UAE schools revise timings, students to be dismissed as early as 11.10am
As schools in the UAE start sending emails and circulars to parents about school days, which will end early on Fridays along with the country’s new unified Friday prayer timings. Schools vary in their dismissal times, with some letting students out starting as soon as 11. 10 am, plus pick-up times held earlier by up to 30 minutes. Schools have overhauled lesson timings, releasing patterns and travel schedules to make the change possible.
Private schools have told families they will finish classes on Fridays no later than 11.30am from January 9, 2026.
Many schools have provided specific, school-by-school guidance. In a circular to parents, GEMS Our Own Indian School wrote: “Students using their transport will be dropped at 11.10 am to 11. 20am. For those taking the bus, it leaves at 11. 20am. The school said it extended the lunch period so that students have enough time to make their way to the Friday Prayer. “By coordinating school hours with the country’s faith-based values, the Ministry of Education wishes to reinforce religious and national values as a basis for the student’s character.”
In its note to parents, Jumeirah College said all students would be sent home by 11.30 am on Fridays. There would be a marginal reduction in lesson timings, but break times will remain the same according to KHDA guidelines and due consideration for students’ wellbeing, the school said.
Primary and secondary pupils at Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills will be dismissed at 11.30am each Friday, using the same method it does now to drop off students early for Parade “except that this week we will pick them up from school early on Fridays as well”, according to a letter parents received. The school also posted an updated bell schedule, in which lessons would end by 11. 20am and a brief pack-up time before leaving.
And more have been trying to weigh logistics with the continuity of learning. A circular from Al Sadiq Islamic English School, which was shared with parents, says the school gate will open at 11.25am and students can be collected then. The school said its Friday roster had been strategically adjusted to ensure that it still covers curriculum and does not compromise learning outcomes, with students attendance being recorded on Fridays still.
Abu Dhabi also is announcing similar early-dismissal notifications. A private school informed parents in a message that classes on Friday will be from 8am to 11.30am for all students, including Pre-KG and Grade 12 starting January 9, with new time schedules to be shared before the implementation date.
Government schools, meanwhile, have been directed to close at 11.30am on Fridays — with staggered start times introduced across the kindergarten and school cycles already announced for management purposes.
The modifications come after a nationwide change to the time of the Friday sermon and prayer, which will now take place at 12.45 pm, half an hour before it used to.
Previously, the KHDA had announced that schools could apply to conduct distance learning on Fridays for pupils in Grade 6 (Year 7) and above, provided a consultation with parents and regulatory approvals are in place.
With the January 9 deadline looming to comply with the new orders, more and more schools are anticipated to send circulars and emails informing parents about altered Friday duration in days to come.
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