Central government employees and pensioners are eagerly awaiting clarity on the 8th Pay Commission, which will replace the existing 7th Pay Commission, whose term ends on December 31, 2025.
As per established practice, a new pay commission is constituted every ten years, and the recommendations of the 8th Pay Commission are expected to come into effect from January 1, 2026.
According to reports from Livemint, the effective date of the 8th Pay Commission might be in January 2026, but the implementation of the revised salaries may not occur right away.
In general, it takes a lot of time for the Pay Commission, government reviews, and, finally, Union Cabinet approvals. This was the scenario in the past, where the entire process would take about 18 to 30 months.
One of the main reasons behind the expectation of payment of arrears to the central government employees is this delay. The payment of arrears covers the period from the effective date of the commission to the date the revised salaries are actually implemented.
If the government goes ahead with the 8th Pay Commission in late 2027 or 2028, employees could receive a lump sum of arrears for almost two years.
If salary revisions are made in mid-2027, employees would be entitled to back pay for approximately 18 months from January 2026 onwards. If the implementation is pushed to 2028 or 2029, arrears could be as long as 24 months.
Besides, retired employees will be entitled to pension arrears during the same time. The precise amount of arrears will be influenced by various factors such as an employee's pay level, basic salary, fitment factor, and applicable allowances.
Though the government has not shared any official numbers yet, experts opine that the arrears could be several lakh rupees at the most for employees in mid-level positions. The final figure is likely to be much higher for top management, depending on the pay structure the commission suggests.
The central government has neither officially communicated the establishment of the 8th Pay Commission nor revealed the anticipated fitment factor or salary increase percentage. The officials have said that the decisions will be made taking into account the fiscal impact and the state of the economy.
There will be no immediate salary increments for the central government employees on January 1, 2026. Nevertheless, revised pay and pensions will be retroactively applicable, thus arrears will be paid as soon as the 8th Pay Commission's recommendations are implemented.