OffsetDateTime class

By / 22 May 2025 / 2 minutes of reading

The OffsetDateTime class represents a date-time with an offset from UTC/Greenwich in the ISO-8601 calendar system (e.g., 2024-06-01T10:15:30+05:30)

Commonly Used Methods

Simple Program

import java.time.OffsetDateTime;
import java.time.ZoneOffset;

public class OffsetDateTimeExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        OffsetDateTime currentTime = OffsetDateTime.now();
        OffsetDateTime customTime = OffsetDateTime.of(2024, 6, 1, 10, 30, 0, 0, ZoneOffset.of("+05:30"));

        System.out.println("Current OffsetDateTime: " + currentTime);
        System.out.println("Custom OffsetDateTime: " + customTime);
    }
}

Problem Statement

LotusJavaPrince and LotusPythonPrince are building a secure messaging platform where all timestamps must be recorded in UTC but displayed in the sender’s local offset.

They need to:

  • Capture message send time in UTC (OffsetDateTime with +00:00 offset).
  • Convert and display it in sender’s local offset (e.g., +05:30 or -04:00).
  • Maintain consistency across global users.
import java.time.OffsetDateTime;
import java.time.ZoneOffset;

public class SecureMessageTimestamp {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        System.out.println("Secure Messaging System by LotusJavaPrince & Mahesh");

        // Step 1: Capture current message time in UTC
        OffsetDateTime utcTime = OffsetDateTime.now(ZoneOffset.UTC);
        System.out.println("Message Timestamp (UTC): " + utcTime);

        // Step 2: Simulate sender from India (+05:30)
        ZoneOffset indiaOffset = ZoneOffset.of("+05:30");
        OffsetDateTime indiaTime = utcTime.withOffsetSameInstant(indiaOffset);
        System.out.println("Display in India (IST): " + indiaTime);

        // Step 3: Simulate sender from New York (-04:00)
        ZoneOffset nyOffset = ZoneOffset.of("-04:00");
        OffsetDateTime nyTime = utcTime.withOffsetSameInstant(nyOffset);
        System.out.println("Display in New York (EDT): " + nyTime);
    }*/
}
/*
Secure Messaging System by LotusJavaPrince & Mahesh
Message Timestamp (UTC): 2025-05-22T08:48:55.983178Z
Display in India (IST): 2025-05-22T14:18:55.983178+05:30
Display in New York (EDT): 2025-05-22T04:48:55.983178-04:00
*/

The OffsetDateTime class is ideal when:

  • You want to store or transfer date-times with precise UTC offsets.
  • You don’t need the full complexity of time zones (ZoneId), just an offset.
  • You’re dealing with APIs, databases, or logs across different regions.

It offers a clean and deterministic way to represent date-time values that are offset from UTC, making it essential for auditing, scheduling, and international messaging systems.

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