Time in Mexico

Time zones used in Mexico

Time in Mexico Mexican time zone  | Standard | DST  | U.S. equivalent

|
|
|

| Zona Sureste | UTC−05:00 | Eastern Standard Time
| Zona Centro | UTC−06:00 | UTC−05:00 | Central Time
| UTC−06:00 | Central Standard Time
| Zona Pacífico | UTC−07:00 | UTC−06:00 | Mountain Time
| UTC−07:00 | Mountain Standard Time
| Zona Noroeste | UTC−08:00 | UTC−07:00 | Pacific Time

Mexico uses four time zones:[1][2]

* UTC−05:00: Zona Sureste (Southeast Zone), comprising the state of Quintana Roo;
* UTC−06:00: Zona Centro (Central Zone), comprising all parts of Mexico not included in the other zones, including Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey;
* UTC−07:00: Zona Pacífico (Pacific Zone), comprising the states of Baja California Sur, Nayarit (except the municipality of Bahía de Banderas), Sinaloa, Sonora, and northwest border municipalities of Chihuahua (Janos, Ascensión, Juárez, Guadalupe, and Práxedis Gilberto Guerrero)
* UTC−08:00: Zona Noroeste (Northwest Zone), comprising the state of Baja California.

Some municipalities near the U.S. border[a][b][c] and the entire state of Baja California observe daylight saving time, setting the time forward one hour on the second Sunday of March at 2:00 and back one hour on the first Sunday of November at 2:00, therefore maintaining the same time as the respective areas across the border in the United States.[1][2]

Mexican law states that remote islands observe the time zone corresponding to their geographic location.[1] According to this rule, in the Revillagigedo Islands, San Benedicto, Socorro and Roca Partida are in UTC−07:00, and Clarion is in UTC−08:00.

## History[edit]

See also: Daylight saving time in Mexico

Standard time was first adopted in Mexico in 1922, under a decree by President Álvaro Obregón establishing two time zones. One time zone based on 105°W (7 hours behind GMT) covered most of the country, from Baja California to Veracruz and Oaxaca. A second time zone based on 90°W (6 hours behind GMT) covered the southeastern part of the country, comprising the states of Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and the territory of Quintana Roo.[3] In 1924, a third time zone based on 120°W (8 hours behind GMT) was established for the northern district of the territory of Baja California (corresponding to the current state of Baja California), and the states of Veracruz and Oaxaca were changed to time zone 90°W (6 hours behind GMT).[4]

In 1927, all areas using time zone 105°W (7 hours behind GMT) were changed to 90°W (6 hours behind GMT), and the northern district of the territory of Baja California was changed to 105°W (7 hours behind GMT).[5] In 1930, the northern district of the territory of Baja California was returned to 120°W (8 hours behind GMT), and the rest of the country was returned to 105°W (7 hours behind GMT), except the eastern portion, comprising the states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and the territory of Quintana Roo, which remained in 90°W (6 hours behind GMT). The three time zones were named Hora del Oeste (Western Time), Hora del Centro (Central Time), and Hora del Golfo (Gulf Time), respectively.[6]

In 1931, Mexico observed daylight saving time for the first time. From 30 April to 30 September, the areas in time zones 120°W and 105°W observed 105°W and 90°W (7 and 6 hours behind GMT), respectively, while the areas in time zone 90°W remained observing their standard time all year.[7] This observance was supposed to continue every year from 1 April to 30 September, but it was abandoned in 1932. Instead, the areas in 120°W remained observing their standard time, while the areas in 105°W were permanently changed to 90°W (6 hours behind GMT).[8] Only the Federal District, which corresponds to the current Mexico City, observed daylight saving time in 1939,[9] 1940–1941, 1943–1944,[10] and 1950.[11]

In 1942, the North Territory of Baja California (current Baja California), South Territory of Baja California (current Baja California Sur) and the states of Nayarit, Sinaloa and Sonora were changed to 105°W (7 hours behind GMT), named Hora del Noroeste (Northwest Time). The rest of the country remained in 90°W (6 hours behind GMT), named Hora del Centro (Central Time).[12] The North Territory of Baja California was returned to 120°W (8 hours behind GMT) in 1945,[13] changed again to 105°W in 1948,[14] and returned again to 120°W in 1949.[15] After becoming a state, Baja California observed daylight saving time in 1954–1960 and since 1976, usually with the same schedule as the U.S. state of California.

In December 1981, for commercial and tourism reasons, the states of Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo were changed to time zone 75°W (UTC−05:00).[16] Campeche and Yucatán returned to 90°W (UTC−06:00) in November 1982,[17] and Quintana Roo did so in January 1983.[18]

In 1988, the states of Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas observed daylight saving time as an experiment, from the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October, the same schedule used in the United States at the time. None of these states continued the practice in the following year.[19]

In 1996, all of Mexico started observing daylight saving time, from the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October, matching the U.S. schedule.[20] In 1997, Quintana Roo was changed to 75°W (UTC−05:00) during standard time and 60°W (UTC−04:00) during daylight saving time,[21] but returned to its previous time zone in 1998.[22] Also in 1998, the state of Chihuahua was changed to 105°W (UTC−07:00) during standard time and 90°W (UTC−06:00) during daylight saving time,[21] resulting in its largest city, Juárez, matching the time of neighboring El Paso, Texas, in U.S. Mountain Time. In 1999, the state of Sonora discontinued the observance of daylight saving time, matching most of neighboring Arizona.[23]

In 2001, Mexico experimented with a shorter period of daylight saving time, from the first Sunday in May to the last Sunday in September, except in Baja California, which maintained the U.S. schedule, and Sonora, which did not observe daylight saving time.[24][25] The government of the Federal District issued a decree attempting to also discontinue observing daylight saving time, but the Supreme Court ruled that only Congress had the power to decide on the subject.[26] As a result, Congress passed a law establishing the time zones and a congressional decree for daylight saving time, both of which had previously been established only by presidential decree.[27] The law named the time zones Zona Centro (Central Zone, UTC−06:00 standard time), Zona Pacífico (Pacific Zone, UTC−07:00 standard time) and Zona Noroeste (Northwest Zone, UTC−08:00 standard time). From 2002, daylight saving time was restored to the previous schedule from the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October.[28]

In 2007, the United States extended its daylight saving time schedule to be from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November. The Mexican Congress decided to maintain the existing shorter schedule for Mexico, causing a time difference across the Mexico–United States border during part of the year. The border population complained about the situation, to which Congress responded in 2010 by adopting the U.S. schedule only for Baja California and for municipalities within 20 km of the border, except in Sonora, which had discontinued daylight saving time altogether, while the rest of the country continued using the previous schedule.[29][30] Also in 2010, the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, in the state of Nayarit, changed to the Central Zone (UTC−06:00 standard time and UTC−05:00 daylight saving time).[31] In 2015, the state of Quintana Roo changed to a new time zone, Zona Sureste (Southeast Zone), and discontinued daylight saving time, being in UTC−05:00 all year.[32][33]

In October 2022, Congress replaced the entire law on time zones. Daylight saving time was discontinued nationally, except in Baja California and some municipalities near the U.S. border, which continued observing it with the U.S. schedule. At the same time, the entire state of Chihuahua, including areas near the U.S. border, changed to the Central Zone (UTC−06:00 all year). The law also created a procedure for a state to request Congress to change its time zone or its observance of daylight saving time, and in case of a change initiated by Congress, the law required that Congress seek approval from the respective state.[34] In November 2022, following a request by the state of Chihuahua and approval by Congress according to this procedure, the municipalities near the northwest border of the state were returned to UTC−07:00 standard time and UTC−06:00 daylight saving time, matching the time of Juárez with neighboring El Paso, and the municipalities near the northeast border were changed to UTC−06:00 standard time and UTC−05:00 daylight saving time, matching the time of Ojinaga with neighboring Presidio, Texas.[35][2] Although the text of decree published to make this change specified the time zones incorrectly, the time was changed according to its intent, and Congress planned to correct the text later.[36][37]

## IANA time zone database[edit]

Data for Mexico from zone.tab in the IANA time zone database.

c.c.  | Coordinates  | TZ ID  | Areas  | UTC offset
±hh:mm  | Time zone  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|
|

Std.  | DST  | Std.  | DST
MX  | +3232−11701  | America/Tijuana  | Baja California  | −08:00  | −07:00  | PST  | PDT  | Follows U.S. DST rules
MX  | +2904−11058  | America/Hermosillo  | Sonora  | −07:00  | −07:00  | MST  |
MX  | +2313−10625  | America/Mazatlan  | Baja California Sur, Nayarit (most areas), Sinaloa  | −07:00  | −07:00  | MST  |
MX  | +3144−10629  | America/Ciudad_Juarez  | Chihuahua (US border - west)  | −07:00  | −06:00  | MST  | MDT  | Follows U.S. DST rules[a]
MX  | +2838−10605  | America/Chihuahua  | Chihuahua (most areas)  | −06:00  | −06:00  | CST  | Moved from Zona Pacifico in 2022.
MX  | +1924−09909  | America/Mexico_City  | Central Mexico  | −06:00  | −06:00  | CST  |
MX  | +2934−10425  | America/Ojinaga  | Chihuahua (US border - east)  | −06:00  | −05:00  | CST  | CDT  | Moved from Zona Pacifico in 2022.

Follows U.S. DST rules[b]

MX  | +2550−09730  | America/Matamoros  | Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas (US border)  | −06:00  | −05:00  | CST  | CDT  | Follows U.S. DST rules[c]
MX  | +2105−08646  | America/Cancun  | Quintana Roo  | −05:00  | −05:00  | EST  |
Historical
MX  | +2048−10515  | America/Bahia_Banderas  | Bahía de Banderas  | −06:00  | −06:00  | CST  | Matches Mexico City since 2010
MX  | +2540−10019  | America/Monterrey  | Durango; Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas (most areas)  | −06:00  | −06:00  | CST  | Matches Mexico City since 1999
MX  | +2058−08937  | America/Merida  | Campeche, Yucatán  | −06:00  | −06:00  | CST  | Matches Mexico City since 1982

## See also[edit]

* Effects of time zones on North American broadcasting

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ a b Janos, Ascensión, Juárez, Guadalupe, and Práxedis Gilberto Guerrero in the state of Chihuahua follow U.S. Mountain time
2. ^ a b Coyame del Sotol, Ojinaga, and Manuel Benavides in the state of Chihuahua follow U.S. Central time
3. ^ a b Ocampo, Acuña, Jiménez, Piedras Negras, Zaragoza, Morelos, Allende, Villa Unión, Nava, Guerrero, and Hidalgo, in the state of Coahuila; Anáhuac, in the state of Nuevo León; Nuevo Laredo, Guerrero, Mier, Miguel Alemán, Camargo, Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Reynosa, Río Bravo, Valle Hermoso, and Matamoros, in the state of Tamaulipas follow U.S. Central time

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c "Ley de los husos horarios en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (PDF) (in Spanish). Chamber of Deputies of Mexico. 2 November 2022.
2. ^ a b c "Oficial: El miércoles cambia el horario en Juárez" (in Spanish). Puente Libre. 28 November 2022.
3. ^ "Acuerdo disponiendo que a partir del 1o. de enero de 1922, las horas en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos se contarán de 0 a 24, empezando a la media noche, tiempo medio" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 29 December 1921.
4. ^ "Decreto modificando el de 25 de noviembre de 1921, en lo que se refiere a los sistemas de Husos Horarios que se adoptarán en los Distritos Norte y Sur de la Baja California y Estados de Veracruz y Oaxaca" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 26 December 1923.
5. ^ "Decreto que establece la hora del meridiano 90 W. de Greenwich, en todos los Estados, Territorios y Distritos de la República, en donde se usa la hora del meridiano 105 W. Greenwich" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 9 June 1927.
6. ^ "Decreto que establece en la República la Hora del Golfo, Hora del Centro y Hora del Oeste, conforme a los meridianos 90°, 105° y 120° W. de Greenwich" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 15 November 1930.
7. ^ "Decreto por el cual se establecen los Husos Horarios que deberán regir en la República" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 28 April 1931.
8. ^ "Decreto por el cual se fijan las horas que deberán regir en la República, a partir del 1o. de abril de 1932" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 21 January 1932.
9. ^ "Acuerdo por el cual se restablece la hora que regía con anterioridad al 3 de febrero del presente año" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 26 June 1939.
10. ^ "Acuerdo que dispone se retrase a las 24 horas del día 30 de los corrientes, en sesenta minutos, la hora que rige en el Distrito Federal" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 29 April 1944.
11. ^ "Decreto que deroga el que dispuso el adelanto en sesenta minutos de la hora en el Distrito Federal, y señala que prevalecerá la que regía antes del decreto que se deroga, estableciendo su carácter obligatorio" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 28 July 1950.
12. ^ "Decreto por el cual se determinan las horas que regirán en la República" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 24 April 1942.
13. ^ "Decreto que modifica el de 1º de abril de 1942, fijando la hora del Meridiano 120°, que regirá en el distrito Norte del Territorio de la Baja California" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 12 November 1945.
14. ^ "Decreto que revoca el de 5 de noviembre de 1945, que dispuso que en el Territorio Norte de la Baja california rigiera la hora del meridiano 120°" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 5 April 1948.
15. ^ "Decreto que reforma el de 13 de marzo de 1948, que dispone que en el Territorio Norte de la Baja California, rija la hora del Meridiano 105°; quedando en vigor lo dispuesto en el de 5 de noviembre de 1945, rigiendo la hora del Meridiano 120°" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 13 January 1949.
16. ^ "Decreto mediante el cual se dispone que en los Estados de Campeche, Quintana Roo y Yucatán, regirá la hora del Meridiano 75" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 23 December 1981.
17. ^ "Decreto mediante el cual se dispone que en los Estados de Campeche y Yucatán regirá la hora del Meridiano 90, y en el Estado de Quintana Roo continuará la hora del Meridiano 75°" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 2 November 1982.
18. ^ "Decreto mediante el cual se dispone que en el Estado de Quintana Roo, regirá la hora del meridiano 90°" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 28 December 1982.
19. ^ "Decreto por el que se abroga el publicado el 23 de marzo de 1989, por el que se dispone que en los Estados de Nuevo León y Tamaulipas regirá la hora del meridiano 75, durante el período comprendido del primer domingo de abril al último domingo de septiembre" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 30 March 1989.
20. ^ "Decreto por el que se establecen horarios estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 4 January 1996.
21. ^ a b "Decreto relativo a los horarios estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 13 August 1997.
22. ^ "Decreto que reforma el diverso relativo a los horarios estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 31 July 1998.
23. ^ "Decreto por el que se reforma la fracción III del artículo 2o. del Decreto relativo a los Horarios Estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, publicado el 13 de agosto de 1997" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 29 March 1999.
24. ^ "Decreto por el que se establece que en el territorio nacional habrá cuatro zonas de husos horarios y se abrogan los diversos relativos a los horarios estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, publicados el 4 de enero de 1996, 13 de agosto de 1997, 31 de julio de 1998 y 29 de marzo de 1999, respectivamente" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 1 February 2001.
25. ^ "Fe de erratas al Decreto publicado el 1 de febrero de 2001, por el que se establece que en el territorio nacional habrá cuatro zonas de husos horarios y se abrogan los diversos relativos a los horarios estacionales en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, publicados el 4 de enero de 1996, 13 de agosto de 1997, 31 de julio de 1998 y 29 de marzo de 1999, respectivamente" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 2 February 2001.
26. ^ "Sentencia y voto de minoría relativos a la Controversia Constitucional 8/2001, promovida por el Ejecutivo Federal en contra del Distrito Federal" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 2 February 2001.
27. ^ "Ley del Sistema de Horario en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 29 December 2001.
28. ^ "Decreto por el que se establece el horario estacional que se aplicará en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 1 March 2002.
29. ^ "Decreto por el que se adicionan un segundo y tercer párrafos al Artículo Unico del Decreto por el que se establece el Horario Estacional que se aplicará en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 6 January 2010.
30. ^ "Fe de erratas al Decreto por el que se adicionan un segundo y tercer párrafos al Artículo Unico del Decreto por el que se establece el Horario Estacional que se aplicará en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, publicado el 6 de enero de 2010" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 13 March 2010.
31. ^ "Decreto por el que se reforma la fracción II del artículo 3 de la Ley del Sistema de Horario en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 6 January 2010.
32. ^ "Decreto por el que se reforman los artículos 2 y 3 de la Ley del Sistema de Horario en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 31 January 2015.
33. ^ "Decreto por el que se adiciona una fracción IV al Decreto por el que se establece el Horario Estacional que se aplicará en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 28 April 2017.
34. ^ "Decreto por el que se expide la Ley de los Husos Horarios en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 28 October 2022.
35. ^ "Decreto por el que se reforma la fracción II y se adiciona una fracción III al artículo 5 de la Ley de los Husos Horarios en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" (in Spanish). Official Journal of the Federation. 29 November 2022.
36. ^ "Nadie sabe la hora en Chihuahua: nuevo horario estacional genera caos y confusión" (in Spanish). Radio Fórmula. 29 November 2022.
37. ^ "Error de redacción no afecta homologación de horario entre El Paso y Juárez: Diputada" (in Spanish). El Heraldo de Chihuahua. 29 November 2022.

## External links[edit]

* "Hora Oficial en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos" [Official times across Mexico]. Centro Nacional de Metrología.

* v
* t
* e

Time in the Americas

* United States and Canada
* Latin America and the Caribbean

* Latin America
* Hispanic
* North America
* Northern
* Caribbean
* Central America
* South America

Sovereign states|

* Antigua and Barbuda
* Argentina
* Bahamas
* Barbados
* Belize
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Chile
* Colombia
* Costa Rica
* Cuba
* Dominica
* Dominican Republic
* Ecuador
* El Salvador
* Grenada
* Guatemala
* Guyana
* Haiti
* Honduras
* Jamaica
* Mexico
* Nicaragua
* Panama
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Saint Kitts and Nevis
* Saint Lucia
* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
* Suriname
* Trinidad and Tobago
* United States
* Uruguay
* Venezuela

Dependencies and
other territories

* Anguilla
* Aruba
* Bermuda
* Bonaire
* British Virgin Islands
* Cayman Islands
* Curaçao
* Falkland Islands
* French Guiana
* Greenland
* Guadeloupe
* Martinique
* Montserrat
* Puerto Rico
* Saba
* Saint Barthélemy
* Saint Martin
* Saint Pierre and Miquelon
* Sint Eustatius
* Sint Maarten
* South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
* Turks and Caicos Islands
* U.S. Virgin Islands

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template