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Quebec, get ready to be tired and confused. Daylight saving time (DST) is about to mess with your sleep again.
But if you’ve had enough of winter’s short, dark days, there’s a silver lining: longer, warmer evenings are upon us. Before you get too excited, though, you’ll have to deal with the yearly inconvenience that comes with it.
When does Quebec’s time change?
Quebec’s daylight saving time change happens in the early hours of Sunday, March 9, 2025, at 2 a.m., when clocks jump ahead by an hour to 3 a.m. If you’re out late, bars will stop serving alcohol an hour earlier — no exceptions. And if you’re asleep, well, you’ll wake up with an hour less rest.
While losing out on precious rest isn’t exactly thrilling, there’s a literal bright side — more daylight in the evening means extra time to enjoy the sun after work and soak up some much-needed Vitamin D. And if you’re counting down to spring, mark your calendar: it officially arrives on March 20.
Why do we change the clocks?
The idea behind daylight saving time is simple: maximize natural daylight and reduce energy use.
By shifting the clocks forward in the spring, evenings stay brighter longer, reducing reliance on artificial lighting and heating. Canada was one of the first countries to adopt the practice, with Thunder Bay, Ontario, implementing it in 1908. Originally, this was meant to save energy, especially before modern electricity use became widespread.
Since then, most provinces and territories have followed suit, adjusting their clocks twice a year. But not everyone is convinced it’s necessary, with critics pointing out the disruption to sleep and the dark mornings it creates in winter.
Is daylight saving time here to stay?
Quebec has explored scrapping DST altogether. In October 2024, the government launched a public poll to see whether residents wanted to stick to one time year-round, like Saskatchewan and the Yukon.
For now, though, daylight saving time remains. After this month’s spring forward, you’ll have to wait until November 2, 2025, to fall back when clocks go back an hour, giving you a little extra sleep.
Until then, get ready for brighter evenings — and maybe set a reminder so you don’t accidentally show up an hour late to everything.
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