The short answer
Every Australian state and territory runs the school year across four terms, with a break between each one. What changes from state to state isn’t the number of terms — it’s the exact start and end dates, the length of each break, and how much non-government schools are allowed to vary from the government calendar.
Why four terms, and why the dates differ by state
Australia’s four-term school year is set independently by each state and territory education department, not by the federal government. That’s the main reason a Victorian autumn break and a South Australian autumn break can start over a week apart in the same year: each jurisdiction plans its own calendar around its own public holidays, regional events and school-year length targets, then publishes it separately.
Government (public) school dates are the reference point most states publish first and most clearly, which is why they’re the main dates shown on every state and year page on this site. Catholic and independent schools are generally free to set their own term dates and pupil-free days on top of that base calendar, and in practice most stay close to the government dates but shift the exact start or finish by a day or two, or add extra staff-only days. If you’re at a non-government school, always confirm your own school’s calendar directly — this site’s state pages are built from government school data unless otherwise noted.
How the school holiday breaks are worked out
A school holiday break is simply the gap between one term ending and the next one starting. The rule of thumb used across every state page on this site is:
- Autumn (Term 1 → Term 2) break: usually two to three weeks in April, often overlapping with Easter.
- Winter (Term 2 → Term 3) break: usually two weeks in late June or July.
- Spring (Term 3 → Term 4) break: usually two weeks in late September or early October.
- Summer (Term 4 → next year’s Term 1) break: the longest break, running from mid-December to late January.
A handful of states break this pattern slightly. South Australia and Tasmania, for example, sometimes schedule their autumn break to start after Easter rather than around it, which means Term 1 in those states can run straight through the Easter long weekend in years when Easter falls early in April. It’s a good example of why it pays to check the specific state and year page rather than assuming every state follows the same shape.
Term 1 start dates for 2026, compared across every state
To show how much the dates can vary, here’s when Term 1 starts for government school students in each state and territory in 2026, based on the official sources linked from each state’s page on this site.
| State / territory | Term 1 starts (2026) |
|---|---|
| Victoria | 27 January 2026 |
| New South Wales | 2 February 2026 |
| Queensland | 27 January 2026 |
| South Australia | 27 January 2026 |
| Western Australia | 2 February 2026 |
| Tasmania | 5 February 2026 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 30 January 2026 |
| Northern Territory | 29 January 2026 |
Figures shown are the term dates published on this site’s 2026 state pages at the time of writing. Always check the specific state page and its official source link for the most current confirmed dates, since dates can occasionally be revised.
Government, Catholic and independent schools: what to expect
A useful way to think about it: government term dates are the baseline, and most Catholic and independent schools build their own calendar close to that baseline but with some independence, especially around:
- Pupil-free days (also called student-free days or curriculum days), which individual schools schedule for staff training or reporting and which don’t always match across schools even in the same state.
- Term start and finish dates, which can be a day or two earlier or later than the government dates, particularly at the start of Term 1.
- Additional local or regional holidays, such as show days observed only in certain towns or council areas.
If your family has children at more than one type of school, or you’re coordinating with childcare or another family, it’s worth checking each individual school’s calendar rather than assuming they all match the state government dates shown on this site.
Related pages
Use the links below to check a specific state’s dates, or browse the other planning guides on this site.