Does India ever change its clocks?

No. India has not observed daylight saving time since 1971. The offset stays UTC+5:30 every day of the year.

Why does the time difference to London change between January and July?

London observes daylight saving time. In winter (GMT, UTC+0:00) it is 5.5 hours behind IST. In summer (BST, UTC+1:00) it is 4.5 hours behind IST. India stays fixed; London moves.

The converter shows a different date for New York. Is that a bug?

No. When it is morning in India, it is still the previous evening in New York. The date change is correct. Always check the date on both sides of the converter output.

How do I set my computer to India time?

The IANA time zone for all of India is `Asia/Kolkata`. Use that identifier in your operating system or calendar. Do not use `Asia/New_Delhi`, that zone does not exist in the IANA database. See /guides/india-time-zone-settings for step-by-step instructions.

What does "IST" mean if I see it in a scheduling tool?

It depends on the tool. IST can mean India Standard Time, Israel Standard Time or Irish Standard Time. Always check the offset: India is UTC+5:30. If the tool shows a different number, it is using the wrong IST. Write "India Standard Time" or "UTC+5:30" to be safe.

IST Time Zone Converter

Live IST Time Converter

New Delhi runs on Asia/Kolkata, fixed at UTC+5:30 with no clock changes. The interactive tool above pairs the current time in New Delhi with live equivalents in major world cities. Pick any time in IST and see the matching moment in another zone.

How to Convert IST to Any Time Zone

The converter works in two directions. Type a time in the IST field to see what that moment is in New York, London, Dubai, Singapore or any other zone. Type a time in a foreign zone to see what that moment is in IST.

Example: 09:00 IST on 15 January 2026 is 22:30 EST on 14 January 2026, the previous day in New York. That is a date rollover. The converter handles this automatically.

IST to Major World Time Zones

The offset from IST to another zone changes when that zone switches to or from daylight saving time. India never changes its clocks, so the gap shifts twice a year for most of North America and Europe.

Key reference points (from 15 January and 15 July 2026 data):

City	Offset from IST (January)	Offset from IST (July)
New York	10.5 hours behind	9.5 hours behind
London	5.5 hours behind	4.5 hours behind
Dubai	1.5 hours behind	1.5 hours behind (no DST)
Singapore	2.5 hours ahead	2.5 hours ahead (no DST)
Sydney	5.5 hours ahead	4.5 hours ahead
Los Angeles	13.5 hours behind	12.5 hours behind

The full table for all major zones is at /time/offsets.

Why Does the IST Converter Show a Different Date?

When the converter shows a date that differs from today, that is correct. IST is 5.5 hours ahead of UTC, and many zones sit behind UTC. A morning time in India often falls on the previous evening in the Americas.

Example check: 15:30 IST (the end of the Indian trading day) on a Monday is 05:00 EST on the same Monday, same date. But 09:00 IST on Monday is 22:30 EST on Sunday. The converter marks the date on both sides of the output. Always check the date, not just the time.

Where IST Converters Get It Wrong

Three specific problems cause errors in converter tools.

1. Half-hour offset. IST is UTC+5:30, not a whole number. Some basic converters round to the nearest hour or treat it as UTC+5:00 or UTC+6:00. The converter here uses the full half-hour offset.

2. DST applied to India incorrectly. India has not observed daylight saving time since 1971. A tool that applies DST to India will shift the time by an extra hour during northern summer. The converter here does not apply DST to India. If your calendar app shows a different offset in July, check its time zone settings for India.

3. IST abbreviation ambiguity. IST also stands for Israel Standard Time (UTC+2:00) and Irish Standard Time (UTC+1:00, summer only). When scheduling meetings, write "India Standard Time" or "UTC+5:30" to avoid confusion. See /answers/ist-abbreviation-ambiguity for details.

How to Verify an IST Converter Output

Check any converter against these fixed references.

IST = UTC+5:30, no DST. If the converter shows a different offset for India in July, it is wrong.
Dubai is always 1.5 hours behind IST. Dubai uses GST (UTC+4:00) year-round. If a tool shows 2.5 hours or 0.5 hours, it is wrong.
London in January is 5.5 hours behind IST. In July it is 4.5 hours behind. If a tool shows the same offset in both months, it is not handling British Summer Time correctly.
New York in January is 10.5 hours behind IST. In July it is 9.5 hours behind. This shift is correct.