Lebanon is considering keeping daylight saving time year-round instead of turning the clocks back one hour later this month, reopening a long-running debate over the economic, operational and health implications of the seasonal time change.

Lebanese media have reported that the government is considering scrapping the seasonal switch and maintaining the current UTC+3 time throughout the year.

No definitive decision has yet been announced by the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, however. Under the existing rules, Lebanon is scheduled to return to standard time at midnight on Oct. 24-25, 2026.

The current system is based on Cabinet Decision No. 5, dated Aug. 20, 1998, which calls for clocks to move forward by one hour at the end of March and back by one hour at the end of October. Lebanon applied the summer-time change this year on March 28-29.

The latest discussion therefore raises a straightforward question: will the government follow the existing schedule or intervene to keep daylight saving time in place, either temporarily or permanently?

From Benjamin Franklin to the World Wars

The idea of daylight saving time dates back to 1784, when American statesman and thinker Benjamin Franklin, while in Paris, jokingly suggested shifting working hours earlier to take advantage of early morning sunlight and reduce the use of candles.

The proposal was not seriously advanced as legislation until 1908, when British builder William Willett advocated changing the clocks. His proposal was rejected at the time.

Daylight saving time was first implemented during World War I, when Germany adopted it in 1916 as a way to conserve coal and energy. Britain and other countries soon followed.

Although many countries abandoned the practice after the war, successive energy crises during the 20th century prompted numerous governments to bring it back.

How the System Works

Daylight saving time involves moving clocks forward by one hour during the summer months and returning them to standard time in the fall.

The system tends to have a greater practical effect in countries at middle and high latitudes, where daylight hours vary substantially between summer and winter.

Policies across the Arab world differ. Egypt and Palestine use seasonal clock changes, while Jordan has kept daylight saving time year-round since 2022.

Morocco, meanwhile, remains on UTC+1 for most of the year but temporarily switches its clocks during Ramadan.

Lebanon's Questionable Economic Benefit

Lebanon has used daylight saving time regularly since 1984, following intermittent adoption of the system in the 1950s and 1970s.

But the economic rationale for the practice has increasingly been questioned.

The system was originally designed largely with industrial economies in mind, where extending daylight into working hours could reduce electricity consumption for lighting in factories and large institutions.

Lebanon's circumstances are different. The country has long suffered from chronic electricity shortages and has a predominantly consumption-driven economy. The potential economic benefits of changing the clocks are therefore less clear.

One of the more tangible advantages is coordination with international markets, particularly for airlines and banking systems that operate across time zones. But maintaining or changing the clock does not necessarily translate into significant savings in the daily electricity consumption of households.

Health Concerns

The debate also extends beyond economics.

According to Al-Liwaa newspaper, specialists in mental health and human physiology have raised concerns about the disruption caused by sudden changes to the body's biological clock.

A one-hour shift can affect sleep patterns, hormone secretion and the nervous system, with the body potentially requiring weeks to adjust to the new schedule. By the time that adjustment is complete, another seasonal change may already be approaching.

Keeping a fixed time year-round would eliminate those twice-yearly disruptions, although the resulting change in sunrise and sunset times would create its own consequences.

What Would Change for Lebanon?

If Lebanon were to keep daylight saving time permanently, the country would remain on UTC+3 throughout the year, rather than switching between UTC+2 in winter and UTC+3 in summer.

The most immediate difference would be felt in winter mornings and evenings.

Sunrise would occur one hour later according to the clock, while sunset would also occur one hour later. That would mean more daylight during the evening but darker mornings.

For people whose schedules are fixed by the clock, a 5 p.m. activity in winter would therefore take place under roughly the same daylight conditions as it does under the current summer-time system.

The change could have particular implications for schools, as children and teachers could be commuting and beginning the school day in darker conditions during the winter months.

Fewer Disruptions for Businesses

A permanent time zone could also reduce operational disruptions caused by changing clocks twice a year.

Banks, airlines, telecommunications companies, technology firms and digital platforms often rely on automated schedules and systems that must account for changes in time zones. Eliminating the seasonal switch could simplify some of those operations and reduce the possibility of errors.

It could also make scheduling more predictable for Lebanese businesses dealing with countries that remain on UTC+3 year-round, including Turkey and some other countries in the region.

Airlines and airports, however, would still need to coordinate their schedules with countries that maintain seasonal clock changes.

More Evening Daylight, but No Guaranteed Energy Savings

Keeping daylight saving time could also benefit businesses that depend on consumer activity after working hours.

Retailers, restaurants, tourism operators and entertainment venues could potentially benefit from longer daylight hours in the evening, which may encourage people to spend more time outside and engage in commercial activities after work.

The energy argument is less straightforward.

Keeping summer time year-round does not automatically guarantee lower electricity consumption. The overall effect depends on how electricity is used, including patterns of lighting, heating and cooling, as well as the structure of economic activity.

For Lebanon, where electricity shortages and changing patterns of power consumption are already a longstanding issue, the potential savings would therefore need to be assessed against actual domestic consumption patterns rather than assumed.

No Decision Yet

For now, the key distinction is between a proposal being discussed and a government decision.

The reports circulating in Lebanon concern the possibility of not moving the clocks back at the end of October. That could take the form of an exceptional decision for one year or become the basis for permanently abandoning the seasonal switch.

Lebanon has precedent for making such exceptions. In 2023, the caretaker government postponed the move to daylight saving time, with the change ultimately taking effect in April rather than at the end of March.

Unless a new government decision is issued, however, the existing rules remain in force and Lebanon is scheduled to return to standard time on Oct. 24-25.