Haircuts during the Nine Days

Greetings,

According to the custom of Sephardim, it is permissible to get a haircut during the three weeks leading up to the week in which Tisha B'Av occurs. On the evening of Tisha B'Av, one may get a haircut immediately (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, Siman 558, Seifim 3-4; Chazon Ovadia, Arba Taanit, page 289).

In a year when Tisha B'Av  falls on Shabbat and is postponed to Sunday, Sephardim do not follow all the laws of the week in which it falls. Nevertheless, it is advisable to refrain from haircuts and shavings at least on the eve of Shabbat Chazon (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, there, Seif 4; Chazon Ovadia, there, pages 267-268).

The custom of Ashkenazim is not to get a haircut during the entire three weeks until midday on the tenth of Av (Rama, there, Seif 4; Mishna Berura, Siman 558, Sif Katan 3).

In a year when Tisha B'Av is postponed to Sunday, it is also permissible for Ashkenazim to get a haircut on the evening following the Tisha B'Av fast (Mishna Berura, there, Sif Katan 4).

Best regards,

Hillel Meirs