Overview
- Spain will move to winter time in the early hours of Sunday, October 25, 2026, when 03:00 becomes 02:00 on the peninsula, Balearic Islands, Ceuta and Melilla and 02:00 becomes 01:00 in the Canary Islands.
- The date is listed in Spain’s Order PCM/186/2022 published in the BOE and aligns with the European Commission’s coordinated calendar (communication C/2026/1660) that sets change dates through 2031.
- Practically, citizens gain an extra hour that night and will see sunrises and sunsets about one hour earlier thereafter, most internet-connected devices will update automatically and many wall clocks, appliances and car clocks must be adjusted by hand.
- Sleep researchers and recent studies favor keeping permanent standard (winter) time because morning light better aligns circadian rhythms, and specialists advise vulnerable groups to prepare by shifting routines gradually in 15-minute steps over several days.
- Policy change remains blocked in the Council because member states disagree on whether to adopt permanent summer or winter time, the European Commission has publicly criticized the lack of agreement, and a commissioned study on impacts is still pending.