Middle East Time Zones Guide
Time zones, workweeks, and DST rules for the Gulf, Israel, Turkey, Iran, and the wider Middle East.
The Middle East is not one time zone. The Gulf, Levant, Turkey, and Iran use different UTC offsets, and workweeks (Sun–Thu vs Fri–Sat weekends) differ from Europe and the Americas. Energy, logistics, and business deals need IANA zones — not vague "Middle East time."
Main IANA zones
- Asia/Dubai — UAE, Oman (UTC+4, no DST)
- Asia/Riyadh — Saudi Arabia (UTC+3, no DST)
- Asia/Jerusalem — Israel (IST/IDT with DST)
- Europe/Istanbul — Turkey (check IANA for current rules)
- Asia/Tehran — Iran (UTC+3:30/+4:30 half-hour zone)
- Asia/Qatar, Asia/Kuwait — most Gulf states UTC+3
Business scheduling
- Gulf workweek often Sun–Thu with Fri–Sat weekend
- Gulf morning overlaps with Central Europe morning (UTC+3 vs CET)
- Beijing is 4 hours ahead of Dubai
- Use Convert and check Public Holidays and Time Zones before invites
Compare China Time Zone: Beijing Time Nationwide, European Time Zones and DST; half-hour zones in Half-Hour and Quarter-Hour Time Zones; more in Guides.