9-day school break in UAE as Dubai schools revise October half-term dates

Several private schools in Dubai have brought forward their October half-term break by a week, giving students a nine-day stretch away from school when the surrounding weekends are counted.

Schools following the unified academic calendar will close from Monday, October 12, to Friday, October 16, 2026. Students will be off from October 10 through October 18 and return to class on Monday, October 19.

The revised dates affect families whose schools had previously listed October 19 to 23 as the holiday. Dubai British School, Safa British School and Arab Unity School have sent parents notices confirming the change, saying their calendars now follow guidance from the UAE Ministry of Education and Dubai’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority.

The shift follows the Ministry of Education’s new three-year academic calendar, which sets October 12 to 16 as the first-semester mid-term break for the 2026-27 school year. Dubai’s KHDA has adopted that calendar for schools under its regulation.

The dates do not apply uniformly to every private school in the UAE. Schools using alternative curricula or operating under different emirate-level regulations may follow other schedules. Sharjah schools have their own regulatory arrangements, while schools using Asian curricula may also have different academic calendars. Parents are advised to use their individual school’s latest approved calendar before arranging travel, accommodation or childcare.