Four sovereign nations and several overseas territories keep Western European Time: Portugal, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Iceland, plus the Canary Islands, which belong to Spain but run one hour behind the Spanish mainland.
What WET is: UTC+0 standard, UTC+1 summer
Western European Time sits at UTC+0. During summer months, most WET countries switch to Western European Summer Time (WEST), which is UTC+1.
The shift happens on the same dates as the rest of Europe: last Sunday in March, clocks go forward one hour; last Sunday in October, they go back. The switch occurs at 01:00 UTC. For nations on this zone, that means clocks change at 01:00 local time. Central European Time countries switch at 02:00 local. Eastern European Time countries switch at 03:00 local.
WET is the westernmost of Europe's three main time zones. Central European Time sits one hour ahead. Eastern European Time sits two hours ahead.
Full list of WET countries
| Country | Standard Time | Summer Time | IANA Time Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal (mainland + Madeira) | WET (UTC+0) | WEST (UTC+1) | Europe/Lisbon |
| Ireland | WET (UTC+0) | IST (UTC+1) | Europe/Dublin |
| United Kingdom | GMT (UTC+0) | BST (UTC+1) | Europe/London |
| Iceland | GMT (UTC+0) | None | Atlantic/Reykjavik |
| Canary Islands (Spain) | WET (UTC+0) | WEST (UTC+1) | Atlantic/Canary |
The United Kingdom, Ireland, and Portugal all follow the same clock pattern: UTC+0 in winter, UTC+1 in summer. Iceland does not observe daylight saving time at all.
Why Iceland uses UTC+0 all year round
No DST since 1968
Iceland runs on UTC+0 every month. No daylight saving time, no summer shift, no clock changes in March or October. The country abandoned DST in 1968.
Geographically unusual
Iceland sits at roughly 22°W longitude. That would put it closer to UTC-2 by solar time. The country's position in the North Atlantic means its daylight patterns are extreme anyway: summer brings nearly 24 hours of sun in Reykjavik, while winter offers just four to five hours of daylight.
What the fixed offset means for scheduling
During European summers, the nation runs one hour behind the UK and Portugal. In winter, it matches them exactly. For a business call with Reykjavik from London in July, the local time is the same in both cities. In January, it is also the same. The gap only appears when comparing Iceland to CET or EET countries.
Portugal's two time zones: mainland and Azores
Mainland and Madeira: WET/WEST
The bulk of the country, including Lisbon, Porto, and the Madeira archipelago, uses WET (UTC+0) in winter and WEST (UTC+1) in summer. The IANA zone for the mainland is Europe/Lisbon. Madeira uses Atlantic/Madeira, which follows the same offset.
Azores: one hour behind
The Azores, an autonomous archipelago, operate on their own zone: Azores Time (AZOT) at UTC-1 in winter, Azores Summer Time (AZOST) at UTC+0 in summer. That makes the Azores one hour behind the rest of the country year-round. When it is noon in Lisbon, it is 11:00 in Ponta Delgada. The IANA zone is Atlantic/Azores.
The Azores follow the same DST schedule as the rest of the European Union: clocks change on the same March and October dates.
Two experiments with CET
The country used Central European Time (UTC+1) from 1966 to 1976 and again from 1992 to 1996. Both experiments ended with a return to WET, aligning with its geographic position along the Atlantic coast.
Canary Islands: WET/WEST while mainland Spain is CET
The Canary Islands run one hour behind mainland Spain. Mainland Spain uses Central European Time (CET, UTC+1) in winter and Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2) in summer. The Canaries use WET/WEST.
That means the Canary Islands are always one hour behind Madrid, Barcelona, and the rest of the Spanish mainland. When it is 13:00 in Madrid, it is 12:00 in Las Palmas.
This arrangement dates to Spain's 1940 decision to align with Nazi Germany, shifting the mainland to CET. The Canary Islands kept their Atlantic position. Spain has never reverted, which is why the country sits one hour east of its solar time.
IANA time zone names for WET countries
Software developers and system administrators will recognize these canonical IANA zone names:
| Country / Territory | IANA Zone | Current Offset |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal (mainland) | Europe/Lisbon | UTC+0 (WET) |
| Portugal (Azores) | Atlantic/Azores | UTC-1 (AZOT) |
| Portugal (Madeira) | Atlantic/Madeira | UTC+0 (WET) |
| Ireland | Europe/Dublin | UTC+0 (WET) |
| United Kingdom | Europe/London | UTC+0 (GMT) |
| Iceland | Atlantic/Reykjavik | UTC+0 (GMT) |
| Canary Islands | Atlantic/Canary | UTC+0 (WET) |
Iceland's IANA zone is Atlantic/Reykjavik, not Europe/Reykjavik. The distinction matters for code that validates against IANA data.
Ireland's zone is Europe/Dublin, and its summer time abbreviation is IST: Irish Standard Time. Do not confuse it with India Standard Time or Israel Standard Time.
How WET relates to GMT and UTC
WET is functionally identical to GMT and UTC+0 during standard time. The difference is technical.
UTC is the global atomic time standard. Every time zone in the world is defined as an offset from it.
GMT is a time zone at UTC+0, historically based on the solar time at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London.
WET is the name given to the UTC+0 time zone used by Western European countries.
For everyday purposes, they are interchangeable. The UK uses "GMT" as its official winter time zone name. Iceland uses "GMT" too, even though it is not in the UK. Portugal and the Canary Islands use "WET." Same offset, different labels.
When summer time begins, the abbreviations change: GMT becomes BST (British Summer Time) in the UK, WET becomes WEST (Western European Summer Time) in Portugal and the Canary Islands, and Ireland's WET becomes IST (Irish Standard Time).
WET countries at a glance
Standard offsets
- WET standard time: UTC+0
- WEST summer time: UTC+1
- DST switch dates: last Sunday in March (forward), last Sunday in October (back)
Who does what
- Iceland: UTC+0 year-round, no DST since 1968
- Azores: UTC-1 winter, UTC+0 summer
- Canary Islands: one hour behind mainland Spain
- Portugal's CET experiments: 1966 to 1976 and 1992 to 1996
- UK winter name: GMT; summer name: BST
- Ireland winter name: WET; summer name: IST
- Portugal winter name: WET; summer name: WEST
Four countries, two overseas territories, and one Spanish archipelago. That is the full picture of Western European Time in 2026.