Contents of this guide
2026 school calendar dates: terms and breaks
The Ministry of Education (Meduca) set the 2026 calendar in Executive Decree No. 49 of 8 September 2025, published in the Official Gazette Digital on Tuesday 9 September 2025. Article 1 makes it binding and uninterrupted for public and private schools at the first and second levels of education, in both the regular and non-regular subsystems. Meduca also posted the decree text on its website.
The table lists the stages as the decree sets them. As of 13 October 2026, the first two terms and their breaks are over and the third term is under way.
| Stage | Dates in 2026 | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Teacher organization | Monday 23 to Friday 27 February | 1 week |
| First term | Monday 2 March to Friday 29 May | 13 weeks |
| Student break | Monday 1 to Friday 5 June | 1 week |
| Second term | Monday 8 June to Friday 4 September | 13 weeks |
| Student break | Monday 7 to Friday 11 September | 1 week |
| Third term | Monday 14 September to Friday 11 December | 13 weeks |
| Balance and graduations | Monday 14 to Friday 18 December | 1 week |
Source: Executive Decree No. 49 of 2025, article 1.
End of the 2026 school year and the year-end break
The last day of classes is Friday 11 December 2026. The students’ balance and graduation period follows, which the decree sets for 14 to 18 December and which ends the calendar. Outlets that reported on the decree, such as TVN, described it the same way: classes until 11 December, then academic balance, final evaluations and graduations until the 18th.
The decree does not use the phrase “year-end vacation”. It sets a sequence of dates, and after 18 December 2026 no school activity is scheduled in the 2026 calendar. In practice, that stretch until the next school year is the year-end break. As of this writing, the return date in 2027 depends on the decree described below.
The days the country closes are listed in the Panama public holidays calendar.
Days off and third-term exams
The decree notes in parentheses which days have no classes within each term. In the third, which is the current one, 27 October (Student Day) and 1 December (Teacher’s Day) appear as civic days, and 3, 4, 5 and 10 November for the national holidays and 8 December for Mother’s Day appear as days off. How those dates fall and the long weekends are covered in Panama’s November holidays.
On testing, article 7 states that schools give term tests in the last week of each term. The exception is students in ninth grade of Basic General Education and twelfth grade of Secondary Education: their third-term exams run from 23 to 27 November 2026. Once that period ends, graduating students stay at school reinforcing learning content.
2027 school calendar: what is known as of 13 October
The 2027 calendar changed in August. A first decree, No. 37 of 3 August 2026, placed the start of classes on 22 February 2027. After criticism from parents, Minister Lucy Molinar announced on 4 August that classes would begin in March, Telemetro reported: the concern was that some private schools could charge a full month’s tuition for a few days of classes in February.
According to La Estrella de Panamá, citing Meduca’s post, Executive Decree No. 43 pushed the dates back one week. These are the dates the outlet reported; the text of Decree No. 43 could not be opened in the Official Gazette or on Meduca’s website as of this writing:
| Stage | Dates in 2027 (per La Estrella) |
|---|---|
| Teacher organization | 22 to 26 February |
| Start of classes | Monday 1 March |
| First term | 1 March to 28 May |
| First break | 31 May to 4 June |
| Second term | 7 June to 27 August |
| Second break | 30 August to 3 September |
| Third term | 6 September to 10 December |
| Final balance and graduations | 13 to 17 December |
Those dates remain subject to confirmation in the Official Gazette before committing payments tied to 1 March.
The full text of Executive Decree No. 49, with the official 2026 school year dates, is in the Official Gazette Digital.
How to plan around the calendar
The calendar helps organize family trips, paperwork and year-end spending. These steps avoid relying on secondhand dates:
- Take the date from the decree, not from a social media post. No. 49 of 2025 is the reference for 2026 and is in the Official Gazette Digital.
- Separate the last day of classes from the close of the year. Classes end on 11 December; the week of 14 to 18 is balance and graduations.
- Confirm exam and ceremony dates with the school. The decree sets the 23 to 27 November window for ninth and twelfth grade, and each school sets its own graduation events.
- If a trip falls in the break, check coverage before buying tickets. Plans tied to school dates depend on those dates not changing, which is why it helps to know what travel insurance covers for cancellation, interruption and flight delay.
This content is informational. Official dates are set by Meduca through decree and can be amended.
Frequently asked questions
When do classes end in Panama in 2026?
On Friday 11 December 2026, according to Executive Decree No. 49 of 2025. The balance and graduation week follows, from 14 to 18 December, and closes the school year.
When does the students’ year-end break start?
Classes end on 11 December, and the official calendar closes on 18 December with balance and graduations. The decree does not name a year-end vacation period; the break is the time after the close, until the new school year.
When is the next school break?
No one-week break remains in 2026. The year’s two breaks were 1 to 5 June and 7 to 11 September. What remains are the November days off and 8 December.
When do classes start in 2027?
According to La Estrella, citing Meduca, on Monday 1 March 2027 under Executive Decree No. 43, which moved the original 22 February date back one week. As of this writing, the text of that decree could not be verified in the Official Gazette.
Does the calendar apply to private schools too?
Yes. Article 1 of Executive Decree No. 49 of 2025 sets it for public and private schools at the first and second levels of education, regular and non-regular.
Related articles
- Panama’s November holidays: 5 national days, long weekends and what closes
- Panama public holidays calendar
- Thirteenth-month pay calculator
Sources
- Official Gazette Digital No. 30361-B, 9 September 2025: Executive Decree No. 49 of 2025: 2026 school calendar, articles 1 and 7.
- Meduca, text of Executive Decree No. 49 of 2025.
- TVN, 2026 school calendar: classes start 2 March and end 11 December: publication of the decree in the Gazette.
- Telemetro, Meduca changes the 2027 school start date: announcement by Minister Lucy Molinar, 4 August 2026.
- La Estrella de Panamá, 2027 school calendar changes: classes will start on 1 March: Executive Decree No. 43 and dates, citing Meduca.
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