Latest update — August 2026: the Ministry of Education's unified school calendar, announced on 23 February 2026, fixes term dates for three academic years at once — 2026-27, 2027-28 and 2028-29. For the 2026-27 year, students return on Monday 31 August 2026 and the year ends on Friday 2 July 2027. Sharjah's private-school regulator has published a matching calendar with minor differences, and Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi curriculum schools remain on their own April-March cycle.
UAE schools start the 2026-27 academic year on 31 August 2026 and finish on 2 July 2027, with a three-week winter break from 14 December 2026 and a one-week spring break from 5 April 2027. The dates come from the Ministry of Education's (MOE) first unified three-year calendar, which applies to public and private schools nationwide — but the emirate-level regulators still matter: KHDA approves each Dubai private school's calendar, ADEK approves Abu Dhabi's, and SPEA publishes a separate (nearly identical) calendar for Sharjah private schools. This page sets out the confirmed dates, the differences between the four systems, and the wrinkles — Ramadan 2027, Eid breaks, and the Indian-curriculum year — that catch families out.
At a Glance: UAE School Year 2026-27
| Item | Date / detail |
|---|---|
| First day for students | Monday 31 August 2026 (teachers and admin staff return 24 August) |
| Autumn mid-term break | 12–18 October 2026 (Dubai schools may take 19–23 October instead) |
| Winter break | 14 December 2026 – 3 January 2027; classes resume Monday 4 January 2027 |
| Spring break | 5–11 April 2027; classes resume Monday 12 April 2027 (Sharjah: 5–8 April) |
| Last day of the year | Friday 2 July 2027 (Sharjah private schools: Thursday 1 July 2027) |
| Instructional days | 185 under the MOE calendar; 182 minimum for Dubai and Abu Dhabi private schools |
| Ramadan 2027 | Expected from around 8 February 2027 — shorter school days apply |
| Indian-curriculum schools | Separate April–March year; 2026-27 ends around late March 2027 |
The Three-Year Unified Calendar: What Changed
Until now, UAE term dates were announced one year at a time, often late in the spring, which made it hard to book flights or plan leave more than a few months out. On 23 February 2026 the MOE published a single calendar covering three academic years: 2026-27, 2027-28 and 2028-29. The stated goal is a stable, predictable system that protects instructional time — and it means you can already put the 2027-28 start date (30 August 2027) and the 2028-29 start date (28 August 2028) in your diary.
The framework applies to public schools and to private schools across the emirates, with two carve-outs worth knowing:
- Private schools not teaching the MoE curriculum (British, American, IB and similar) may split the first-semester mid-term break between October and February, as long as the total does not exceed five school days. In practice this is the familiar "February half-term" option that many British-curriculum schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi use.
- Schools teaching Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi curricula are outside the unified calendar entirely, because their academic year runs April to March (more below).
Sharjah private schools follow a calendar issued by their own regulator, SPEA — for 2026-27 it mirrors the MOE dates almost exactly, but it is published separately and has its own end-of-year date.
2026-27 Term Dates in Detail
The MOE calendar delivers 185 instructional days in 2026-27, split across three terms of 67, 60 and 58 teaching days. Teaching and administrative staff report back on 24 August 2026, one week before students.
| Term | Teaching window | Instructional days |
|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | 31 August – 11 December 2026 (mid-term break 12–18 October) | 67 |
| Winter break | 14 December 2026 – 3 January 2027 | — |
| Term 2 | 4 January – 2 April 2027 | 60 |
| Spring break | 5–11 April 2027 | — |
| Term 3 | 12 April – 2 July 2027 | 58 |
Two practical notes. First, the winter break is a full three weeks — 14 December through 3 January — which is when flight prices out of the UAE peak; if you plan to travel, book well before October. Second, Term 2 is where all the disruption lands in 2026-27: Ramadan is expected to begin around 8 February 2027, and the Eid Al Fitr school break (commonly reported as 8–12 March 2027) sits inside the term. Term 2's 60 days will feel shorter than they look on paper.
MOE vs KHDA vs ADEK vs SPEA: Who Sets What
The single most common confusion for new arrivals: the MOE sets the national framework, but your school's actual calendar is approved by the emirate regulator. Here is how the four systems divide the work in 2026-27.
| Regulator | Covers | 2026-27 dates | Flexibility |
|---|---|---|---|
| MOE (federal) | Public schools nationwide + private schools on the MoE curriculum | 31 Aug 2026 – 2 Jul 2027; breaks exactly as tabled above; 185 instructional days | None — dates are fixed |
| KHDA (Dubai private) | All Dubai private schools | Most start 31 Aug 2026 and end 2 Jul 2027; winter and spring breaks match MOE | Minimum 182 school days; half-term either 12–18 or 19–23 Oct; may split break days with February (5-day cap); staff-training days and phased starts are school-specific |
| ADEK (Abu Dhabi private) | All Abu Dhabi private and charter schools | Foreign-curriculum schools start 31 Aug 2026 under the unified framework; each school's calendar is individually ADEK-approved and published per school | Minimum 182 school days for foreign-curriculum schools; mid-term break placement may vary within set limits; Indian-curriculum schools run April–March |
| SPEA (Sharjah private) | Sharjah private schools (except Indian and Pakistani curricula) | 31 Aug 2026 – 1 Jul 2027; winter break from 14 Dec, return 4 Jan; spring break 5–8 Apr, return 12 Apr; SPEA's announcement does not list an October mid-term week — expect the national 12–18 Oct dates, but confirm with your school | Separate emirate framework — Sharjah schools do not get the October/February split option |
Sharjah has one structural difference the table understates: since January 2022, Sharjah schools have run a Monday–Thursday teaching week with a three-day weekend, and private schools were permitted to lengthen the school day to compensate. That is why SPEA's year ends on a Thursday (1 July 2027) and why its spring break is listed as Monday–Thursday (5–8 April). Dubai and Abu Dhabi schools teach Monday–Friday, typically with a shorter Friday.
Because ADEK and KHDA approve calendars school by school, the authoritative source for your child's exact dates is the school's published, regulator-approved calendar — Dubai parents can also check their school's profile on the KHDA website. Treat news-site summaries (and this page) as the framework, not the final word on inset days and phased KG starts.
The Indian-Curriculum Wrinkle: An April–March Year
Roughly a quarter of UAE private-school students attend Indian-curriculum (CBSE, ICSE, Kerala board) schools, and their year does not follow the calendar above at all. Indian-curriculum schools run April to March, matching board exam cycles in India. Using one ADEK-approved Indian school calendar for 2026-27 as a concrete example: the academic year began on 30 March 2026, Term 1 ran to early July, the summer break ran 6 July to 28 August 2026, Term 2 started on 31 August 2026 (deliberately aligned with the national return date), the winter break ran from 14 December to 1 January (students back on 4 January, in step with the national return), and the year ends on 2 April 2027 — delivering 192 teaching days.
Key implications for families:
- Admissions run on a different clock. The main intake for Indian-curriculum schools is April, not September. If you arrive in the UAE mid-year, an Indian school may be the only system with seats open at that point in its cycle — see our school application timeline for how the two cycles interleave.
- KHDA lets April-start schools in Dubai choose their own closing date in March, provided they hit the 182-day minimum, so end-of-year dates vary school to school more than in the September-start system.
- Switching between systems costs or gains half a year. Moving a child from a September-start British school to an April-start CBSE school (or the reverse) usually involves a placement decision about which grade they join — covered in our guide to transferring schools.
Pakistani and Bangladeshi curriculum schools are likewise exempt from the unified calendar and follow their own board-aligned years.
Ramadan 2027: Expect Shorter School Days From Early February
Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin around Monday 8 February 2027, subject to moon sighting, and to run until early March. That places the entire month inside Term 2. Regulators announce the specific Ramadan arrangements a week or two before the month starts, but the 2026 precedent is a reliable guide to what is coming:
- Dubai (KHDA): the school day was capped at five hours, and Friday sessions had to finish by 11:30am.
- Public schools (MOE): class periods were shortened to 35 minutes, KG ran roughly three hours, and public-school students switched to remote learning on Fridays under the "Ramadan with Family" initiative.
- Across systems: extracurricular activities were scaled back and assessment timetables adjusted; most schools shifted start times later.
Assume similar rules for February–March 2027 and verify your school's specific Ramadan timetable when it is circulated in late January 2027. If both parents work, note that statutory working hours are also reduced during Ramadan — plan pickups accordingly, and check your own entitlements against our guide to UAE leave entitlements.
Eid Breaks and Public Holidays Inside the School Year
Islamic-calendar holidays move roughly 10–11 days earlier each year, and in 2026-27 they cluster in the second half of the year:
- Eid Al Etihad (UAE National Day): 2–3 December 2026 — a fixed public holiday falling on a Wednesday–Thursday, giving most school families a long weekend just before the winter break.
- Eid Al Fitr: expected around 9–11 March 2027, with the school break commonly reported as 8–12 March 2027 — effectively a full week off mid-Term 2. Moon-sighting dependent.
- Eid Al Adha and Arafat Day: expected mid-May 2027; the school break is commonly reported as around 15–18 May 2027. Moon-sighting dependent.
- Islamic New Year: expected around 6 June 2027, near the end of Term 3.
Exact holiday declarations come from the federal government each year, and schools occasionally bridge an awkward mid-week holiday with an approved extra day off. For the full official holiday list and how the announcements work, see our UAE public holidays guide.
Planning Around the 2026-27 Calendar
A few practitioner-level points that fall out of the dates above:
- Book winter travel before October. The 14 December–3 January break is fixed and identical across MOE, KHDA and SPEA calendars, so demand for those exact dates is emirate-wide. The same applies to the 5–11 April spring window.
- The half-term lottery matters for split-city families. A Dubai school on the 19–23 October half-term and a Sharjah school on 12–18 October will not overlap at all. If your children attend schools under different regulators, check both approved calendars before booking anything for October.
- Admissions season starts almost immediately after the year begins. Applications for September 2027 entry at popular Dubai and Abu Dhabi schools typically open in the first term of 2026-27; our application timeline maps the deadlines, and if you are still weighing British vs American vs IB vs CBSE, start with curriculum choices.
- Nursery calendars are looser. Nurseries are regulated separately, many run through most of the summer, and their breaks are shorter — useful if the eight-week school summer holiday (4 July–30 August 2026 this year, and a similar window in 2027) is a childcare problem. See our nurseries guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do schools start in the UAE for the 2026-27 year?
Students return on Monday 31 August 2026 under the MOE's unified calendar, which covers public schools and private schools in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah (via SPEA's matching calendar). Teachers and administrative staff report back a week earlier, on 24 August 2026. Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi curriculum schools are already mid-year at that point — their 2026-27 year started in late March or April 2026.
When is the winter break for UAE schools in 2026-27?
The winter break runs from 14 December 2026 to 3 January 2027, with classes resuming on Monday 4 January 2027. The dates are the same across the MOE, Dubai (KHDA-approved) and Sharjah (SPEA) calendars, making it a three-week break.
When is spring break 2027 for UAE schools?
Spring break is 5–11 April 2027 under the MOE calendar, with classes resuming Monday 12 April. Sharjah's SPEA calendar lists the break as 5–8 April with the same 12 April return, reflecting Sharjah's Monday–Thursday school week.
When does the 2026-27 school year end?
Friday 2 July 2027 is the last day for students under the MOE calendar and for most Dubai and Abu Dhabi schools. Sharjah private schools finish on Thursday 1 July 2027. Indian-curriculum schools close earlier — around late March 2027, with Dubai's April-start schools free to pick their March closing date once they have delivered 182 school days.
Do Dubai private schools have to follow the MOE calendar?
They align with it, but each school's calendar is individually approved by KHDA. Schools must deliver at least 182 school days, may choose their October half-term week (12–18 or 19–23 October 2026), and may split up to five break days between October and February. Start-of-year staff training days and phased returns for younger years also vary, so always check your school's own published calendar.
Will school hours change during Ramadan 2027?
Almost certainly. Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin around 8 February 2027, subject to moon sighting. In Ramadan 2026, KHDA capped the Dubai school day at five hours with Fridays ending by 11:30am, the MOE shortened public-school lessons to 35 minutes, and public schools moved Fridays to remote learning. Expect similar arrangements, confirmed by the regulators in late January 2027.
When are the Eid school holidays in 2026-27?
Eid Al Fitr is expected around 9–11 March 2027, with schools commonly reported to break from roughly 8 to 12 March. The Eid Al Adha school break is commonly reported as around 15–18 May 2027. Both depend on moon sightings and the federal holiday announcements, so treat the dates as provisional until confirmed.
Why does my Indian-curriculum school have different dates?
Schools teaching Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi curricula are exempt from the unified calendar because their academic year runs April to March, matching home-country board exam cycles. In 2026-27 a typical ADEK-approved Indian school started on 30 March 2026, took its summer break from 6 July to 28 August, resumed alongside everyone else on 31 August, and finishes in early April 2027 after about 192 teaching days.
Related reading: start with the UAE education guide for the full school-system picture, then see the school application timeline for 2027 admissions deadlines, curriculum choices if you are comparing systems, transferring schools for mid-year moves, and the UAE public holidays guide for the official holiday announcements that shape each term.
