Western Australia · government schools
No — Western Australia government schools are in Term 3.
Tuesday 8 September 2026. Term 3 runs to Fri 25 Sep.
Western Australia gazettes its term dates the same way it gazettes its public holidays, and publishes them six years ahead — further than any other state.
Saturday
26September 2026
Spring holidays begin
in 18 days- Last day of this term
- Fri 25 Sep
- Length of the next break
- 16 daysLast day of school to first day back
- Breaks left in 2026
- 2
- Applies to
- Government schoolsCatholic and independent set their own
Whose school holidays are these?
The department's calendar is not everybody's calendar
These are the dates for WA PUBLIC schools. Catholic and independent schools set their own; the department's own note is to check your school's schedule for planned development days.
That is why a search for your state's school holidays turns up your state's education department, an independent schools association and somebody's individual school, all with slightly different dates. None of them is wrong. They are answering for different schools.
- Government schools — The dates in the tables on this page, set by the department.
- Catholic systemic schools — Catholic systemic schools are close to the government dates but not bound by them — dioceses set their own staff development days, and start and finish days can move by a day or two. Check your diocese or your school.
- Independent schools — Independent schools set their own calendar entirely. In practice most start a little earlier and finish a little earlier than the government dates, and their terms can be a few days shorter at each end. The only reliable source is your own school’s published calendar.
2026 at a glance
The school year on one screen: term breaks shaded, public holidays filled, today ringed. This is the view worth printing for the fridge.
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
WA school holidays in 2026
Measured the way a parent measures it: from the last day your child is at school to the first day they go back. The department publishes its own, narrower figure too, and both are shown.
| Break | Last day | Back at school | Days off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn holidays | Thu 2 Apr | Mon 20 Apr | 17 |
| Winter holidays | Fri 3 Jul | Mon 20 Jul | 16 |
| Spring holidays | Fri 25 Sep | Mon 12 Oct | 16 |
| Summer holidays | Thu 17 Dec | Mon 1 Feb | 45 |
What the department itself publishes
The same breaks, counted the department's way. Where this is shorter than the table above, the difference is public holidays and staff days that sit inside the break.
| Period | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn | Fri 3 Apr | Sun 19 Apr |
| Winter | Sat 4 Jul | Sun 19 Jul |
| Spring | Sat 26 Sep | Sun 11 Oct |
Term dates
| Term | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | Mon 2 Feb – Thu 2 Apr | Mon 1 Feb – Fri 9 Apr |
| Term 2 | Mon 20 Apr – Fri 3 Jul | Mon 26 Apr – Fri 2 Jul |
| Term 3 | Mon 20 Jul – Fri 25 Sep | Mon 19 Jul – Fri 24 Sep |
| Term 4 | Mon 12 Oct – Thu 17 Dec | Mon 11 Oct – Thu 16 Dec |
The catches in WA's calendar
Things the dates alone do not tell you
- The department publishes the breaks itself, running Saturday to Sunday, so its figures include the weekends at both ends.
- For 2027 the department's own note flags that Monday 26 April is expected to be a public holiday for Anzac Day — and its published Term 2 start is that same Monday. Students would return on the Tuesday. Check your school.
Public holidays during the WA school year
Term time has public holidays in it too, and they are not the same days as the school breaks — see public holidays in WA, where every date is checked against Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972 (WA).
Frequently asked questions
Are WA term dates official?
More formally than most. The department states that its term dates for public school students are published in the Western Australian Government Gazette — the same instrument that carries the state’s public holidays.
It also publishes them a long way ahead: dates through to 2032 are already up. Only Victoria, which fixes its calendar five years at a time by ministerial determination, comes close.
Does Term 2 2027 really start on a public holiday?
The published date says Monday 26 April, and the department’s own note on the same page says that Monday is expected to be a public holiday for Anzac Day. Both things are on the page.
In practice that means students return on the Tuesday. It is a good example of why this site shows what the source says rather than smoothing it over — and a good reason to confirm the first day back with your school that year rather than trusting any calendar, including this one.
Do WA school holidays line up with the eastern states?
Not closely. Western Australia’s Term 1 runs later than most — to 9 April in 2027 — and its breaks fall on different weeks from New South Wales and Victoria more often than they match.
Add the two-hour time difference and the fact that WA is the only state without an Easter Saturday public holiday, and a national family calendar needs Perth handled separately rather than assumed.
Verified
Term dates from WA Department of Education, checked . Built for. These are government school dates — confirm with your own school before you book anything.