In 2025, the South African school year is structured around four terms, with scheduled breaks to accommodate school holidays. The school year begins in January and concludes in December, with each term lasting approximately 10 to 12 weeks. Between terms, students and teachers enjoy holiday periods, providing time for rest, family activities, and travel.
The school terms and holidays are designed to align with regional differences across South Africa, ensuring that educational institutions can effectively plan and manage the academic calendar. These breaks are important for maintaining a balanced educational experience, helping students to refresh and prepare for the next term.
If your child is attending a public primary or high school in South Africa, you will need to keep updated with the 2025 School Calendar.
It is important to note that the school calendar may differ slightly depending on the province you reside in (Inland or Coastal). Read more to find out the term dates and school holidays for the 2025 school year.
2025 School Calendar for all public schools
Students will attend schools during the following dates:
- Term 1: 15 January 2025 to 28 March 2025 (this means a total of 52 actual school days)
- Term 2: 8 April 2025 to 27 June 2025 (this means a total of 51 actual school days)
- Term 3: 22 July 2025 to 3 October 2025 (this means a total of 53 actual school days)
- Term 4: 13 October 2025 to 10 December 2025 (this means a total of 43 actual school days)
Students attending public school will therefore attend school for a total of 199 days for the 2025 year. They will have 213 days of school holidays and 12 public holidays during the school term.
Administration staff will attend school for an extra 4 days – 2 before the beginning of the year (13 and 14 January 2025) and 2 at the end of the year (11 and 12 December 2025).
2025 School Holidays for all public schools
Students will be off of school during the following dates:
- 31 March 2025 to 7 April 2025
- 30 June 2025 to 21 July 2025
- 6 October 2025 to 10 October 2025
- 11 December 2025 to 14 January 2026 (proposed)
What are Inland or Coastal School?
Inland Cluster schools include schools in the following provinces:
- Free State
- Gauteng
- Limpopo
- Mpumalanga
- North West
Coastal schools include schools in the following provinces:
- Eastern Cape
- KwaZulu-Natal
- Northern Cape
- Western Cape
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Public and School Holidays for the 2025 year
- 1 January 2025: New Year’s Day
- 21 March 2025: Human Rights Day
- 18 April 2025: Good Friday
- 21 April 2025: Family Day
- 28 April 2025: Freedom Day observed (as Freedom Day falls on a Sunday – 27 April 2025)
- 29 April 2025: Special school holiday
- 30 April 2025: Special school holiday
- 1 May 2025: Workers’ Day
- 2 May 2025: Special school holiday
- 16 June 2025: Youth Day
- 9 August 2025: National Women’s Day
- 24 September 2025: Heritage Day
- 16 December 2025: Day of Reconciliation
- 25 December 2025: Christmas Day
- 26 December 2025: Day of Goodwill
Download School Calendars
2024 Public School Calendar (.pdf)
2025 Public School Calendar (.pdf)
2026 Proposed Public School Calendar (.pdf)
This post was last updated in August 2024.
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