Asia/Colombo is an IANA time zone used in Sri Lanka. It stays on UTC+5:30 all year.
Asia/Colombo at a glance
| UTC offset now | UTC+5:30 |
|---|---|
| Standard time | UTC+5:30 |
| Used in | Sri Lanka |
Rules of the Asia/Colombo time zone
Asia/Colombo stays on UTC+5:30 all year. The tz database records no daylight saving time in this zone since 1970.
Recent and upcoming changes in Asia/Colombo
| Date | Change | New offset |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, May 25, 1996 | Standard offset changes from UTC+5:30 to UTC+6:30 | UTC+6:30 |
| Saturday, October 26, 1996 | Clocks go back 30 minutes: 12:30 AM becomes 12:00 AM | UTC+6 |
| Saturday, April 15, 2006 | Clocks go back 30 minutes for good: 12:30 AM becomes 12:00 AM | UTC+5:30 |
The base offset of this zone changed in 2006, from UTC+6 to UTC+5:30. Old timestamps should be converted with the rule that applied at the time.
Where Asia/Colombo is used
Asia/Colombo is used in Sri Lanka. These are the largest cities in our list that follow it.
Asia/Colombo compared with other time zones
Differences change during the year when one side moves to or from daylight saving time, so the table shows January and July separately.
| City | Time now | Difference now | In January | In July |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York (United States) | --:-- | 10 h 30 min behind | 10 h 30 min behind | 9 h 30 min behind |
| Los Angeles (United States) | --:-- | 13 h 30 min behind | 13 h 30 min behind | 12 h 30 min behind |
| London (United Kingdom) | --:-- | 5 h 30 min behind | 5 h 30 min behind | 4 h 30 min behind |
| Paris (France) | --:-- | 4 h 30 min behind | 4 h 30 min behind | 3 h 30 min behind |
| Dubai (United Arab Emirates) | --:-- | 1 h 30 min behind | 1 h 30 min behind | 1 h 30 min behind |
| Mumbai (India) | --:-- | Same time | Same time | Same time |
| Singapore | --:-- | 2 h 30 min ahead | 2 h 30 min ahead | 2 h 30 min ahead |
| Tokyo (Japan) | --:-- | 3 h 30 min ahead | 3 h 30 min ahead | 3 h 30 min ahead |
| Sydney (Australia) | --:-- | 5 h 30 min ahead | 5 h 30 min ahead | 4 h 30 min ahead |
| UTC | --:-- | 5 h 30 min behind | 5 h 30 min behind | 5 h 30 min behind |
Other zones on UTC+5:30 right now
These IANA zones show the same time as Asia/Colombo today. Their clock-change rules may differ.
Using Asia/Colombo in software
Store and send the zone as its IANA name, Asia/Colombo, not as a fixed offset. A fixed offset such as UTC+5:30 gives the wrong result after the next clock change.
Show the current time in Asia/Colombo:
// JavaScript
new Intl.DateTimeFormat('en-GB', { timeZone: 'Asia/Colombo', timeStyle: 'long' }).format(new Date());
# Python
from datetime import datetime
from zoneinfo import ZoneInfo
datetime.now(ZoneInfo('Asia/Colombo'))
// PHP
(new DateTime('now', new DateTimeZone('Asia/Colombo')))->format('c');
# Shell
TZ=Asia/Colombo dateTools for time in Asia/Colombo
- Convert a time to or from Asia/Colombo: pick a date and time and see it in every city on your list.
- Add Colombo to your world clock to keep it next to your own time.
- Find a meeting time that falls inside office hours in Asia/Colombo and the other cities you work with.
- Open a full-screen clock for your own time zone.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UTC offset of Asia/Colombo?
UTC+5:30, all year.
Time zone rules: IANA tz database, version 2026e. Place names and coordinates: GeoNames. Sunrise and sunset are calculated from the coordinates and can differ by a minute or two from local almanacs.