On Sundays and public holidays, there is a general rest period. All publicly noticeable activities that are likely to impair this rest or that contradict the nature of Sundays and public holidays are prohibited. The institution of Sunday is comprehensively protected as a day of rest and spiritual upliftment, which is constitutionally guaranteed as a basic element of social coexistence and state order and is subject to legal protection. Individuals should be given the opportunity to celebrate the day according to their individual needs, free from the constraints and obligations of the working day.

The following public holidays are recognized by the state in Lower Saxony:

• New Year's Day,
• Good Friday,
• Easter Monday,
• May 1st,
• Ascension Day,
• Whit Monday,
• October 3, as the Day of German Unity,
• October 31, as Reformation Day,
• 1st Christmas Day,
• 2nd Christmas Day.

In addition, the "silent holidays" - Good Friday, the second Sunday before the first Sunday of Advent (Volkstrauertag) and the last Sunday before the first Sunday of Advent (Totensonntag) - are specially protected.