Classes don't all start on the same day this year.
All official dates, mid-week holidays, and the printable calendar. Verified one by one against the official order.
The 2026/2027 calendar has a novelty that catches many people off guard: classes do not all start on the same day. Preschool and basic education start between September 11 and 15, 2026, as always, but secondary education only begins on September 21.
We have gathered here all the dates from Order no. 8368/2024, confirmed one by one, and added the answers nobody usually gives: which holidays fall in the middle of the week, who starts school this year, and what changes when a child turns 12. At the end, you have the calendar to print and put on the fridge.
The dates in summary
| Moment | Date |
|---|---|
| Start of classes, preschool to 9th grade | Sep 11 to 15, 2026 |
| Start of classes, secondary education | Sep 21, 2026 |
| Last day of the 1st term | Dec 15, 2026 |
| Christmas break | Dec 16 to Jan 3 |
| Start of the 2nd term | Jan 4, 2027 |
| Carnival break | Feb 8 to 10, 2027 |
| Last day of the 2nd term | Mar 19, 2027 |
| Easter break | Mar 20 to Apr 4 |
| Start of the 3rd term | Apr 5, 2027 |
| End of year, 9th, 11th, and 12th grades | Jun 4, 2027 |
| End of year, 5th to 8th and 10th grades | Jun 11, 2027 |
| End of year, preschool and 1st to 4th grade | Jun 30, 2027 |
When classes start in September 2026
The order defines a window, not a single day. For preschool and basic education, from 1st to 9th grade, that window is September 11 to 15, 2026. Each school cluster chooses the day within it, so the date your school communicates always takes precedence over any calendar you find online, including this one.
For secondary education, the Ministry of Education announced on July 30, 2026, the postponement of the start to September 21, one week after the rest. The justification was to give staff time to grade exams. The 9th grade was also considered for the same postponement, but the ministry ultimately dismissed that possibility, and the 7th, 8th, and 9th grades maintain the September window.
If you have children in different cycles
You will have two back-to-school dates at home, ten days apart. It is worth accounting for this when planning work, shopping, and childcare for that first week and a half.
The three terms, one by one
1st term
2nd term
3rd term
The 1st term ends on December 15, 2026, a Tuesday. The Christmas break starts the following day and formally runs until December 31, but since January 1 is a holiday and falls on a Friday, followed by the weekend, in practice children only return on January 4, 2027.
Carnival is not a holiday
It is a detail that confuses many people. Carnival is not a mandatory holiday in Portugal; it is a "tolerância de ponto" (an optional day off for civil servants), decided year by year by the Government, and each private company decides whether to grant it or not. Schools close because the school calendar order marks an instructional break there, and this is independent of the "tolerância de ponto." In other words, kids stay home whether their parents have the day off or not.
Easter
The 2nd term ends on March 19, a Friday, and the official break runs from March 22 to April 2. Counting the surrounding weekends, children are home from March 20 to April 4. Good Friday is March 26 and Easter Sunday is March 28, both already within the holidays.
The end of the school year is not the same for everyone
The 3rd term begins on April 5, 2027, and this is where the calendar splits into three:
- June 4, 2027, for 9th, 11th, and 12th grades, which have exams afterwards
- June 11, 2027, for 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 10th grades
- June 30, 2027, for preschool and 1st grade, from 1st to 4th grade
If you have one child in the 9th grade and another in the 3rd grade, there is almost a four-week gap between the end of one's classes and the other's. It is the biggest logistical headache of the year and the reason why it is worth looking at these dates in January, not in May, when there are no spots left in summer camps.
The holidays that fall on a school day
This is the list that really matters, because these are the days when there is no school in the middle of the week and someone has to look after the children.
Corpus Christi, May 27, 2027, is the easiest to forget, because it is a movable holiday that changes date every year and this time falls right in the middle of the 3rd term. The other national holidays of the school year fall on weekends or during breaks: November 1 on a Sunday, December 25 and January 1 within the Christmas holidays, March 26 and 28 within the Easter holidays, April 25 on a Sunday, and May 1 on a Saturday.
Added to this are municipal holidays, which vary from municipality to municipality, and the "Santos Populares" in some cities: St. Anthony on June 13, St. John on June 24, and St. Peter on June 29, 2027.
Who starts school this year
The rule is not birth year, it is the date of birth, and the cutoff is always September 15.
- Preschool. Children who turn 3 by September 15, 2026, enter. Attendance is not mandatory, but enrollment is guaranteed and free in the public network.
- 1st grade of basic education. Enrollment is mandatory for those who turn 6 by September 15, 2026.
- Autumn birthdays. Those who turn 3 or 6 between September 16 and December 31, 2026, can still enter upon request by the guardian, but it depends on whether there is a vacancy after applying legal priorities. It is not automatic.
Who changes cycle, and what changes at 12 years old
As a general rule, those born in 2016 enter the 5th grade this year and move to the 2nd cycle. Those born in 2014 enter the 7th grade and move to the 3rd cycle. We say general rule because the same September 15 cutoff applies, and because a grade retention alters the path.
The transition to the 7th grade coincides with a change that almost nobody anticipates: the 12th year of age. Article 55 of the Highway Code requires an approved restraint system for children under 12 years old and under 135 cm tall. They are two criteria at the same time, and you only need to fail one of them for the seat to no longer be mandatory. An 11-year-old child who is 140 cm tall can already just use a seatbelt. A 12-year-old who is 130 cm tall can also, legally.
Legally. Mandatory and safe are not the same thing.
The car seatbelt was designed for an adult body and only sits correctly on the neck and pelvis near 150 cm in height. Below that, the diagonal band tends to cut into the neck and the lap band to ride up to the stomach, which is exactly where we do not want force applied in a collision.
That is why our position is simple: keep the booster seat until the child passes the seatbelt test, even after the law no longer requires it. If you are unsure whether they still fit in the seat they have, the Cadeirómetro answers in seconds.
And in the Azores and Madeira?
This calendar is for Mainland Portugal. The autonomous regions have their own calendar, with small but real differences. In Madeira, the Christmas break starts one day later and the Easter one ends one day earlier. In the Azores, Christmas starts five days later and there is also a mid-year break in January that the mainland does not have. If you live in one of the regions, always confirm with the regional secretariat of education.
The printable calendar
2026/2027 school calendar in PDF
Two A4 pages to print and put on the fridge. The ten months with holidays and breaks in color, and all dates in a list on the back page.
Download the PDF Free. No email, no subscription, no form.Frequently asked questions
When do classes start in 2026/2027?
Between September 11 and 15, 2026, for preschool and basic education, from 1st to 9th grade. For secondary education, on September 21, 2026.
When is the last day of classes for the 1st term?
December 15, 2026. The Christmas instructional break starts on December 16, and classes only resume on January 4, 2027.
When is the Easter break in 2027?
The official break is from March 22 to April 2, 2027. Counting the weekends, children are home from March 20 to April 4, and return on April 5.
When do classes end in June 2027?
It depends on the school year. June 4 for the 9th, 11th, and 12th grades, June 11 for the 5th to 8th and the 10th grade, and June 30 for preschool and the 1st cycle.
Is Carnival a holiday?
It is not a mandatory holiday. It is a "tolerância de ponto," decided year by year by the Government. Schools close anyway because the school calendar marks an instructional break there, from February 8 to 10, 2027.
Which holidays fall on a school day?
Five: October 5, 2026, on a Monday, December 1 and 8, 2026, on Tuesdays, May 27, 2027, on a Thursday, and June 10, 2027, also on a Thursday.
Can this calendar change?
It can. Order no. 8368/2024 set the 2024/2025 to 2027/2028 calendars at once, but the Government has already changed it by subsequent order, and the postponement of secondary school to September 21 is the most recent change. Before booking non-refundable vacations, check with the school.
Since you are preparing for the year
Three things that pay off to do before buying anything. Children grow over the summer and last year's size almost never fits, so measure their foot at home before choosing footwear, and read why we recommend extra space, which is the most common mistake of all. A year of growth may also have passed the height limit of the car seat without anyone noticing, and the Cadeirómetro solves that in two minutes.
Bookmark this page. You will need it again in December, in March, and in May.
Sources: Order no. 8368/2024, of July 25, which establishes the 2024/2025 to 2027/2028 school calendar; Ministry of Education announcement of July 30, 2026, regarding the start of secondary education; article 55 of the Highway Code. Last verification of dates: August 7, 2026.