diff --git a/Lib/test/test_tools/test_i18n.py b/Lib/test/test_tools/test_i18n.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..05a9abb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Lib/test/test_tools/test_i18n.py
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+"""Tests to cover the Tools/i18n package"""
+
+import os
+import unittest
+
+from test.script_helper import assert_python_ok
+from test.test_tools import toolsdir
+from test.support import temp_cwd
+
+class Test_pygettext(unittest.TestCase):
+    """Tests for the pygettext.py tool"""
+    
+    script = os.path.join(toolsdir,'i18n', 'pygettext.py')
+
+    def getHeader(self, data):
+        """ utility: return the header of a .po file as a dictionary """
+        header = {}
+        for line in data.split('\n'):
+        
+            if not line: 
+                continue
+            if line.startswith(('#', 'msgid','msgstr')): 
+                continue
+                    
+            line = line.strip('"')
+
+            key, val = line.split(':',1)
+            header[key] = val.strip()
+
+        return header
+    
+    def test_header(self):
+        """Make sure the required fields are in the header
+           spec: http://www.gnu.org/software/gettext/manual/gettext.html#Header-Entry
+        """
+        with temp_cwd(None) as cwd:
+            assert_python_ok(self.script)
+            with open('messages.pot') as fp:
+                data = fp.read()
+            header = self.getHeader(data)
+            
+            self.assertIn("Project-Id-Version", header)
+            self.assertIn("POT-Creation-Date", header)
+            self.assertIn("PO-Revision-Date", header)
+            self.assertIn("Last-Translator", header)
+            self.assertIn("Language-Team", header)
+            self.assertIn("MIME-Version", header)
+            self.assertIn("Content-Type", header)   
+            self.assertIn("Content-Transfer-Encoding", header)                                    
+            self.assertIn("Generated-By", header)
+            
+            #not sure if these should be required in POT (template) files
+            #self.assertIn("Report-Msgid-Bugs-To", header)
+            #self.assertIn("Language", header)
+            
+            #"Plural-Forms" is optional
+                                    
+                                    
+    def test_POT_Creation_Date(self):
+        """ Match the date format from xgettext for POT-Creation-Date """
+        from datetime import datetime
+        with temp_cwd(None) as cwd:
+            assert_python_ok(self.script)
+            
+            with open('messages.pot') as fp:
+                data = fp.read()
+            header = self.getHeader(data)
+            creationDate = header['POT-Creation-Date']
+            
+            #peel off the escaped newline at the end of string
+            if creationDate.endswith('\\n'):
+                creationDate = creationDate[:-len('\\n')]
+            
+            #if this throws an exception: you fail.
+            asDatetime = datetime.strptime(creationDate, '%Y-%m-%d %H:%M%z')  
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Tools/i18n/pygettext.py b/Tools/i18n/pygettext.py
index 9ffeb17..3c6c14c 100755
--- a/Tools/i18n/pygettext.py
+++ b/Tools/i18n/pygettext.py
@@ -441,9 +441,7 @@ class TokenEater:
 
     def write(self, fp):
         options = self.__options
-        timestamp = time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M+%Z')
-        # The time stamp in the header doesn't have the same format as that
-        # generated by xgettext...
+        timestamp = time.strftime('%Y-%m-%d %H:%M%z')
         encoding = fp.encoding if fp.encoding else 'UTF-8'
         print(pot_header % {'time': timestamp, 'version': __version__,
                             'charset': encoding,