Crescent moon sighting confirms Hari Raya Aidilfitri to fall on Mar. 31

Selamat Hari Raya!

March 30, 2025, 07:32 PM

Hari Raya Aidilfitri, or the first day of Syawal for the year 1446 Hijrah, will fall on Monday, Mar. 31, 2025.

This comes after the crescent moon for the month of Syawal appeared above Singapore's horizon for 48 minutes after sunset.

In a statement issued by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis), Mufti of Singapore Nazirudin Mohd Nasir wished all Muslims in the country a blessed Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

"May this Hari Raya bring us blessings and victory as a result of all our acts of worship and good deeds that we have undertaken throughout the past month of Ramadan."

Dependent on sighting of crescent moon

A crescent moon traditionally signals the start of a new month in the Islamic calendar.

It must be spotted in the sky to determine the end of Ramadan and the start of Hari Raya.

If the crescent moon is not visible, Muslims in the country must make sure they've fasted for 30 days since the start of the Ramadan month before welcoming Hari Raya.

In 2022, Singapore welcomed Hari Raya Aidilfitri on May 3, one day later than Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei.

Muis explained that this was due to the moon not being visible in Singapore at sunset on May 1, the 29th day of Ramadan.

The council explained that it is "generally extremely difficult for the crescent moon to be visible because of its climatic conditions, which are often cloudy. "

Singapore uses the criteria commonly agreed by the MABIMS countries (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore) to determine the sighting of the crescent moon.

This methodology, known as imkan ar-rukya, considers two parameters during sunset on the 29th day of the month:

The elevation of the crescent moon (which must exceed 3 degrees) and

the degree of elongation of the sun and the moon (which must exceed 6.4 degrees).