Tk 44,000cr set aside for new pay scale

The proposed budget for FY2026-27 has earmarked Tk 44,000 crore for partial implementation of the new pay structure for government employees, although the government has yet to specify how it will be rolled out.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury announced in his budget speech yesterday that the new pay scale would take effect from July 1, but did not outline the implementation mechanism.

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New pay scale for govt employees from July 1

Unlike previous pay revisions, no separate increase has been shown under the salary and allowances head in the budget document.

Finance ministry officials said the allocation has instead been kept under the Net Public Service head, where spending has increased by Tk 54,572 crore from the revised allocation for the current fiscal year to Tk 1,41,444 crore in FY2026–27.

According to officials, the Tk 44,000 crore allocation will finance salary adjustments for government officials and employees, pensioners, and MPO-listed teachers and staff, depending on the pace of implementation.

They said a government committee working on the Pay Commission recommendations is still finalising the implementation formula, and decisions will be taken after its report is submitted.

Officials indicated that the current plan under consideration is to implement 50 percent of the revised basic salary in the upcoming fiscal year, the remaining 50 percent in the following year, and allowances in the third year.

In his speech, the finance minister said government employees had been receiving salaries and allowances under the same pay structure for the past 11 years while living costs had risen significantly due to inflation.

“We are announcing the phased implementation of a new pay structure for government employees from July 1, 2026,” he said.

In a press release yesterday, Secretariat employees welcomed the announcement of the first phase of the Ninth Pay Scale in the coming fiscal year.

Nazrul Islam, coordinator of the Inter-Ministry Employees Association, conveyed the reaction and thanked Prime Minister

Tarique Rahman for initiating implementation of the long-awaited pay structure.

However, he said employees would get real relief only once it became clear how much salaries would actually increase under the new structure.

The Ninth Pay Commission had recommended increases ranging between 100 percent and 142 percent, alongside substantial rises in other benefits.

Its proposals included 20 pay grades, raising the minimum salary from Tk 8,250 to Tk 20,000 and the maximum from Tk 78,000 to Tk 1,60,000.

The Eighth National Pay Scale was implemented in 2015 in two phases: the revised basic salary that year and revised allowances a year later.

Currently, the government spends Tk 1,31,000 crore a year for its 14 lakh employees and 9 lakh pensioners.