September 14, 2026

Periods During Ramadan in the UAE: Fasting Rules, Making Up Days and Managing Symptoms (2026 Guide)

Every Ramadan, one of the most searched period questions in the UAE is some version of "my period started, what do I do now". The religious answer is settled and simple. The practical side, from counting missed days to eating discreetly at work to managing cramps on a schedule built around iftar, gets far less attention.

This guide covers both. It is written for Muslim women in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the other emirates, and for the many non-Muslim women here who work alongside them and want to understand what the month involves. It is respectful of the religious position and does not offer religious rulings of its own; for any question of fiqh, consult a scholar or the official fatwa services.

This article is general information. For religious questions, the UAE's official channels are the right place to ask. For medical questions, speak to a doctor or pharmacist.

The short answer

A woman who is menstruating does not fast during those days. This is not optional and it is not a lapse; it is the established rule across all schools of Islamic law. The days are made up later in the year, before the next Ramadan. You eat and drink normally, in private where practical, and you continue the other parts of the month, such as charity, dua and reflection, that are not tied to fasting or prayer. Most women in the UAE will have a period during Ramadan in most years, so the situation is completely ordinary and workplaces and families here understand it.

The religious position, briefly

Menstruating women are exempt from fasting and from the five daily prayers for the duration of the period. The missed fasts are made up after Ramadan; the missed prayers are not. This is agreed across the Sunni schools and in Shia jurisprudence, and it is what women in the UAE are taught from their first Ramadan as adults.

The UAE government's Ramadan information page describes the month, working hours and public conduct rules. For specific rulings, such as what to do if a period ends during the day or starts minutes before maghrib, the General Authority of Islamic Affairs, Endowments and Zakat runs an official fatwa service by phone and online in Arabic and English, and the Dubai Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department does the same for Dubai. These are the correct sources for religious questions, and they get exactly these questions every year.

Two situations come up constantly:

Period starts during the fasting day. The fast for that day is broken and the day is made up later. You may eat and drink for the rest of the day.
Period ends during the day. The general position is that the day does not count as a fast; you make it up. You begin fasting from the next dawn. Confirm the details with a scholar if you want to be precise about ghusl and timing.

Counting and making up the days

The practical difficulty is not the rule but the bookkeeping. A typical period of five to seven days means five to seven fasts owed, and Ramadan is only eleven months away.

Count on the day. Note the first and last day of the period in your tracking app or calendar during Ramadan itself, not from memory in Shawwal. Cycles that run across the start or end of the month are easy to miscount.

Make up soon, or plan it. Many UAE women make up the days in the weeks immediately after Eid al-Fitr, while the routine is still fresh and the days are similar in length. Others fast the Mondays and Thursdays through the year. Both approaches work; what does not work is leaving it to the month before next Ramadan and discovering a second period has landed on top of it.

Winter days are shorter. Ramadan will fall in roughly February and March for the next several years, with fasting days of about thirteen hours in the UAE. Make-up fasts in November to January are shorter still and noticeably easier in the cooler weather.

Combine with the six of Shawwal if you wish. Scholars differ on whether the six voluntary fasts of Shawwal can be combined with make-up days or should follow them; ask your local authority rather than relying on a blog.

Eating and drinking on period days

You are allowed to eat and drink normally. The etiquette in the UAE is discretion in public and at work, out of respect for those who are fasting, and it is also the law in public places during fasting hours. In practice that means:

Eat in a closed office, a designated non-fasting area, or your car, not at your desk in an open-plan office or in a mall food court. Most UAE workplaces designate a room for non-fasting staff during Ramadan.
Carry water and drink it in the same places. Do not stop eating and drinking out of embarrassment; a period in the heat with no fluids is how people end up dizzy in the afternoon.
Restaurants and cafés in Dubai and most of the UAE now serve during the day behind screens or in designated areas, so lunch out is possible if you need it.
Nobody is entitled to ask why you are not fasting, and women in the UAE do not generally explain. "I am not fasting today" is a complete answer.

Non-Muslim colleagues sometimes assume a Muslim woman eating during Ramadan has stopped observing. The opposite is true; she is following the rules precisely. If you manage a team in the UAE, know this, and make sure the non-fasting room is available to everyone without comment.

Managing symptoms around the Ramadan schedule

Even though you are not fasting, the household and work rhythm of Ramadan still shapes your day: late iftar, later suhoor, shorter working hours, less sleep. Period symptoms land in the middle of that.

Hydration. Cramping and headaches are worse when dehydrated, and the NHS dehydration guidance lists dark urine, headache and tiredness as the early signs. Drink through the day even if the household rhythm is built around evening.

Cramps. Standard pain relief applies. Ibuprofen with food at the first sign of pain, or paracetamol if you cannot take anti-inflammatories, plus heat on the lower abdomen. Our period pain relief guide for Dubai has the doses and what UAE pharmacies sell. Take painkillers with a meal; skipping breakfast because everyone else is fasting and then taking ibuprofen on an empty stomach is a common mistake.

Fatigue. Late nights at iftar and taraweeh gatherings plus a period is a lot. Sleep when you can. If you are not praying, the pre-dawn hour is yours to sleep through.

Iron. Heavy periods lose iron, and Ramadan diets are often heavy on dates, sweets and fried food and lighter on iron-rich foods. On your non-fasting days, eat properly: meat, lentils, leafy greens, eggs. Our guide to overnight pads for heavy flow covers what counts as heavy and when to ask about iron.

Pads for long Ramadan days

Ramadan working hours are shorter, but the social day is longer. A typical day might run from a late morning start through work, home to prepare or attend iftar, evening prayers or gatherings, and bed after midnight. If you are on your period, that is a long day on one routine, in weather that, in February and March, is mild but still warm indoors with everyone gathered.

Two practical points. First, change your pad at the times you would normally have stepped away for prayer; the rhythm of the day still gives you those natural breaks. Second, choose a breathable pad. Conventional pads with a polyethylene top sheet trap heat and moisture over a long day and cause the itching and soreness that our pad rash guide describes. LiZZOM's organic ultrathin pads have a bamboo and corn fibre top layer and no plastic film against the skin. For the late nights, a thick night pad on the first two nights means you are not waking at 3 AM to check. Keep daily liners for the last light days and for the days when you are waiting to see whether the period has fully ended before resuming the fast.

Stock up before the month starts. Ramadan shopping in the UAE is heavily food-focused and pharmacy trips fall off the list; order pads in the week before and you will not be sending someone out during iftar preparations.

Ramadan while pregnant or breastfeeding

This is outside the scope of a period guide, but women often search the two together. Pregnant and breastfeeding women have their own exemptions and their own rules for making up or compensating for missed fasts, and the position varies more between scholars than the menstruation rule does. Ask the fatwa services above and your obstetrician together.

For employers and colleagues in the UAE

If you run a team here, three things make Ramadan easier for the women on it:

A non-fasting room that is actually private, stocked with water, available all month without sign-up.
No comments, questions or jokes about who is eating. This is the norm in well-run UAE offices and the law protects it.
A stocked sanitary dispenser in the women's washroom, because periods do not pause for the month. Our guide to period-positive workplaces in Dubai covers what that looks like in practice.

Quick reference

Question	Answer
Do I fast while on my period?	No. The days are made up after Ramadan.
Do I make up missed prayers?	No, only the fasts.
Can I eat and drink in public?	Discreetly, in designated areas, the same as any non-fasting person in the UAE.
When should I make up the fasts?	Any time before next Ramadan; soon after Eid is easiest.
Period started at 4 PM, was the day a fast?	No, that day is made up later.
Who do I ask for a religious ruling?	The UAE's official fatwa services, by phone or online.
Who do I ask about pain or heavy bleeding?	A pharmacist for standard relief, a gynaecologist if it is severe or unusual.

LiZZOM's ultrathin pads, thick night pads and daily liners are made from bamboo and corn fibre, with no fragrance, no chlorine bleaching and no polyethylene top sheet, and are delivered across Dubai in two to three working days and to the other emirates in four to ten, free above AED 50. Order before the month begins.

Last reviewed: September 2026. General information, not medical advice.

Frequently asked questions

Do I fast during Ramadan if I am on my period?

No. Menstruating women do not fast, and the missed days are made up after Ramadan and before the next one. This is the established rule across all schools of Islamic law. Missed prayers are not made up; only the fasts are.

My period started in the afternoon. Does that day count as a fast?

The general position is no; the day is made up later, and you may eat and drink for the rest of it. For precise rulings, ask the UAE's official fatwa services.

Can I eat in public in the UAE during Ramadan if I am not fasting?

Discreetly, yes. Use a designated non-fasting room at work, your car or a screened restaurant area. Nobody is entitled to ask why you are not fasting.

When should I make up the missed fasts?

Any time before next Ramadan. Many UAE women fast the days soon after Eid al-Fitr, or on Mondays and Thursdays through the year. Winter days are shorter and easier.

Which pads are best for long Ramadan days?

A breathable pad with no plastic top sheet, changed at the times you would normally have stepped away for prayer. A thick night pad for the first two nights and liners for the last light days complete the kit.

Sources

About LiZZOM

LiZZOM is a Dubai-based, women-owned period care brand. We make organic bamboo sanitary pads and liners with a corn-starch backing, no fragrance and no chlorine bleaching, publish every ingredient we use, and supply homes, offices and schools across the UAE. Our guides are written by the LiZZOM team from the questions customers ask us and are checked against the public health sources listed above. They are general information, not a substitute for advice from a licensed doctor. Read the LiZZOM story or ask us a question.