Eid ul Adha in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the USA: How the Dates Are Set

In Pakistan, Eid ul Adha falls on the date announced by the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee after it looks for the new crescent moon. The most recent one was Wednesday, May 27, 2026, the same day as in Saudi Arabia. The year before, Pakistan celebrated on June 7, 2025, a day after Saudi Arabia.

That one-day gap is normal. The Islamic calendar is lunar, each month begins with a new crescent, and countries confirm the crescent in different ways. This guide explains how Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Muslim communities in the USA each decide, with recent dates and the expected dates for 2027.

Why Eid dates differ from country to country

An Islamic month lasts 29 or 30 days. On the evening of the 29th, people look for the thin new crescent. If it is seen, the next month begins the following day. If it is not, the month runs to 30 days.

Whether the crescent is visible depends on where you are standing, how old the moon is at sunset and the weather. So one country may see it a night before another. Some bodies rely on witnesses, some on astronomical calculation, and some follow another country's announcement.

Eid al-Fitr is the first day of the month of Shawwal. Eid al-Adha is the 10th day of Dhul Hijjah, the day after the Day of Arafah during Hajj. Our guides to Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha explain the festivals themselves.

Eid in Saudi Arabia: the Supreme Court announcement

Eid in Saudi Arabia is announced by the country's Supreme Court. Ahead of the 29th of the month, the court calls on Muslims across the Kingdom to look for the crescent. In March 2026, Gulf News reported the court asking anyone who saw it, by eye or through binoculars, to report to the nearest court and register their testimony.

The civil calendar in Saudi Arabia, Umm al-Qura, is calculated in advance, and it tells people which evening to look. The court's announcement after the sighting is what fixes the date.

The Saudi date matters outside the Kingdom too. Hajj takes place there, so the court's ruling on the start of Dhul Hijjah sets the Day of Arafah, and many communities abroad tie their Eid al-Adha to it.

• Eid al-Adha 2025: Friday, June 6, with the Day of Arafah on Thursday, June 5.
• Eid al-Fitr 2026: Friday, March 20, after the Shawwal crescent was not sighted and Ramadan completed 30 days.
• Eid al-Adha 2026: Wednesday, May 27, with the Day of Arafah on Tuesday, May 26.

Pakistan Eid ul Adha: the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee

In Pakistan the festival is usually written Eid ul Adha or Eidul Azha. The date is decided by the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, the national moon-sighting body. It meets on the evening of the 29th, while zonal committees meet in other cities, and it weighs testimonies of sightings from around the country before the chairman announces the result.

For 2026, Dawn reported that the committee met in Karachi on May 17, with zonal committees in Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta and Peshawar. Sightings were reported from Karachi, Mardan, Rawalpindi, Peshawar and elsewhere, and the chairman, Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad, announced that 1 Zilhaj would be May 18 and Eid ul Adha would fall on Wednesday, May 27, 2026.

Pakistan often ends up one day behind Saudi Arabia, because the crescent is not always visible there on the same evening.

• Eid ul Adha 2025 in Pakistan: Saturday, June 7. The committee announced on May 27, 2025 that the Zil Hajj moon had not been sighted, so the month began on May 29.
• Eid al-Fitr 2026 in Pakistan: Saturday, March 21, after the Shawwal moon was not sighted and Ramadan completed 30 days.
• Eid ul Adha 2026 in Pakistan: Wednesday, May 27, the same day as Saudi Arabia.

Eid al-Adha in the USA: calculation and the Hajj date

There is no national religious authority in the United States, so mosques choose which method to follow. Many follow the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA), which accepts astronomical calculation for the start of Ramadan and Shawwal and publishes its dates well in advance.

For Eid al-Adha in the USA, the Fiqh Council does something different. It has decided that Eid al-Adha should be the day after the Day of Arafah as announced by the Hajj authorities in Makkah. In its own explanation, the council notes that some Muslims instead celebrate on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah according to their local lunar date. In practice that means two nearby mosques can occasionally hold Eid on different days.

Under those rules, the council's calendar put Eid al-Fitr on Friday, March 20, 2026, and Eid al-Adha in 2026 followed the Saudi announcement of Wednesday, May 27.

Neither Eid is a US federal holiday; the federal list published by the Office of Personnel Management does not include them. Some school districts close anyway. New York City's public school calendar for 2026-27 lists closures for Eid al-Fitr on March 9, 2027 and Eid al-Adha on May 17, 2027. Pew Research Center estimated 5.9 million Muslims in North America in 2020.

Expected Eid dates for 2027

These are calculated dates from the Fiqh Council of North America's published calendar. They are expected dates only. The actual day in any country depends on the moon sighting or official announcement there, and Pakistan in particular may be a day later.

• Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin on Monday, February 8, 2027.
• Eid al-Fitr 2027 is expected on Tuesday, March 9, 2027.
• Dhul Hijjah is calculated to begin on Friday, May 7, 2027, which would put Eid al-Adha on or around Sunday, May 16, 2027, subject to the Hajj announcement from Saudi Arabia.

What stays the same everywhere

Whatever the date, the shape of the day is shared: the Eid prayer in the morning, the Eid greetings, visits to family, and giving to people in need. Before Eid al-Fitr, Muslims pay Zakat al-Fitr. On Eid al-Adha, those who can afford it offer a sacrifice and share the meat.

If your mosque and your relatives abroad are on different days, that is not a mistake by either. Follow the announcement of your own mosque or local authority.

Eid for families in Gaza

Eid also arrives in places where there is little to celebrate with. Many families in Gaza have spent recent Eids displaced from their homes and dependent on aid for food and water.

Fight for Palestine funds food, clean water, medical aid and shelter items through local partner teams. If you are giving this Eid from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the USA or anywhere else, you can support the Emergency Gaza Appeal or read how we handle Zakat.