Understanding Ireland's standardised school year
The standardised school year is an agreement issued to schools through a Department circular. It fixes the main breaks, sets minimum requirements for school days and provides contingency arrangements for time lost through unforeseen closures. It does not supply every date in an individual school's calendar. This page quotes the rules in the circular's own words, with their source alongside them, so you can distinguish a shared national arrangement from a decision made by a school. Read the provisions together, particularly where a discretionary option or a contingency affects the usual break.
Which circular covers which year
- School year 2025/26: Circular 0072/2022 (ended)
- School year 2026/27: Circular 0018/2026
- School year 2027/28: Circular 0018/2026
- School year 2028/29: Circular 0018/2026
Issued by the Department of Education and Youth (School Governance Section). Circulars in use: 0072/2022 and 0018/2026.
How to read the dates on the year pages
Read the closing and return dates separately
For Christmas and Easter, the circular names the last day of term and the re-opening day. The last day of term is still a school day. The school-year and break pages show these dates separately; the circular does not give a first closed day.
The primary school's February choice
A primary school may take the full February mid-term week by using three discretionary days. Its chosen arrangement appears in the school's own calendar, which must be given to parents at the start of the school year.
Minimum school days
| Rule | What the circular says |
|---|---|
| Minimum school days, primary and special schools | Primary schools and special schools must be open for all pupils for a minimum of 182 school days. |
| Minimum school days, post-primary | Post-primary schools must be open for all students and all year groups for a minimum of 166 school days. |
| A day with less than a full day of tuition does not count as a full school day | Schools are reminded that any day on which a school completes less than a full school day's tuition shall not be counted as a full school day for the purposes of meeting the overall requirements of 166 days at post-primary or 182 days at primary level. |
Start and end of the school year
| Rule | What the circular says |
|---|---|
| Start and end of the school year are not standardised | It is not a requirement of this agreement that the commencement or end of the school year either at primary or post-primary level should be standardised. |
| Normal start of the school year | The expectation is that the school year will normally commence during the week in which the 1st of September falls. |
| Post-primary last tuition day before State examinations | it is recognised the commencement of State examinations will mean that post-primary schools will not be open for tuition beyond the Friday preceding the June bank holiday in any year. |
| Junior infants sent home early at the start of the year | The practice of sending children in junior infants home early from school at the commencement of the school year is permissible for a period of no more than ten school days. |
| Staggered start at post-primary | Staggering, at the commencement of the school year, is limited to a minimum of two days, and all students must return for tuition on the third day of the school year without exception. |
The standardised breaks
| Rule | What the circular says |
|---|---|
| Schools open the weekday before and after each break | Schools are required to reopen for tuition for all pupils/students on the weekday immediately preceding and immediately following each break period covered by this agreement. |
| Discretionary days may extend standardised breaks only where the circular allows | The scheduling of such days must not be used to extend or modify the periods set out in this circular in respect of mid-term, Christmas or Easter breaks save where religious observance requirements of a school under a particular patronage make this necessary. |
| Closure on days required by religious observance | The above arrangements are agreed without prejudice to closure on specific days, subject to the overall requirement of 166 days at post-primary level and 182 days at primary level, dictated by religious observance that is required in schools under the patronage of different denominations or faiths. |
| School calendar given to parents each year | Each school authority shall also provide to parents, at the beginning of each year, a calendar which includes details of school closures. |
Contingency arrangements for time lost to unforeseen closures
| Rule | What the circular says |
|---|---|
| Contingency: February mid-term may be shortened | the February mid-term break may be reduced by up to three days subject to the requirement that all schools must be closed on the Thursday and Friday of the week in which this break falls |
| Contingency: Easter break may be shortened at primary level | the Easter break, in primary schools, may be reduced by up to three days by the school remaining open up to and including the Wednesday immediately preceding the Easter weekend. |
| Contingency arrangements do not provide for remote teaching | The contingency arrangements within the standardised school year to deal with unforeseen school closures do not provide for remote teaching and learning. |
Review
| Rule | What the circular says |
|---|---|
| Review of the arrangements | The parties will review the operation of the arrangements not later than the autumn of 2028 for the purpose of agreeing the arrangements that will apply subsequently. |
Earlier wording
Earlier wording (Circular 0072/2022, school years 2023/24 to 2025/26): junior infants sent home early:
The practice of sending children in junior infants home early from school at the commencement of the school year for a period in excess of two weeks is not permitted.
See the dates
Questions parents ask
Which school years and circulars does this site cover?
The site covers 2025/26, 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29, using circulars 0072/2022 and 0018/2026. Each school-year page identifies the circular that applies.
What are discretionary days?
Discretionary days are days off that a school chooses for its own calendar. Schools must still provide at least 182 days at primary level and 166 days at post-primary level, and may extend standardised breaks only where the circular allows it.
What happens after an unforeseen school closure?
The contingency allowance is up to three days within the permitted break adjustments. The circular defines which schools may shorten February or Easter to recover lost time and does not provide for remote teaching under these arrangements.
Official documents
- Department of Education and Youth: Circular 0018/2026 Standardisation of the school year ... 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29 (PDF, February 2026) (first read on 26 October 2026; checked again on 2 November 2026, unchanged)
- Department of Education: Circular 0072/2022 Standardisation of the school year ... 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26 (DOCX, 10 November 2022) (first read on 26 October 2026; checked again on 2 November 2026, unchanged)
Every date on this page was checked against these documents on . If anything here differs from the circular or the Act, the official text applies. How the dates are checked.