The Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE) issues one school calendar each year for all government and government-aided schools. States are split into Group A (Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu — Friday–Saturday weekend) and Group B (the remaining states, Sabah and Sarawak — Saturday–Sunday), so the school opening dates and term breaks differ by one day between the two groups. One session contains two terms with four main holiday blocks.
- States are divided into Group A (Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu) and Group B (all other states including Sabah and Sarawak).
- The group difference stems from weekend rest days: Group A rests Friday–Saturday, Group B rests Saturday–Sunday (Johor reverted to Saturday–Sunday effective 1 January 2025).
- One school session has two terms and four holiday blocks: the term 1 mid-term break, the mid-year break, the term 2 mid-term break, and the year-end break.
- The actual dates change every year and are announced through MOE Circulars before the session begins.
Who this applies to: Parents, guardians, teachers and students of government and government-aided schools in Malaysia.
On this page
Plan a family trip for early in the year, and you quickly notice one thing: your neighbour in Kelantan starts school a day earlier than your child in Selangor. That is not a mistake — that is how Malaysia’s school calendar is designed.
Why are there two groups of states?
The Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE) issues one school calendar once a year for all government and government-aided schools. But states in Malaysia do not share the same weekend rest days, so the calendar is divided into two groups.
- Group A — Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu. The weekend falls on Friday and Saturday.
- Group B — Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Selangor, Sabah, Sarawak, plus the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya. The weekend falls on Saturday and Sunday.
This list is current as of 2026: only Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu still keep the Friday–Saturday weekend, while Johor reverted to Saturday–Sunday effective 1 January 2025 and now sits in Group B.
Because the rest days differ, the school opening dates and holiday dates are shifted by one day between the two groups so that the total number of school days stays balanced. That is why Group A often starts a day earlier.
How is one school session structured?
One school session consists of two terms, separated by four main holiday blocks: the term 1 mid-term break, the mid-year break, the term 2 mid-term break, and the year-end break. The mid-year break and the year-end break are the longest blocks.
The table below uses the 2026 session as a real example (MOE Circular No. 3 of 2025). Note the one-day shift between the groups.
| Event | Group A | Group B | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| School begins | 11 Jan 2026 | 12 Jan 2026 | — |
| Term 1 mid-term break | 20–28 Mar | 21–29 Mar | 9 days |
| Mid-year break | 22 May – 6 Jun | 23 May – 7 Jun | 16 days |
| Term 2 mid-term break | 28 Aug – 5 Sep | 29 Aug – 6 Sep | 9 days |
| Year-end break | 4–31 Dec | 5–31 Dec | 27–28 days |
These dates are specific to 2026 only. Every year MOE publishes a new calendar, so do not use last year’s dates to plan this year.
How do festive holidays fit into the picture?
Festive holidays such as Chinese New Year, Aidilfitri and Deepavali are coordinated with the calendar, and sometimes the term-break dates are deliberately aligned with festive seasons. For example, in 2026, 1 Syawal falls on Saturday 21 March, with the Aidilfitri public holiday spanning around 20–23 March (the actual dates are subject to official announcement and may differ by state). These Raya dates fall within the term 1 mid-term break — not merely alongside it — because the Group B term break is 21–29 March and Group A’s is 20–28 March. This overlap gives families a longer period to return to their hometowns.
But there are two sources of difference between states to keep in mind:
- Islamic festivals depend on moon sighting. The dates of Ramadan and Hari Raya can differ by a day between states, and some states declare additional holidays.
- Sabah and Sarawak have their own holidays. The Kaamatan Festival (Sabah and Labuan) and Gawai Dayak Day (Sarawak) at the end of May or early June are state holidays that do not exist in the peninsula.
This means that even though the framework of the calendar is shared nationwide, families in different states may end up on holiday on different days.
What is different for families in Sabah and Sarawak?
Sabah and Sarawak are in Group B, so they follow the same date shift and Saturday–Sunday weekend pattern as the Group B peninsula. The main difference is not in the terms, but in the local festive holidays — Kaamatan and Gawai — which add region-specific public holiday days on top of MOE’s base calendar.
What next
- Before planning a trip or hometown-return tickets, check the latest MOE Circular at moe.gov.my for the official dates of the session concerned — the dates change every year.
- Make sure you are looking at the correct group column (A or B) for your child’s state; the wrong column means being off by a day.
- Match the term-break dates with your state’s public holidays, because Islamic festivals and Sabah/Sarawak holidays can add or shift days.
- For broader context, refer to the public holidays in Malaysia page and the structure of the Malaysian school system.
Why are there a Group A and a Group B?
Because the weekend rest days differ. Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu (Group A) take their weekend on Friday and Saturday, while the other states (Group B) take theirs on Saturday and Sunday. School opening dates and term breaks are therefore shifted by one day so that the number of school days stays balanced.
Are festive holidays the same for all states?
Not necessarily. Festive holidays such as Aidilfitri, Chinese New Year and Deepavali sometimes fall within a term break, but public holidays tied to Islamic dates (Ramadan/Raya) can differ by a day between states because of moon sighting, and Sabah/Sarawak have additional holidays such as Kaamatan and Gawai.
Where can I get the official calendar?
The official calendar is issued through MOE Circulars and the moe.gov.my portal each year before the session begins. Refer to official sources for the exact dates, as they change every year.
The following are deliberately unstated or described only qualitatively until confirmed by a subject-matter expert:
- Tarikh cuti tambahan Hari Raya Aidilfitri 2026 untuk sekolah (KPM melaporkan cuti tambahan sekitar 19–20 Mac) — sahkan bilangan hari tepat setiap kumpulan terhadap Surat Siaran KPM Bil. 3 Tahun 2025.
- Cuti umum Aidilfitri khusus negeri 2026 (cth. hari ketiga Melaka, hari tambahan Johor 24 Mac) — sahkan senarai gazet negeri masing-masing.
- Bilangan hari cuti akhir tahun (27–28 hari) — semak kiraan rangkuman terhadap teks rasmi Surat Siaran KPM.
- Semua tarikh jadual 2026 diambil daripada laman rasmi KPM dan sumber yang mengulang semula edaran; PDF rasmi tidak dapat dihurai secara automatik, jadi baik disemak mata terhadap PDF asal.
Sources
- Surat Siaran KPM Bil. 3 Tahun 2025 — Kalendar Akademik Tahun 2026 bagi Sekolah KPM — Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia (moe.gov.my)
- 2025: Johor Cuti Hujung Minggu Sabtu, Ahad — Antara Perkara Baharu Berkuat Kuasa Esok — Majlis Keselamatan Negara (mkn.gov.my)
- Hari Raya Aidilfitri 2025, 2026 dan 2027 — Tarikh Cuti Umum — PublicHolidays.com.my
- Cuti Sekolah 2026 — Takwim Akademik KPM (mengulang semula Surat Siaran KPM Bil. 3 Tahun 2025) — eCentral
Change history
| Version | Date | Change | By |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01.00 | 8 Aug 2026 | Approved and published. | — |