Last updated: October 31, 2026

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Daylight saving time ends at 2:00 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 1, 2026 — but only in part of Canada. In 2026, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories adopted permanent year-round time and will not turn their clocks back, joining Saskatchewan and Yukon. If you live in Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic Canada or most of Nunavut, your clocks go back one hour tonight. Your CPP and OAS payment dates do not change either way: the next payment is Thursday, November 26, 2026.

What happens at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 1, 2026

In every region that still observes daylight saving time, clocks move back one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time, from 2:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m., and standard time resumes until Sunday, March 14, 2027. The hour from 1:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. happens twice that night, which is why phones and computers show the change automatically while wall clocks, stoves and microwaves need to be set back by hand before bed on Saturday night.

Time in Canada is set by provincial and territorial law, not by Ottawa. The National Research Council keeps Canada’s official time, but each province and territory decides whether clocks change — and in 2026, four of them decided to stop.

Which provinces still change their clocks — and which stopped in 2026

The four 2026 changes, in brief:

• British Columbia announced on March 2, 2026 that the March 8, 2026 spring-forward was its final clock change. Most of B.C. now keeps Pacific Time (UTC−7) all year. The East Kootenay and Golden follow Alberta’s time (UTC−6), and the northeast (Dawson Creek, Fort St. John) was already on UTC−7 year-round, so it now matches the rest of the province.
• Alberta brought its Official Time Act into force on June 18, 2026. Alberta Time (UTC−6) — the offset Albertans used to call Mountain Daylight Time — now applies all year, so Alberta and Saskatchewan share the same clock permanently.
• Manitoba announced on September 17, 2026 that it will stay on daylight time permanently (UTC−5); Premier Wab Kinew signed the proclamation on September 25, 2026. The province surveyed nearly 72,000 people: 92% wanted the clock changes to end, and 58% preferred permanent daylight time.
• The Northwest Territories put its regulations for Northwest Territories Time (UTC−6) into force on August 21, 2026, after a 2022 survey in which more than 87% of over 3,500 respondents supported ending the twice-a-year change.
• Northwestern Ontario is the one exception in the east: on October 13, 2026, Ontario announced that the Kenora district and other communities west of the 90th meridian will stay on Central daylight time (UTC−5) year-round, aligned with Manitoba, instead of falling back.

Two areas never took part and still do not: Blanc-Sablon and Quebec’s Lower North Shore east of 63° west stay on Atlantic Standard Time year-round, and Southampton Island in Nunavut (including Coral Harbour) stays on Eastern Standard Time year-round.

What the new time map means for your pension

• Payment dates do not move. CPP, OAS and GIS are paid on set calendar dates. The next payment date is Thursday, November 26, 2026, and the last payment of the year is Tuesday, December 22, 2026, in every province and territory, no matter what the clocks did. Direct deposit lands on the same dates as always.
• Winnipeg and Ottawa now share a clock all winter. Because Manitoba kept daylight time (UTC−5) and Ontario returns to Eastern Standard Time (UTC−5), a call or video chat between Manitoba and Ontario family members no longer needs an hour added or subtracted — the same is true for appointments booked across the two provinces.
• Toronto is now only 2 hours ahead of Vancouver in winter (it used to be 3), and only 1 hour ahead of Calgary (it used to be 2). If you schedule calls with children or grandchildren out west, the gap is smaller than last winter.
• British Columbia is now 1 hour ahead of Seattle and the U.S. Pacific coast all winter, because the United States still turns its clocks back on November 1, 2026. Cross-border shopping trips, ferries and flights from B.C. run on the new difference until the U.S. springs forward on March 14, 2027.

Service Canada hours: what changes and what does not

Service Canada’s posted hours are local clock times, and they do not change for daylight saving time:

• CPP/OAS phone line: 1-800-277-9914, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. your local time. The automated service on the same number is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The line is closed on weekends and public holidays.
• From outside Canada and the United States: 1-613-957-1954 (collect), which operates on Eastern Time — and note the gap is smaller than last winter: Eastern Time is now only one hour ahead of Alberta instead of two, and on exactly the same clock as Manitoba, so plan the call window accordingly.
• Service Canada Centres keep their usual hours (most are open Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m., commonly to 4:00 p.m. local time; hours vary by office, and some close briefly at midday). An appointment booked for 10:00 a.m. on Monday, November 2 is still at 10:00 a.m. on the local clock — only the name of the time zone behind it changed.
• My Service Canada Account stays available online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, clock change or not.

One caution for Monday morning: some calendar apps and older phones or computers may show appointments an hour off after November 1 if their time-zone information has not been updated for the 2026 provincial changes. If you have a medical, banking or Service Canada appointment early in the week — especially one booked with someone in another province — confirm the time directly rather than trusting an entry made months ago.

A short checklist for Saturday night

1. If you are in Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic Canada or most of Nunavut, set wall clocks, the stove and the microwave back one hour before bed.
2. If you are in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan or Yukon, do nothing — and check in the morning that a phone or computer clock has not wrongly “fallen back” on the old rules; set it to the new zone name (Pacific Time, Alberta Time or Northwest Territories Time) if it has.
3. Use the moment to test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, as fire services recommend at each clock change.
4. Check Sunday and Monday appointments once, by clock time, against a reliable source such as the official time from the National Research Council.
5. Relax about your pension: the November 26 payment date is not affected.

Frequently asked questions

Do the clocks go back on November 1, 2026 where I live?
Only if you live in Ontario (outside the northwest), Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, or most of Nunavut. British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, northwestern Ontario, Saskatchewan and Yukon do not change their clocks this year.

Does the time change affect my CPP or OAS payment?
No. CPP, OAS and GIS payment dates are fixed calendar dates. The next payment is Thursday, November 26, 2026, and the final 2026 payment is Tuesday, December 22, 2026, in every province and territory.

Did Service Canada change its hours for daylight saving time?
No. The CPP/OAS line (1-800-277-9914) is answered Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. local time, as always, and Service Canada Centres keep their posted local hours. Hours are given in local time, so they read exactly the same before and after the change.

Why is Winnipeg on the same time as Toronto this winter?
Manitoba stayed on daylight time (UTC−5) permanently after its September 17, 2026 announcement, while Ontario returned to Eastern Standard Time (UTC−5) on November 1, 2026. Both sit at UTC−5 until Ontario springs forward on March 14, 2027.

When do clocks change next?
The next change is Sunday, March 14, 2027, when the regions that still observe daylight saving time spring forward one hour. The provinces and territories on permanent time will not move their clocks in March either.

My phone shows the wrong time after November 1. What should I do?
Check the time-zone setting rather than the clock itself. Devices that missed the 2026 updates may need their software updated, or the new zone selected manually — Pacific Time (British Columbia), Alberta Time, Northwest Territories Time, or Manitoba’s year-round daylight time (UTC−5). Compare against the National Research Council’s official time if you are unsure.

Sources

• Government of British Columbia — B.C.’s new time zone, Pacific Time (PCT): www2.gov.bc.ca
• Government of Alberta — Alberta’s new time system (ABT): alberta.ca
• Province of Manitoba — “Manitoba Will Move to Permanent Daylight Saving Time,” September 17, 2026: news.gov.mb.ca
• Government of the Northwest Territories — “Northwest Territories ends Seasonal Time Change”: www.gov.nt.ca
• Canada.ca — Contact Canada Pension Plan: canada.ca
• Canada.ca — Contact Old Age Security: canada.ca
• timeanddate.com — Daylight Saving Time 2026 in Canada: timeanddate.com