The New Year by the Gregorian (Western) calendar is not significant in Astrology as it does not typically coincide with any planetary cycles, so it does not bring any real change apart from a psychological placebo effect.
No wonder January is considered to be the most depressive month of the year. Because it simply is not and does not feel like the beginning but rather like the end of the natural cycle with energy exhausted.
The dates that start the yearly change of cycle and bring the actual difference are:
– Lunar New Year, widely known as Chinese New Year or Spring Festival. It begins on the second New Moon after the Winter Solstice. The date varies between 21 January and 20 February each year.
– Spring Equinox, also called the Vernal Equinox, correlates with the astrological new year. It begins when the Sun moves to the first degree of the Aries Zodiac sign, which happens each year around the 20th-21st of March.
Those are regular annual cycles that apply to all. Apart from them, there is an individual yearly cycle – a Solar return. It renews each year around one’s birthday when the Sun returns to the same position it was at the moment of one’s birth. This cycle brings yearly developments to the life of a particular person. It is one of the tools used by astrologers to determine one’s year forecast.