Daylight saving guide
New Zealand Daylight Saving 2026: Clocks Go Forward on 27 September
Daylight saving time starts in New Zealand at 2:00am on Sunday 27 September 2026. Clocks jump forward one hour to 3:00am, moving New Zealand from NZST (UTC+12) to NZDT (UTC+13).
The exact change
At 2:00am, clocks move straight to 3:00am. You lose an hour of sleep that night. Daylight saving then runs until Sunday 4 April 2027.
| Detail | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Time zone | NZST | NZDT |
| UTC offset | UTC+12:00 | UTC+13:00 |
| Clock at change | 2:00am | 3:00am |
Phones, laptops and devices using the IANA time zone database should update themselves. Ovens, car dashboards, wall clocks and older alarm clocks may need to be changed manually.
The Chatham Islands change at the same moment on their own offset: 2:45am becomes 3:45am, moving from UTC+12:45 to UTC+13:45.
The rule is “the last Sunday in September at 2:00am.” Because it happens in the small hours, people may call it Saturday night or Sunday morning; both descriptions refer to the same change.
What it does to your international calls
New Zealand starts daylight saving before parts of Australia, the UK and the US. The gaps shift again as those places change their own clocks later in the year.
| New Zealand to | Before 27 Sep | From 27 Sep | Changes again |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | +2 hours | +3 hours | Back to +2 on 4 Oct |
| London | +11 hours | +12 hours | +13 on 25 Oct |
| New York | +16 hours | +17 hours | +18 on 1 Nov |
| Singapore | +4 hours | +5 hours | No change |
| Kathmandu | +6:15 | +7:15 | No change |
The Australia gap catches people most often. New Zealand goes forward on 27 September, while New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT and Tasmania wait until 4 October. For one week, the trans-Tasman gap is three hours instead of the usual two. Brisbane and Perth do not observe daylight saving, so their gaps widen until April.
Check any two cities in the converterWho in the region doesn’t change
This change applies to New Zealand and the Chatham Islands. The Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau remain on their year-round offsets. For Pacific scheduling, only New Zealand’s two time zones move on this date.
Why the last Sunday in September
New Zealand’s current schedule dates from 2007, when the daylight-saving period was extended at both ends; it had previously started in early October. The modern case for the change focuses on more evening daylight through the southern spring and summer, rather than energy savings, where the evidence remains mixed.
Quick answers
- Do I gain or lose an hour?
- You lose one hour. At 2:00am, clocks move directly to 3:00am.
- Does my phone update automatically?
- Yes, provided automatic date and time is switched on.
- What does NZDT stand for?
- New Zealand Daylight Time, which is UTC+13:00.
- When does daylight saving end?
- At 3:00am on Sunday 4 April 2027, when clocks go back to 2:00am NZST.