Western Australia Day 2027

Western Australia Day : First Monday in June

Western Australia Day or WA Day (until 2011 known as Foundation Day) is a public holiday in Western Australia on the first Monday in June: Monday 1 June 2026 and Monday 7 June 2027. The 2028 date is not yet confirmed: a bill that would move several Western Australian public holidays is before the state parliament, and Western Australia publishes its 2028 public holidays when they are confirmed. Western Australia is the only state where the holiday is observed.

The origin of the state of Western Australia goes back to 1829. A British vessel under the command of Captain Charles Fremantle arrived on April 25 on the shores of Western Australia. On 2 May he officially claimed the land for Great Britain. Two other ships arrived on June 1 and June 6 respectively, carrying soldiers, officials and settlers to colonise the area. The Swan River Colony was officially proclaimed on June 11. Just two months later, on August 12, the colony’s capital, the city of Perth, was founded.

In 1834, just 5 years after the arrival of the British, officials in the Swan River Colony decided an annual celebration was necessary to strengthen the community and to unite the inhabitants of all classes in the colony. June 1 was chosen as the date for the occasion and the holiday was named “Foundation Day”.

In 2011 the Foundation Day public holiday was renamed Western Australia Day or WA Day. The new name recognises that Aboriginal people were the first inhabitants of the land, and is meant to make the celebration of the state more meaningful and more inclusive for all its inhabitants.