Lunar New Year 2027 Calendar: Sending Off the Gods, New Year's Eve, the First Workday, the Jade Emperor and the Lantern Festival

Compiled by Haiyuan · AI-generated content · Updated 2026-10-12 · How we calculate

Day 1 of the 2027 Lunar New Year falls on Sat, Feb 6. Three things about this year are worth noting first: the 12th month has only 29 days, so New Year's Eve falls on day 29 (Fri, Feb 5); Li Chun, the Start of Spring (Thu, Feb 4), comes two days before New Year, which leaves the Ding-Wei year without a Li Chun of its own, a "year without spring"; and the Jade Emperor's Birthday on day 9 lands on Valentine's Day, February 14. Below, the dates run from the winter solstice and weiya all the way to the Lantern Festival, each with its almanac entries and the zodiac sign it clashes.

Lunar New Year 2027 at a glance

Dates and almanac entries are computed by our calendar code (the same one behind the daily almanac and the date finder). Public holidays and adjusted working days follow the announcement of Taiwan's Directorate-General of Personnel Administration.

Before New Year: the winter solstice, weiya and sending off the gods

The winter solstice (Tue, Dec 22, at 04:50) is the shortest day of the year. In Taiwan people eat tangyuan (glutinous rice balls) and make offerings to their ancestors, hence the sayings "the winter solstice is as big as New Year" and "eat your tangyuan and you are a year older." The solstice is also one of the middle terms of the solar calendar, the midpoint of the Zi month in BaZi; see the winter solstice.

Weiya (Sat, Jan 23) is day 16 of the 12th month, the last of the year's "ya" offerings to the Earth God by businesses, and the time when most companies hold their year-end banquet. In 2027 weiya falls on a Saturday, so restaurant bookings are best made early.

Sending off the gods (Sun, Jan 31) is day 24 of the 12th month. Families see the Kitchen God and the other gods off to heaven to report on the year, offering sweets such as sweet tangyuan and malt candy so that the gods "say only good things up there"; many households also start the big year-end cleaning on this day. For the Kitchen God, see the Kitchen God's Birthday.

New Year's Eve to day 5: what happens each day

New Year's Eve (Fri, Feb 5): this 12th month is a short month of 29 days, so the eve falls on day 29. In the daytime families make offerings to the gods, the ancestors and the dizhuzhu (the spirit of the land the house stands on); in the evening everyone gathers for the reunion dinner, elders hand out red envelopes, and some people stay up past midnight. For the full routine and customs, see New Year's Eve.

Day 1 (Sat, Feb 6): New Year visits, and for many people an early trip to a temple to burn incense. By custom you do not sweep the floor or take out the rubbish on day 1, for fear of sweeping the new year's luck out of the door, and you try to say only auspicious things. See Lunar New Year.

Day 2 (Sun, Feb 7): married daughters visit their parents' home. Note that in 2027 the almanac marks day 2 "nothing favorable" (zhu shi bu yi). That means it is not a day to choose for important undertakings such as weddings, openings or moving in; an ordinary family meal at your parents' home goes ahead as usual.

Day 3 (Mon, Feb 8): known as Red Dog Day; traditionally people do not go visiting and stay home to rest.

Day 4 (Tue, Feb 9): welcoming the gods, who return from heaven after being seen off on day 24; offerings are usually set out in the afternoon.

Day 5 (Wed, Feb 10): known as Gekai, "the break," the day to welcome the God of Wealth and reopen; many shops and companies go back to work around now. See welcoming the God of Wealth.

The day branch is Mao (卯), the Rabbit's branch. It clashes with the Rooster; it forms a Six Combination with the Dog and a trine with the Pig and Goat. No other sign clashes.

Calculated by our calendar engine (the same one behind the date finder and daily almanac); printed almanacs sometimes differ.

The day branch is Chen (辰), the Dragon's branch. It clashes with the Dog; it forms a Six Combination with the Rooster and a trine with the Monkey and Rat. No other sign clashes.

Calculated by our calendar engine (the same one behind the date finder and daily almanac); printed almanacs sometimes differ.

Back to work and reopening: options besides day 5

Day 5 is the customary day to go back to work, but in 2027 the almanac marks it a monthly taboo day, and its entries also say avoid opening for business. Plenty of shops reopen on day 5 by custom, and that is fine. If you would rather follow the almanac, the table below lists the days from Lunar New Year to the end of February that it marks favorable for opening (before removing any clash with the owner's zodiac sign). Company working days follow the official announcement and each employer's own rules.

To remove days that clash with the owner's sign and pick a Yellow Path hour, use the finder on business opening dates.

The Jade Emperor's Birthday on Valentine's Day: planning February 14

In 2027, day 9 of the 1st month falls on Sun, Feb 14, so the Jade Emperor's Birthday and Valentine's Day share a date. Traditionally the offering to the Jade Emperor (Tiangong, the Lord of Heaven) is most solemn from the night of day 8 into the zi hour of day 9, that is, from 11 p.m. on February 13 to 1 a.m. on the 14th; visiting a temple in the daytime is fine too.

So the two hardly collide: honor the Jade Emperor with the family the night before, and celebrate Valentine's Day during the day or evening of the 14th. If older relatives keep the custom, the offerings can be prepared during the day on the 13th; for how the upper and lower offering tables are laid out, see the Jade Emperor's Birthday.

The day branch is Zi (子), the Rat's branch. It clashes with the Horse; it forms a Six Combination with the Ox and a trine with the Monkey and Dragon. No other sign clashes.

Calculated by our calendar engine (the same one behind the date finder and daily almanac); printed almanacs sometimes differ.

The Lantern Festival: the last day of New Year

The Lantern Festival (Sat, Feb 20) is day 15 of the 1st month: tangyuan, lantern fairs and lantern riddles, and also the birthday of the Heavenly Official (Tianguan Dadi). Many temples finish installing the year's Tai Sui and guangming lamps around this day, and custom says "New Year is not over until the Lantern Festival." For its origins and events, see the Lantern Festival; for the An Tai Sui timeline, see An Tai Sui 2027.

The day branch is Wu (午), the Horse's branch. It clashes with the Rat; it forms a Six Combination with the Goat and a trine with the Tiger and Dog. No other sign clashes.

Calculated by our calendar engine (the same one behind the date finder and daily almanac); printed almanacs sometimes differ.

2027 is a "year without spring": Li Chun comes before New Year

The Ding-Wei year starts on Sat, Feb 6, but Li Chun, the Start of Spring, comes on Thu, Feb 4, two days earlier; and the next Li Chun (February 4, 2028) falls after the 2028 Lunar New Year. The whole Ding-Wei lunar year contains no Li Chun at all. Folk custom calls this a "year without spring" (wu chun nian), or less kindly a "widow year." It is a calendar effect of the lunar and solar years not lining up, and it happens roughly one year in three over the last two centuries. For whether it matters for weddings, see 2027 wedding dates.

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