Americas · Caribbean · Sovereign state
Current time in Dominican Republic
A single time zone at UTC-04:00.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
About Dominican Republic's time
A single time zone.
The Dominican Republic uses a single timezone — Atlantic Standard Time (UTC-04:00) year-round. No clock changes, no daylight saving, just one steady time zone from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo.
Major cities
Cities of Dominican Republic.
History
How Dominican Republic keeps time.
The Dominican Republic has used Atlantic Standard Time (AST, UTC-04:00) since 27 October 1974. Before that it kept Eastern Standard Time (UTC-05:00) from 1933, with daylight saving time in 1966–67 and a half-hour shift to UTC-04:30 each winter from 1969 to 1974. A planned move to US Eastern Time was reversed after five weeks: clocks went back to UTC-05:00 on 29 October 2000 and returned to UTC-04:00 on 3 December 2000. The country has not changed its clocks since.
Convert
Dominican Republic to the world's clocks.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Dominican Republic's time zone, daylight saving rules, and how to handle it in software. Can't find what you need? Email [email protected].
- What time zone is the Dominican Republic in?
- The entire country is on Atlantic Standard Time (AST), which is UTC-04:00 all year round.
- Does the Dominican Republic observe daylight saving time?
- No. The Dominican Republic stays on UTC-04:00 permanently — no clock changes, no DST.
- Is the whole country on the same time?
- Yes. From Santo Domingo to Puerto Plata to Punta Cana, everywhere is on AST (UTC-04:00). Just one zone, no exceptions.
- What's the time difference with the US Eastern Time Zone?
- It depends on the season. While the US is on daylight saving time (mid-March to early November), Eastern Time is UTC-04:00, the same as the Dominican Republic. In winter, Eastern Time is UTC-05:00 and the Dominican Republic is one hour ahead.
- How does Dominican time compare to other Caribbean islands?
- It's the same as Puerto Rico and the Eastern Caribbean islands, which use AST (UTC-04:00) all year. Jamaica is an hour behind at UTC-05:00. Cuba and the Bahamas are an hour behind in winter and on the same time in summer, when they observe daylight saving time.
Source: IANA tzdb2026d · Reviewed
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