South Africa's matric class of 2026 will begin writing their National Senior Certificate final examinations on Tuesday, 13 October.
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Public school pupils across South Africa will return to classrooms in October for the fourth and final term of the 2026 academic year.
According to the Department of Basic Education’s (DBE) official 2026 school calendar, Term 4 will start on Tuesday, 6 October and run for 10 weeks.
The third term ended on Wednesday, 23 September, giving pupils and teachers a break before the final term of the school year.
The September school holiday runs from Thursday, 24 September to Monday, 5 October, with pupils returning to school the following day.
When does the 2026 school year end?
Public schools will close for the year on Wednesday, 9 December.
The DBE’s 2026 calendar shows that Term 4 has 47 calendar days, with all 47 counted as school days because there are no public holidays during the term.
The next public holiday after the end of the school year is the Day of Reconciliation on 16 December, followed by Christmas Day on 25 December and the Day of Goodwill on 26 December.
Matrics to start 2026 NSC final exams in October
South Africa’s matric class of 2026 will begin writing their National Senior Certificate (NSC) final examinations on Tuesday, 13 October, according to the official October/November 2026 NSC examinations timetable.
Candidates will write Computer Applications Technology (CAT) Paper 1 practical examinations, which will run for three hours. Candidates will also write language papers, including Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Hebrew and German.
On Wednesday, 14 October, Information Technology Paper 1 practical examinations will be written for three hours, alongside several additional language papers.
English Paper 3 will be written on Thursday, 15 October. The timetable allocates three hours for English Home Language, while English First Additional Language and English Second Additional Language candidates will have two and a half hours.
The first week will conclude on Friday, 16 October, with Economics Paper 1, Mechanical Technology and Design Paper 1 scheduled.
Final papers and practical rewrites
The final full week of the timetable begins on Monday, 23 November, with Agricultural Technology and Music Paper 1 Theory.
Candidates will write Agricultural Management Practices, Marine Sciences Paper 2 and Dance Studies on Tuesday, 24 November, followed by Music Paper 2 Comprehension on Wednesday, 25 November.
The timetable schedules CAT Paper 1 Rewrite Practical and IT Paper 1 Rewrite Practical for Thursday, 26 November, with three hours allocated to each.
