Quick answer
Property settlements run on business days through the Reserve Bank's settlement system, which operates 7:30am to 10pm AEST or AEDT and closes on weekends and on key national holidays observed in NSW and Victoria. State-only holidays close lenders, valuers and advisers in that state. A file ready late on a Friday or before a public holiday can lose three or four days, so planning around the calendar matters.
Key points
- Settlement system hours: 7:30am–10pm AEST/AEDT on business days.
- Closed on weekends and key national holidays observed in NSW and Victoria.
- State holidays pause people and offices, even when the system is open.
- Friday afternoons and pre-holiday days carry the biggest risk.
- RITS hours
- 7:30am–10pm AEST/AEDT, business days
- Fast payments
- Settled 24/7 via the NPP
- Next state holiday
- Mon 5 Oct 2026 (NSW, ACT, SA, QLD)
Every fast loan runs on two calendars at once. One belongs to you: the deadline, the supplier’s invoice date, the BAS due date. The other belongs to the systems and people that complete a loan: business days, settlement hours, and the public holidays of whichever states are involved. When the two collide — a deadline on a Tuesday after a Monday holiday — the second calendar always wins.
What hours does the settlement system keep?
The Reserve Bank publishes RITS business hours. It settles from 7:30am to 10pm AEST or AEDT on business days. It’s closed on weekends and on these public holidays where they’re observed in New South Wales and Victoria: New Year’s Day, Australia Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, the King’s Birthday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Two things follow from that list:
- Weekends are closed for property settlements, full stop.
- Not every public holiday closes the system. A state-only holiday — Labour Day in some states, Melbourne Cup Day in Victoria — may not appear on the list. But it still closes offices, and that matters just as much.
Separately, fast payments over the New Payments Platform are settled 24 hours a day, every day of the year through the RBA’s Fast Settlement Service. That’s why some money can move at night or on a Sunday, while property settlements can’t. The when funds land page explains the difference.
Why is the practical cut-off earlier than the system’s?
Because people have to finish the work before the system can settle it. A settlement has to be booked, checked and completed by the lender, and by anyone else involved — an outgoing lender on a refinance, for example. By late afternoon, those teams are closing out the day. A file that becomes ready at 4:50pm usually settles the next business morning, even though the system itself stays open into the evening.
Our 24-Hour Funding Clock models a mid-afternoon Sydney cut-off for property settlements. It’s a planning assumption rather than a rule, but it matches how often late-ready files roll over.
Which dates matter over the next few months?
These are the public holidays from October 2026 to January 2027, from the Fair Work Ombudsman’s 2026 list and the fixed-date January holidays.
| Date | Holiday | Where | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 5 Oct 2026 | Labour Day / King’s Birthday | NSW, ACT, SA (Labour Day); QLD (King’s Birthday) | Offices closed in those states; plan settlements for Tuesday |
| Tue 3 Nov 2026 | Melbourne Cup | VIC (some regional variation) | Victorian offices and signatories may be unavailable |
| Thu 24 Dec 2026 | Christmas Eve (evening only) | QLD from 6pm; SA and NT from 7pm | Short working day in practice for many businesses |
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Christmas Day | All states | No property settlements |
| Sat 26 Dec 2026 | Boxing Day | All states (TAS observes it Mon 28 Dec) | Weekend |
| Mon 28 Dec 2026 | Additional public holiday | All states | Treat as a non-business day |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year’s Day | All states | No property settlements |
| Tue 26 Jan 2027 | Australia Day | All states | No property settlements |
Tasmania also has regional holidays in this period, including Royal Hobart Show day in some areas on 22 October and Recreation Day in some areas on 2 November. Check your own council area.
Which days carry the most risk?
- Friday afternoons. Miss Friday’s cut-off and the next settlement is Monday. Monday morning also has to absorb everything that arrived over the weekend.
- The day before a long weekend. In late 2026, Friday 2 October is the working day before a long weekend in NSW, ACT, SA and Queensland.
- Christmas week. 24 December is the last full business day before four non-business days in a row across the country (25, 26, 27 and 28 December). A file not ready by then waits until Tuesday 29 December.
- Around daylight saving changes. The gap between states shifts overnight. See daylight saving and interstate deadlines.
How do you plan around the calendar?
- Work backwards from your deadline to the last business day settlement could realistically happen.
- Take off a margin — a day for a property-secured loan is sensible.
- Enquire early in the day, not late, especially before a weekend or holiday.
- Get paperwork ready first so no stage waits on you.
- Tell the specialist your deadline and any holidays affecting you, including signatories’ states.
If a deadline sits close to a holiday, the sooner a real person sees it the better. Start your 60-second enquiry and name the date.
Illustrative example: the long weekend
Illustrative scenario only. A Brisbane events business needs about $90k to pay a marquee supplier by Tuesday 6 October 2026. The owner enquires at 3pm on Friday 2 October. Queensland’s King’s Birthday falls on Monday 5 October, and New South Wales has Labour Day the same day. Friday’s cut-off has effectively passed, and Monday is a holiday in both states. The earliest realistic settlement is Tuesday morning — tight against the supplier’s deadline.
Had the owner enquired on the Wednesday before, the same loan could have settled on Thursday or Friday with days to spare. The same thinking applies to the year’s biggest holiday cluster over Christmas and New Year, when four non-business days arrive in a row.
Beat the calendar with an early start
Public holidays and cut-offs don’t move, but your start time can. Enquiring takes about a minute, with no credit check when you first enquire. Your details stay with one team rather than being pushed out to a list of lenders, and a real person maps your deadline against the business-day calendar before anything else. Please give your real deadline and state on the form so the plan fits the dates that actually apply to you.
Frequently asked questions
Is the settlement system open on state public holidays?
The RBA lists the holidays on which RITS is closed: New Year's Day, Australia Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, the King's Birthday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day where observed in NSW and Victoria. Other state holidays may not close the system, but they do close offices.
Can a loan be funded on a public holiday?
Property settlements generally wait for a business day. Some payments over the New Payments Platform can move on any day, but whether a lender releases funds on a holiday depends on the lender.
Why does a Friday afternoon enquiry take so long?
Because if the file isn't ready to settle before Friday's practical cut-off, the next settlement opportunity is Monday — or Tuesday if Monday is a holiday — and Monday morning also has the weekend's enquiries to work through.
What's the practical cut-off for same-day settlement?
There isn't one published rule for every lender. It depends on when the lender's settlement team and other parties can book and complete settlement. Planning for mid-afternoon Sydney time is sensible.
Do I need to worry about holidays in my state if the lender is interstate?
Yes. Valuers, solicitors, accountants and your own signatories in your state may be off, even when the lender is working.