Upcoming Public Holidays in the UAE 2018

Jenny Hunt

2 min read

Updated 12th August 2018 (Originally published 26th July 2018)

To help with planning your business trips to the UAE and doing business in the UAE during the remainder of 2018, please see below a list of the anticipated public holidays. This should be used as a guide only as Islamic holidays are subject to the sighting of the moon. It is common for the exact dates of the public holidays to be confirmed approximately a week prior, so check the local media around the following dates for the confirmations (e.g it has been announced that the public sector holiday for Eid Al Adha will be from Sunday 19th August, returning to work on Sunday 26th August).

School holidays for the upcoming academic year have also been confirmed and are below.

Public Holidays 2018

New Year’s Day Monday 1st January (1 day)

Isra’a Wal Mi'raj Saturday 14th April (1 day)

Ramadan to commence* Thursday 17th May

Eid Al Fitr Thursday 14th June (3 days)

Arafat Day Monday 20th August (1 Day)

Eid Al Adha Tuesday 21st August (3 days)

Hijri New Year Wednesday 12th September (1 day)

Commemoration Day Sunday 18th November (1 day)

Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday (PBUH) Friday 30th November (1 day)

National Day Saturday 1st December (1 day)

* Ramadan is not a Public Holiday, but a Holy month of prayer and fasting.

School Holidays 2018-2019

Term 1 begins 2nd September 2018 - 13th December 2018

Winter Holiday 16th December 2018 - 10th January 2019

Spring Holiday 31st March 2019 - 11th April 2019

Summer Holiday begins 7th July 2019

Please note the above school holidays apply to public and private schools which follow the Ministry of Education curriculum. Indian, Pakistani and Japanese schools have a different schedule following an academic year from April to March.

Written by Jenny Hunt, Founding Partner & CEO

Gateway Group of Companies, Abu Dhabi & Dubai UAE