The government today approved the National Pay Scale 2026 in a bid to make the salaries, allowances and other financial benefits of the public servants more rational and time befitting.

The Cabinet approved the National Pay Scale 2026 at its meeting held today, along with the Joint Services Instructions 2026 for the armed forces in line with the new pay structure. Both will take effect from July 1, 2026, according to a press release issued by the Finance Ministry.

The government took the decision after reviewing the reports of the National Pay Commission-2025 and the Armed Forces Pay Committee-2025. A committee of secretaries had prepared recommendations based on those reports, considering the government’s fiscal capacity, overall economic situation, inflation, cost of living, living standards of government employees and the need for a balanced and rational pay structure.

The new pay scale retains the existing 20 grades for government employees. It fixes the minimum entry-level basic pay for Grade 20 at Tk 20,000, while the maximum basic pay for Grade 1 has been set at Tk 1,56,000.

To improve equity in the pay structure, the ratio between the minimum and maximum basic pay has been reduced to 1:1.78 from the existing 1:1.945. Under the new structure, the minimum-grade basic pay will rise by 142 percent, while the fixed pay for the highest grade will increase by 100 percent.

The government has also decided to introduce the One Rank One Pension (OROP) system in line with its election manifesto. The system needs simultaneous implementation for military and civilian personnel, but its immediate implementation would involve a substantial financial burden. Besides, the government does not have data on civilian employees who retired before 2019.

Against this backdrop, the government has decided to implement OROP gradually by 2030.

As an interim measure, the government has approved substantial increases in net pensions on a slab basis, taking into consideration pensioners’ living standards and financial security in old age.

Pensioners receiving Tk 9,000 or less in monthly net pension will get a 100 percent increase.

Those receiving Tk 9,001-Tk 20,000 will get a 75 percent increase.

Those receiving Tk 20,001-Tk 30,000 will get a 65 percent increase.

Those receiving Tk 30,001-Tk 40,000 will get a 60 percent increase.

Those receiving Tk 40,001 or more will get a 55 percent increase.

The Finance Ministry said the arrangement would provide a comparatively larger increase to pensioners who retired many years ago and currently receive relatively low net pensions.

For the first time, the government has decided to introduce a monthly allowance of Tk 3,000 for each child with special needs of government employees.

The government has also expanded the coverage of mobile allowances in view of increasing internet and digital communication costs. Previously, the mobile allowance applied only to employees in Grade 5. Under the new pay scale, employees of all grades will receive the allowance.

The National Pay Scale 2026 will be implemented in phases from July 1, 2026.

Considering the financial implications of implementing the new pay scale and its potential impact on overall inflation, the government has decided to implement it over the FY2026-27 and FY2027-28 fiscal years instead of implementing the entire structure at once.

The government will give priority to employees in Grades 10 to 20, considering their relatively lower incomes.

The revised basic pay will be implemented in three phases between July 1, 2026 and July 1, 2027, while allowances will become effective simultaneously from January 1, 2028.

Net pension increase for the pensioners will also become effective in phases.

A separate committee has been formed for the judicial service. The government will approve a separate Bangladesh Judicial Service Pay Scale based on the committee’s report, with implementation from July 1, 2026 in phases in line with the National Pay Scale 2026.
The government expects phased implementation to help ease inflationary pressure at the national level.

The new pay scale will benefit around 24 lakh military and civilian employees and more than 9 lakh retired employees and other eligible beneficiaries.

The additional annual expenditure arising from the implementation has been estimated at approximately Tk 1,05,580 crore. The government has made provisions for the additional expenditure in the budgets of the relevant fiscal years under the Medium-Term Budget Framework (MTBF).

The government expects the new pay scale to strengthen the financial security and motivation of government employees and contribute to building an efficient, dynamic and citizen-friendly public administration.

The Finance Division will issue the necessary gazettes, orders and instructions for smooth implementation of the National Pay Scale 2026. These will specify the detailed provisions on pay fixation, allowances, pensions and other post-retirement benefits.

The concerned ministries, divisions, directorates, offices and agencies will receive instructions to take necessary measures for proper implementation of the approved pay scale.