GST — which one do you mean?
GST means 2 different things, and they are
hours apart. If you received a timestamp labelled GST, the sender's
location decides which of these applies — pick it below.
Gulf Standard Time · Asia
04:26:00
Thursday, 13 August 2026
- abbreviation denotes
- +04:00
- in force right now
- UTC+04:00 (UTC+04:00)
- use in code
- Asia/Dubai
- next clock change
- none — fixed offset
Right now this zone is on UTC+04:00, not GST —
they are the same place at different times of year.
South Georgia Time · South Atlantic
22:26:00
Wednesday, 12 August 2026
- abbreviation denotes
- -02:00
- in force right now
- UTC-02:00 (UTC-02:00)
- use in code
- Atlantic/South_Georgia
- next clock change
- none — fixed offset
Right now this zone is on UTC-02:00, not GST —
they are the same place at different times of year.
Use the IANA name, not the abbreviation
Python
from datetime import datetime
from zoneinfo import ZoneInfo
# right: an IANA zone carries the full history of rule changes
now = datetime.now(ZoneInfo("Asia/Dubai"))
print(now.isoformat(), now.tzname())
# wrong: an abbreviation is not resolvable, and a hard-coded offset
# silently rots the next time the rules change
# now = datetime.now(timezone(timedelta(hours=...))) # don'tGST questions
What does GST stand for?
GST has 2 distinct meanings in active use: Gulf Standard Time (+04:00, Asia/Dubai); South Georgia Time (-02:00, Atlantic/South_Georgia). Which one applies depends entirely on who wrote the timestamp.
What time is it in GST right now?
Gulf Standard Time: 04:26 on Thursday (UTC+04:00); South Georgia Time: 22:26 on Wednesday (UTC-02:00).
Which IANA timezone should I use instead of GST?
Asia/Dubai for Gulf Standard Time, Atlantic/South_Georgia for South Georgia Time. Date libraries cannot resolve bare abbreviations, and an abbreviation carries no daylight-saving history, so a stored offset silently rots when a government changes the rules.
Why does my computer show UTC+04:00 instead of GST?
Because Asia/Dubai is currently on UTC+04:00 (UTC+04:00), its daylight-saving variant. GST (+04:00) applies during the other half of the year. Both names refer to the same place, one hour apart.