Kiribati is widely described as the first country to welcome the New Year.
The Republic of Kiribati includes the Line Islands, whose time zone is UTC+14, the world's furthest-forward standard time zone. Kiritimati, also called Christmas Island, is the largest inhabited island in that group and is often highlighted in international New Year's coverage.
Kiribati moved the International Date Line eastward around its islands in 1994–1995 so that the country would share the same calendar date. Before the change, its eastern and western islands could be separated by a day, creating major practical difficulties for government and commerce.
The “first country” label depends on definitions. It refers to the first sovereign state to reach January 1 somewhere in its territory, not necessarily the first inhabited place in every geographic sense. Tonga, Samoa, and New Zealand also celebrate very early, but their standard time zones follow Kiribati's Line Islands.