Which Countries Change Their Clocks?

It’s not just the UK that changes its clocks twice a year – many countries all over the world observe daylight savings time. But what exactly is daylight savings time and why is it used? And which countries change their clocks? We investigate below.

Daylight savings time is when regions will change their clocks, typically by one hour. Usually, clocks will be put forward one hour in the summer and then put back again one hour in the winter.

Countries typically change their clocks to maximise daylight. When clocks are put forward in the summer, there will be more sunlight in the evenings. When the clocks go back in the autumn, there is more daylight in the mornings. The aim is to conserve energy used to light homes, as well as to lengthen the time that people can spend outside.

In Morocco, the change is not related to daylight but is instead due to the observation of Ramadan.

The first DST period lasts from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November. The regions that observe this period are:

Most of these countries will implement DST at 02:00 am on the Sunday, but Cuba starts their period at midnight.

The next DST period lasts from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October. This period is mainly observed by countries in Europe and some overseas territories of European countries, which include:

This period generally begins at 1am and finishes at 1am, except in Moldova. Here, the period will start at 2am and finish in October at 3am.

There are some regions that follow their own DST periods:

Egypt has had periods of observing and not observing DST, most recently starting again in 2023 in a bid to conserve energy.

For the southern hemisphere, fewer countries observe DST. The regions that do change their clocks include:

All these regions will change their clocks by one hour, except for Lord Howe Island, which adjusts clocks by 30 minutes.

There are many countries that used to change their clocks for DST but no longer do, including Brazil, Hong Kong, Iceland, and most of Mexico. Some regions chose to permanently adopt their DST time all year around, while others chose to revert back to the non-DST time.

There have also been proposals in the European Union and the USA to abolish DST. Experts state that money can be saved on energy if time is advanced by an hour permanently, as evenings will be brighter and less electric and gas will be required to light homes. It’s also been argued that there will be fewer road accidents, as there would be less need to drive in the dark if DST was adopted permanently. It’s also believed it would be better for individuals’ mental wellbeing, as they would have more time spent in daylight.

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