I work from Dubai for a client in London; which time zone should I use on my timesheet?
Whichever you choose, as long as the start and end on each row come from the same clock. The calculator reads times exactly as typed, with no time zone or daylight-saving adjustment, so the hours come out the same either way. Use the clock your client expects, say so on the sheet, and watch only for the night the clocks change.
The hours do not care which city you are in
Start in Dubai at 09:00, finish at 17:30, take a 30 minute break: that is 8:00. In winter London is four hours behind Dubai, so the same work on a London clock runs 05:00 to 13:30, and with the same break it is also 8:00. The stretch of time is identical; only the numbers written on the clock differ.
That is why the calculator does not need to know where you are. It subtracts the start from the end and takes off the break. What matters is not mixing clocks: do not type a Dubai start and a London end on the same row, or you will be three or four hours out.
Which clock to use
This is an agreement with the client, not a calculation. Some clients want times on their own clock so they can match them against meetings and emails. Many freelancers prefer their local time because it is what they see while working, which means fewer slips. Whichever you pick:
- Open the Timesheet calculator and keep every row on the same clock from the first day of the month to the last.
- State it plainly in your message or on the invoice, for example 'All times are Dubai time'.
- Download the PDF summary. It already notes that times are as typed, with no time zone or daylight-saving adjustment.
The one exception: the night the clocks change
Dubai keeps the same time all year; London moves its clocks twice a year. If you log on London time and a shift runs across the moment the clocks change, the calculator does not know the hour jumped or repeated, and counts the visible gap between the two numbers. The result is an hour more or less than you actually worked.
For daytime work that rarely matters, because the change happens in the small hours. If you did have a night shift that night, the easy fix is to log that row on Dubai time, or correct the hour by hand afterwards and add a note for the client. Remember too that the gap between the cities shrinks to three hours during London's summer; that does not affect the calculation as long as each row stays on one clock.
Common slips with overseas clients
- Copying a meeting start from a calendar invite in the client's time, then typing the end from your own clock.
- Assuming the gap is fixed all year, when countries with daylight saving shift against you.
- An evening session that finishes after midnight: this is counted correctly and marked '+1 day'.
Common questions
Does the calculator convert times between cities?
No. There is no time zone setting; times are counted exactly as you type them.
Does choosing the client's currency change anything?
The currency only changes how many decimals the pay is rounded to. The hours are not affected by currency or time zone.
I logged on London time. Does the file say so?
The file shows the times as typed without naming a city, so write the time zone yourself in your message or invoice.