Saudi Arabia has already announced the dates…

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development just announced the holiday dates for Eid Al Fitr 2025. This is everything we know about the Eid Al-Fitr 2025 holiday for the UAE.

Depending on the moon, Ramadan will last for either 29 or 30 days.

The UAE’s moon-sighting committee will convene on Saturday, March 29 (Ramadan 29) to search the skies for the crescent. If spotted, the holy month will end at 29 days and the Eid break is from Sunday, March 30, to Tuesday, April 1. That is two days off during the working week and when combined with the Saturday weekend which precedes the holiday, that’s a four-day break.

It says in the UAE Cabinet Resolution No. (27) of 2024 that “in the event the Month of Ramadan completes (30) days, day (30) of Ramadan shall be deemed as an official holiday added to the Eid-Al-Fitr holiday.”

If the Moon is not spotted on March 29, the holy month of Ramadan will last 30 days. In this case the 30th of Ramadan has been declared a holiday as well in addition to three days for Eid. That means the break would be from Sunday, March 30 (Ramadan 30), till Wednesday, April 2. When also combined with the Saturday weekend that precedes the holiday, that’s a five-day break.

Because the Islamic Calendar is based on moon phase cycles – rather than the solar orbit-based, 365.25 day year of the Gregorian calendar – the two calendars are unsynchronised and so the dates will change relative to one another with each passing year. For example, Eid al Fitr started on April 21 in 2023, and then in 2024 it began on April 10.

There also needs to be a final ‘by the eye’ confirmation of the particular lunar phase before certain Islamic holidays can officially commence. The Moon Sighting Committee needs to physically be able to see the shape of the moon. That means although we can offer fairly reliable predictions, we cannot 100 per cent guarantee the Gregorian holiday dates.

In simple terms…

If the moon is spotted on the Saturday, March 29, then Eid break will be from Sunday March 30 to Tuesday April 1. If the moon is not spotted on Saturday March 29, then Eid break will be from Sunday March 30 to Wednesday April 2.

When will it be announced?

The official announcement confirming the exact dates will be on Saturday March 29 after the Moon Sighting Committee has declared whether the moon has been spotted. However the government should confirm the Islamic Calendar (Hijri) dates for the Eid Al Fitr holiday period about a week prior to Ramadan ending so keep an eye on our page for the latest updates…

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