Schools Resumption Date in Nigeria 2026/2027 (36 States)

The Schools Resumption Date in Nigeria for the new 2026/2027 academic session is expected to fall in the first or second week of September, with Monday, 14th September 2026 being the expected resumption date for many schools, including primary and secondary schools.

However, there is no single nationwide resumption date, as each state announces its own academic calendar, while private schools may also set different dates. For FCT Abuja, 14th September 2026 is currently the expected date, pending official confirmation from the FCT Administration.

For the 2026/2027 session, some states have already made it official: Delta State and Lagos State have both fixed Monday, September 14, 2026 as their first-term resumption date. Most other states have not yet published their 2026/2027 calendars as of this writing, so this guide gives you the confirmed dates where they exist, and an honest, evidence-based expected window everywhere else — clearly labelled so you always know which is which.

Last updated: August 28, 2026. This page will be updated as more states release their official 2026/2027 calendars.

When Will Schools Resume in Nigeria in 2026/2027?

For the 2026/2027 academic session, most primary and secondary schools in Nigeria are expected to begin the first term on 14th September 2026, while some states are expected to resume in the first week of September. There is no single nationwide resumption date, as each state sets its own academic calendar, and private primary and secondary schools may also have different first-term resumption dates.

For 2026/2027 specifically:

• Delta State: Monday, September 14, 2026 — officially confirmed.
• Lagos State: Monday, September 14, 2026 — officially confirmed.
• Akwa Ibom state: Monday, September 14, 2026 — expected
• Abuja: Monday, September 14, 2026 — expected
• Most other states: not yet officially announced as of this writing. Based on each state’s recent calendars, schools are realistically expected to resume somewhere in the first or second week of September 2026 — see the state-by-state table below for what the evidence actually supports in each case.

One more thing worth knowing before you plan around any date: in several states, school-related insecurity has forced closures and, in a few cases, delayed resumption in the current academic year. Where that’s relevant to a state, it’s flagged in the table and in that state’s section — check with the school directly if you’re in an affected area.

Schools Resumption Date in Nigeria for All States

The table below covers all 36 states and the FCT. Confirmed means an official state government or Ministry of Education source has announced the exact date. Expected means no 2026/2027 date has been officially published yet, and the period shown is a reasoned estimate based on that state’s recent resumption pattern (or, where no state-specific pattern was found, the general first/second-week-of-September pattern followed by most of the country). Where a state has neither a confirmed date nor a clear historical pattern to go on, that’s said plainly rather than guessed at.

A note on Rivers State: you may see September 7, 2026 quoted elsewhere as Rivers State’s 2026/2027 resumption date. We looked for an official confirmation of this from the Rivers State Ministry of Education and could not find one as of this writing — the most recent official Rivers education announcement we could verify was a September 2025 notice about the 2025/2026 session, not a 2026/2027 calendar. Rivers has resumed in the September 12–19 window in recent sessions, adjusted around federal public holidays. Until the state publishes its 2026/2027 calendar, treat any specific date for Rivers — including September 7 — as unconfirmed, and check directly with the Rivers State Ministry of Education or your child’s school.

Confirmed Schools Resumption Date in Nigeria 2026/2027

Only two states have published an official 2026/2027 first-term resumption date as of this writing:

Delta State — Monday, September 14, 2026. The Delta State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education released an approved provisional calendar putting first term at September 14 to December 18, 2026, with teaching staff expected to resume a week earlier (September 7–11) for preparation, and boarding students on September 13.

Lagos State — Monday, September 14, 2026. Lagos released its harmonised 2026/2027 academic calendar for public and private schools in mid-July 2026, fixing September 14 as the first-term resumption date — consistent with Lagos’s recent pattern of mid-September openings.

Both dates apply to public and private primary and secondary schools in their respective states, subject to any later adjustment by the state government.

Expected School Resumption Dates for Other States

The remaining 34 states and the FCT had not published an official 2026/2027 first-term calendar as of this writing. That’s normal at this stage of the year — most states typically confirm their calendars in the weeks immediately before resumption rather than months in advance, and even sites that track this closely were still labelling several states’ 2026/2027 dates as “not yet released” in late July 2026.

That doesn’t mean nothing useful can be said. Looking at how each state has behaved in its most recent sessions gives a reasonable, evidence-based expectation:

• States that have recently opened in the first week of September (evidence points here): Kano, whose 2025/2026 session opened September 7–8, 2025, is the clearest example.
• States that have recently opened in the second week of September: Kogi (September 14–15, 2025) and Kaduna (which has opened around September 12 in recent years) fall here, alongside Lagos and Delta’s confirmed 2026/2027 dates.
• States that have opened later, closer to the third week: Abia’s 2025/2026 first term began September 23, 2025 — later than most states, and worth knowing if you’re in Abia and expecting an early-September start.
• States with no clear recent pattern in the public record: for the remainder — including Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Edo, Benue, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, Yobe, Jigawa, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara and the FCT — the safest, most defensible expectation is the general national pattern: the first or second week of September 2026, pending each state’s own announcement.

In a handful of states, insecurity has become a real factor alongside the calendar question — see the table above for exactly which states and local government areas are affected as of August 2026, and treat resumption in those specific areas as contingent on both the calendar date and the security situation.

SEE ALSO: Full List of All Schools in Nigeria (2026 Updated)

Lagos State School Resumption Date 2026/2027

Confirmed: Monday, September 14, 2026.

The Lagos State Government released its approved harmonised academic calendar for public and private schools in mid-July 2026, well ahead of most other states, fixing September 14 as the date first term begins for the 2026/2027 session. This continues a pattern Lagos has followed in recent sessions, where the state consistently opens in mid-September rather than the very start of the month.

The calendar applies across Lagos’s public primary and secondary schools, and private schools in the state are expected to align with it, though individual private schools can vary — always confirm directly with your child’s school.

Rivers State School Resumption Date 2026/2027

Status: Expected, not officially confirmed at time of writing.

A September 7, 2026 date for Rivers State has circulated in some places, but we could not verify it against an official Rivers State Ministry of Education announcement. The most recent verifiable Rivers education notice we found was dated September 2025 and concerned the 2025/2026 session, not 2026/2027.

Rivers has, in recent sessions, resumed in the September 12–19 window — including one recent session where an original September 12 date was pushed to September 19 to avoid clashing with federal public holidays — so a date somewhere in that range is a reasonable expectation for 2026/2027, but it is not yet official. Parents and schools in Rivers State should watch for a direct announcement from the state Ministry of Education rather than relying on any single unverified date.

FCT Abuja School Resumption Date 2026/2027

Status: Monday, September 14, 2026 — expected

As of late July 2026, the FCT Administration’s Education Secretariat had not released its official circular for the 2026/2027 academic session. Based on the FCT’s recent resumption pattern, a date around the second week of September 2026 is a reasonable expectation, but this is a projection, not a confirmed date. The FCT typically issues its academic calendar through the Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB) and the Education Secretariat; check those channels, or your child’s school, for the official date once released.

Do Private Schools Resume on the Same Date?

Not necessarily. State resumption dates are set for public schools and generally serve as a guide for private schools too, but private schools are not legally bound to follow the state calendar exactly. Many private schools — particularly larger, established ones — publish their own academic calendars and can resume a few days before or after the state’s public-school date.

Some align precisely with the state calendar; others don’t. If your child attends a private school, the school’s own calendar or a direct message from the school administration is the authoritative source, not the state government announcement.

Primary and Secondary School Resumption Dates

In most states, the resumption date announced by the Ministry of Education or SUBEB applies to both primary and secondary schools together — Nigerian state academic calendars are typically issued as a single calendar covering basic education (primary through junior secondary) and senior secondary school.

Boarding and day-student resumption can differ by a day, as seen in both the Delta and Kogi announcements above, with boarding students typically expected to resume a day earlier than day students to allow time to settle in before classes begin. Where a state issues separate calendars for primary and secondary levels, or where a specific school’s calendar differs from the state’s, that will be noted directly by the school or SUBEB.

Federal Unity Schools

Federal Unity Colleges (also called Federal Government Colleges) run under the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Senior Secondary Education Commission, and follow their own calendar — separate from, though usually broadly aligned with, individual state calendars.

As of August 2026, the Federal Ministry had released the 2026/2027 admission list for Unity Colleges and directed successful candidates to report to their assigned college “for confirmation and completion of the admission process” as instructed on their admission slips, but a specific first-term resumption date for the new session had not been publicly confirmed in that announcement.

Newly admitted JS1 students at Unity Colleges are sometimes given an earlier reporting/orientation date than returning students in other classes — always check the exact date on the admission slip or the college’s own notice rather than assuming it matches your home state’s date.

Frequently Asked Questions

When will schools resume in Nigeria in 2026? There is no single date for the whole country. Delta and Lagos States have confirmed Monday, September 14, 2026. Most other states are expected to resume in the first or second week of September 2026, but haven’t yet published an official date — check the table above for your specific state.

What date will schools resume for the 2026/2027 session? It depends on the state. Delta and Lagos have both fixed September 14, 2026. Other states typically confirm their dates closer to resumption; based on recent patterns, expect somewhere in the first two weeks of September for most states.

Is there one school resumption date for Nigeria? No. Education is state-administered in Nigeria, so each state — and the FCT — sets its own calendar. Dates cluster around the first two weeks of September, but they are not identical across the country.

When will primary schools resume? The same date announced for a state generally applies to primary schools as well as secondary schools, since most states issue one calendar covering basic education. Check your state’s entry in the table above.

When will secondary schools resume? In most states, secondary schools resume on the same date as primary schools, under the same state calendar. Where a state or specific school differs, it will say so directly.

When will schools resume in Lagos? Monday, September 14, 2026 — confirmed by the Lagos State Government’s harmonised 2026/2027 academic calendar.

When will schools resume in Rivers State? Not yet officially confirmed as of this writing. A September 7, 2026 date is circulating but unverified; Rivers has recently resumed in the September 12–19 window. Confirm with the Rivers State Ministry of Education closer to the date.

When will schools resume in Abuja (FCT)? Not yet officially announced. Based on the FCT’s recent pattern, expect a date around the second week of September 2026, pending the official circular from the FCTA Education Secretariat.

Do private schools resume on the government date? Often, but not always. Many private schools follow the state’s public-school calendar closely, but some set their own dates a few days earlier or later. Confirm with your child’s school directly.

Which states have announced their 2026/2027 resumption dates? As of this writing, only Delta State and Lagos State have officially confirmed their 2026/2027 first-term resumption date: Monday, September 14, 2026, for both.

Last Updated: August 28, 2026

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