UAE Announces New Friday Prayer Time: Key Details for Worshippers
The United Arab Emirates has officially announced a major nationwide change to the timing of Friday prayers. Starting Friday, 2 January 2026, the weekly Jumuah sermon (khutbah) and congregational prayer will begin at 12:45 PM across all emirates, replacing the current 1:15 PM standard observed since 2022.
With only a few weeks remaining before the change takes effect, religious authorities are urging the Muslim community in the UAE to begin adjusting their routines immediately to ensure a smooth transition.
Preparing for the New Schedule: Advice from Imams
Leading the call for preparation is Sheikh Ayaz Houze, Imam and Khateeb at NGS Mosque, who emphasizes the spiritual significance of Friday (Jumuah) in Islam. He advises worshippers to plan to arrive at the mosque 15 to 30 minutes early to perform voluntary prayers and settle in calmly before the khutbah begins. This, he notes, aligns with the Quranic instruction to hasten to the remembrance of Allah when the call for Friday prayer is announced.
Sheikh Ayaz also highlights practical benefits: the earlier 12:45 PM prayer time will allow more of the Friday afternoon for family, personal worship, and reflection, while potentially easing the last-minute rush many experience under the current schedule.
Potential Challenges and Community Adaptation
The transition, while welcomed, may present initial hurdles. Key concerns include:
Students & Commuters: The earlier time may clash with school dismissal and bus schedules, posing a challenge for students trying to reach the mosque.
Workplace Routines: Employees and employers will need to adapt their Friday schedules to accommodate the new prayer timeframe.
Traffic & Logistics: There is potential for increased traffic congestion around mosques as worshippers aim to arrive earlier, and individuals with tightly scheduled routines may face initial confusion.
Religious leaders encourage the community to set phone reminders, inform family members, and plan their travel in advance to avoid missing prayers.
National Uniformity and Long-Term Benefits
Despite short-term adjustment needs, officials and scholars are optimistic. The UAE prayer time change is seen as a step toward greater national uniformity, fostering consistency and simplifying religious observance across all seven emirates. This unified UAE Friday prayer schedule helps eliminate confusion that can arise from varying local timings.
The change also offers practical advantages for crowd management at mosques. The previous 1:15 PM timing was introduced in 2022 to align with the UAE’s shift to a Saturday-Sunday weekend. The new 12:45 PM khutbah time is viewed as a further refinement for better logistics and communal harmony.
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A Call for Reverent Preparation
In essence, the message from imams is clear: use the coming weeks to prepare. As Sheikh Ayaz states, arriving early is an act of reverence—for the congregation, the ritual, and one’s own spiritual state. By adjusting habits now, the Muslim community in the UAE can ensure that when 2 January 2026 arrives, they are ready to embrace the new Friday prayer timing in UAE with sincerity and tranquility, turning a logistical update into an opportunity for deeper spiritual engagement.
