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UAE to Change Friday Prayer Time Starting January 2026

UAE to change Friday prayer timing to 12:45pm starting January 2026 ensuring earlier congregational prayers.

  • Publish date: since 5 hours Reading time: 1 min read
UAE to Change Friday Prayer Time Starting January 2026

The Friday prayer timing in the UAE will change from January 2026, with congregational Jumuah prayers across all mosques set to begin earlier in the day, according to an announcement by the General Authority for Islamic Affairs, Awqaf, and Zakat.

Read More: What Time is Friday Prayer in Dubai?

Starting Friday, January 2, 2026, the Friday sermon and prayer will be held at 12:45pm, around 30 minutes earlier than the current standard time of 1:15pm. Worshippers have been urged to take note of the change and arrive early to perform the prayer on time.

The authority confirmed the update through an alert published on its official Friday sermon archive page, stating:

“O worshippers: The General Authority of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, and Zakat announces that starting from Friday, January 2, 2026, not the upcoming Friday, the Friday sermon and prayer will be held at 12.45 PM. Therefore, O worshippers, make sure to perform it at its specified time to ensure reward and blessings.”

Friday prayer timings were standardised to 1:15pm in 2022 following the UAE’s shift to a Saturday–Sunday weekend, replacing the former Friday–Saturday workweek. The adjustment allowed public-sector employees to work half days on Fridays, enabling them to attend Jumuah prayers, while many private-sector companies adopted flexible arrangements, including remote work.

In addition, employees attending Friday prayers were permitted to take Friday afternoons off, provided they completed their required working hours during the rest of the week.

The update follows previous measures aimed at easing worship during extreme heat. Last summer, UAE authorities instructed imams to limit Friday sermons and prayers to 10 minutes to protect worshippers from high temperatures.

Friday remains the holiest day of the week for Muslims, marked by special congregational prayers held in mosques nationwide.

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