24, 1896, the Katipunan’s leadership did more than declare a revolt: it set itself up as a national government with Bonifacio at its head. In letters from 1897, Bonifacio used the titles “Kataastaasang Pangulo” and president of the “Haring Bayang Katagalugan” (Sovereign Tagalog Nation), and supporters say “Tagalog” was the Katipunan’s word for all natives of the islands. Historian Xiao Chua has also cited Katipunan documents in Spanish military archives as evidence that the group functioned as a government before Tejeros. The film Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo brought the idea to a wide audience. Supporters say recognizing Bonifacio would take nothing away from Aguinaldo’s place as president of the first constitutional republic.
The case for “no.” The government’s position has not changed. In 1994, the National Historical Institute, the NHCP’s predecessor, rejected a petition to recognize Bonifacio as first president, noting that he was not even the Katipunan’s first Supremo. In 2016, an NHCP official told The Manila Times that Aguinaldo’s presidency “is still recognized” and that no study with new evidence had been submitted. An NHCP commissioner later put the reasoning plainly: the commission sees Bonifacio as the leader of the Katipunan, because the country did not yet have a government of its own at the time. The NHCP still lists Aguinaldo, president from 1899 to 1901, as the first President of the Philippines.
Where that leaves you: under the official record, Aguinaldo is the first president. Whether Bonifacio’s Katipunan government deserves the title is an open historical argument, not a settled fact either way. Both sides agree he led the revolution.
Is Bonifacio Day 2026 a regular holiday, and what is the pay?
Yes. Under Proclamation No. 1006, November 30, 2026 is a regular holiday and falls on a Monday, giving many workers a long weekend. Under DOLE Labor Advisory No. 18, Series of 2026:
- Did not work: 100% of your daily wage, subject to the usual eligibility rules.
- Worked the first eight hours: 200%, the “double pay” people search for.
- Worked, and it is also your rest day: 260%.
Last checked: October 29, 2026.
For worked examples, overtime rates and the November 1 and 2 rules, read our guide to November 2026 holiday pay for Undas and Bonifacio Day. If you work late that night, our explainer on overtime pay and night differential shows how the premiums stack. Bonifacio Day is also the last holiday before the December 24 deadline for the 13th month pay.
How is Bonifacio Day commemorated?
The main state ceremony takes place at the Bonifacio National Monument in Caloocan City, the landmark at the center of the Monumento rotunda. In 2024, for the 161st anniversary, the Executive Secretary led the rites there on behalf of the President, with the NHCP chairperson and Caloocan officials. The theme was “Pagkakaisang Pilipino: Pundasyon ng Malaya at Maunlad na Bayan.” Expect road closures around the Monumento area early that morning. In past years, MMDA and the Caloocan city government have closed parts of MacArthur Highway and Samson Road for the program.
Beyond the official program, the day is a good excuse to read Bonifacio in his own words. His poem “Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Bayan” and his list of duties for Katipuneros, “Katungkulang Gagawin ng mga Anak ng Bayan,” are reproduced in the NHCP’s free biography (linked below). For another side of the same era, see our piece on Sisa and the story of resilience in Philippine history, and browse more history and civics guides in our explainers hub.
Frequently asked questions
When is Bonifacio Day 2026?
Monday, November 30, 2026, per Proclamation No. 1006. It marks Bonifacio’s 163rd birth anniversary.
Is Bonifacio Day a regular or special holiday?
It is a regular holiday. Workers who report get 200% of their daily wage for the first eight hours, and those who don’t work still get 100%, subject to DOLE’s eligibility rules.
Is Bonifacio Day the same as National Heroes Day?
No. National Heroes Day falls on the last Monday of August (August 31 in 2026) and honors Filipino heroes in general. November 30 was briefly treated as National Heroes Day in the 1920s, until Act No. 3827 of 1931 created a separate heroes’ holiday.
Was Bonifacio the first president of the Philippines?
Officially, no. The NHCP recognizes Emilio Aguinaldo. Some historians argue Bonifacio headed a national revolutionary government from August 1896, before Aguinaldo’s election at Tejeros, but the NHCP has not accepted that claim.
Sources
- Proclamation No. 1006, s. 2025, regular holidays and special days for 2026 (Sep 3, 2025), Lawphil: https://lawphil.net/executive/proc/proc2025/proc_1006_2025.html (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- Act No. 2946, “An Act Making the Thirtieth of November of Each Year a Legal Holiday” (Feb 16, 1921), Supreme Court E-Library: https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocs/11/36191 (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- Act No. 3827, National Heroes Day (Oct 28, 1931), Lawphil: https://lawphil.net/statutes/acts/act1931/act_3827_1931.html (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- Republic Act No. 9492 (Jul 24, 2007), Lawphil: https://lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2007/ra_9492_2007.html (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- NHCP, “Andres Bonifacio and the Revolution” by Jose P. Santos, trans. Augusto V. de Viana (2024), PDF: https://memory.nhcp.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Andres-Bonifacio-and-the-Revolution.pdf (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- NHCP, “Nation Commemorates 161st Bonifacio Day” (Nov 2024): https://nhcp.gov.ph/news_and_updates/nation-commemorates-161st-bonifacio-day/ (blocked to our checker; text confirmed via the reprint below, Oct 29, 2026)
- The Manila Times, “Nation commemorates 161st Bonifacio Day” (NHCP release, Dec 2, 2024): https://www.manilatimes.net/2024/12/02/tmt-newswire/nation-commemorates-161st-bonifacio-day/2013910 (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- The Manila Times, “Militants want Bonifacio declared first president” (Aug 29, 2016): https://www.manilatimes.net/2016/08/29/todays-headline-photos/top-stories/militants-want-bonifacio-declared-first-president/282692 (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- The Philippine Star, “Was Andres Bonifacio the first Philippine president?” (Dec 1, 2018): https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2018/12/01/1873117/was-andres-bonifacio-first-philippine-president (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- NHCP, Emilio Aguinaldo 155th birth anniversary release (Mar 2024), describing Aguinaldo as first President (1899–1901): https://nhcp.gov.ph/news_and_updates/dilg-secretary-abalos-to-lead-the-155th-birth-anniversary-of-emilio-aguinaldo/ (read via search index; blocked to direct fetch, Oct 29, 2026)
- Manila Times, “MMDA: Road closures set for Bonifacio Day rites in Caloocan” (Nov 28, 2024): https://www.manilatimes.net/2024/11/28/news/mmda-road-closures-set-for-bonifacio-day-rites-in-caloocan/2012906 (checked Oct 29, 2026)
- DOLE, “DOLE issues pay rules for November holidays” (Labor Advisory No. 18, s. 2026; Oct 2026): https://dole.gov.ph/news/dole-issues-pay-rules-for-november-holidays/ (read via search index; direct fetch blocked, Oct 29, 2026)
Last checked: October 29, 2026.
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