Time in Morocco: GMT for good, what is the time difference with Europe?

Since Sunday 20 September 2026 at 2 a.m., Morocco has been on GMT (UTC+0), and this time no switch back is planned. The GMT+1 adopted in 2018 is gone, and so is the Ramadan clock change. If you are flying in from Paris, Madrid, Brussels, Berlin, Rome or London, the question is simple: how many hours of difference, and when does it change? Here is the full explanation, with exact dates and the real traps: phones, trains, flights, ferries and opening hours.

What changed on 20 September 2026

Decree no. 2.26.530 on legal time was adopted by the Council of Government on 25 June 2026 and published in Bulletin officiel no. 7521 of 29 June 2026, according to Œil d'Afrique. It repeals the 2018 decree that had set Morocco on GMT+1 all year. On the night of Saturday 19 to Sunday 20 September 2026, at 2 a.m., clocks went back 60 minutes, as Le360 had announced.

The government spokesperson called it a "definitive decision". An honest caveat: the 1967 legal framework still lets the government add 60 minutes by regulation, as Œil d'Afrique points out. As of today, no further change has been announced.

The time difference with Europe, period by period

In practice, when it is noon in Paris or Madrid in December, it is 11 a.m. in Marrakech. In April 2027, at noon in Paris it will be 10 a.m. in Tangier. The Canary Islands keep London time, so in winter they share Morocco's time.

Why 28 March? In the European Union, summer time starts on the last Sunday of March, and in 2027 that Sunday is the 28th. It is also Easter Sunday: a double trap if you travel that weekend. Winter time returns in Europe on the last Sunday of October, which is why the gap changed on 25 October 2026.

Ramadan 2027: no more clock change

Since 2018, Morocco turned its clocks back one hour for Ramadan, then forward again after Eid. Even in 2026, clocks went back on 15 February and forward on 22 March, according to Œil d'Afrique. That back-and-forth is over. Ramadan 2027, expected around early February 2027 (the exact date depends on the sighting of the crescent moon), will run on normal GMT. Guides and forums that still mention a "Ramadan time change" describe the old system.

Is your phone showing the right time?

Phones and computers set the time from a worldwide time zone database, the tz database. Morocco's move to UTC+0 was added in release 2026c, published on 8 July 2026 (IANA). An up-to-date device therefore switched by itself on 20 September. A few habits:

• Keep "set time zone automatically" switched on. If you had picked "Casablanca" by hand, check the time on arrival.
• An old phone, tablet or laptop that has never been updated may show one hour too many. Compare it with the clock at the airport or station.
• Alarms and reminders follow the device: set on the wrong time, they go off an hour early.
• Smartwatch, camera, rental car: same check, especially if you rely on their timestamps.

Trains, flights, ferries: always in local time

Golden rule: a transport timetable is shown in the local time of the place concerned.

• Flights: departure in the departure country's time, arrival in the arrival country's time. Made-up example: a 3h15 flight leaving Paris at 10:00 in December lands in Morocco at 12:15 Moroccan time (13:15 in Paris).
• ONCF trains (Al Boraq, Al Atlas): times are in Moroccan time, on oncf-voyages.ma and on your ticket.
• Strait ferries: each port shows its own local time. Between Tarifa and Tangier, the real crossing time is not the difference between the two printed times. Our guide to the first and last Tarifa-Tangier boat covers the timing.
• Connections: if you chain a flight, a train and an appointment, convert everything to Moroccan time before doing the maths.

Sunset, prayer times and opening hours

With one hour less than last winter, the sun rises and sets one hour earlier on the clock. In December, darkness comes in the late afternoon, roughly between 5 p.m. and 5:45 p.m. depending on the city: earlier in Tangier, later in Agadir. Mornings are brighter.

Sites, museums and shops show their hours in local time. Anything you can visit "until dusk" now closes earlier on the clock: keep gardens, ramparts and rooftop terraces for the early afternoon. Prayer times, and so the Friday midday break in some shops, also move on the clock. For weekly closing days, see our article on what closes when in Morocco.

At BoxSpot, every time is Moroccan time

When you book luggage storage on BoxSpot, the drop-off and pick-up times you choose are in Moroccan local time, the time of the partner shop or café. The opening hours shown for each point are local too. No need to convert from Paris or Madrid time: just read Moroccan time. A few examples:

• Tangier: RS Valises, near the Gran Teatro Cervantes, daily 11:00 to 23:00, about 3 minutes on foot from the Grand Socco and less than 10 minutes from Tanger Ville port.
• Rabat: Saberbest, near Place de Russie, daily 9:00 to 22:00 (the hours on the booking page are the reference).
• Marrakech: Bazar Posterre, near the Medersa Ben Youssef, 11:00 to 23:00 Monday to Thursday and Saturday, 11:00 to 22:00 on Friday, closed on Sunday.
• Fez: Barber Shop Alami, in the ville nouvelle, daily 12:00 to 22:00.

The process does not change: you show your booking, the partner scans the QR code and takes a timestamped photo of your bags, and they are returned only against the same QR code. You pay online by card, in dirhams.

Price example

You step off the ferry at Tanger Ville on a December day: it is 11:00 Moroccan time, noon in Spain. You drop a suitcase at RS Valises at 11:00 and pick it up at 17:00 before your evening bus: 6 hours at 9 MAD per hour, so 54 MAD. If you leave it all day, an hourly booking never goes above 59 MAD for the first bag.