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, so pick it below.
Gulf Standard Time · Asia
05:45:53
Sunday, 27 September 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
23:45:53
Saturday, 26 September 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: 05:45 on Sunday (UTC+04:00); South Georgia Time: 23:45 on Saturday (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.