Hello,
Thank you for your query and we are so sorry about the trouble this must have caused.
Please note that we recently changed the sitemap implementation.
The timezone will now be a constant +00:00, and the post time will be converted to match the +00:00 timezone.
If you check the posts you’ll see the Last-Modified time has been converted to the UTC timezone. This is the default behavior of the plugin and expected since a recent update.
You have nothing to worry about and it won’t negatively impact your Site’s SEO.
If you wish to change this, you can edit the Rank Math file via FTP or CPanel’s file manager – wp-content/plugins/seo-by-rank-math/includes/modules/sitemap/class-timezone.php
Then on line 40, change this:
$date_time = new DateTime( $datetime_string, new DateTimeZone( 'UTC' ) );
To this:
$date_time = new DateTime( $datetime_string, new DateTimeZone( 'Asia/Hong_Kong' ) );
Once done, please try to clear your sitemap cache by following this video screencast:
https://i.rankmath.com/pipRDp
Please note that these changes will be overridden by each update and you will have to make the changes again.
Hope that helps and please do not hesitate to let us know if you need my assistance with anything else.
Okay but there is issue. If we update plugin we will need to change again. It’s a big pain always update it from core code. Don’t you have any snippet which i can use function.php file?
Hello again,
To avoid having to make the changes again after each update, we recommend using the Code Snippets Plugin to add custom snippets to your website. It removes the need to add custom snippets to your theme’s functions.php file.
Let us know how it goes. We are here to assist.
Thank you.
Exactly which code i need to add code snippet plugin?
Hi there,
Thank you for reaching out to us and sorry for any confusion. We want to clarify that changing the time zone of your sitemap does not affect your SEO at all and it is simply counterproductive to change it. However, if you still want to do it, you will have to edit the Rank Math file every time you update the plugin. Unfortunately, there is no way to use the Code Snippet plugin for this purpose.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation. Please let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.
Hello,
Since we did not hear back from you for 15 days, we are assuming that you found the solution. We are closing this support ticket.
If you still need assistance or any other help, please feel free to open a new support ticket, and we will be more than happy to assist.
Thank you.
