Dhaka: The government has officially announced a new pay scale for its employees, as detailed in a gazette notification released on Saturday. The revised pay structure is set to take effect retroactively from July this year.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the notification, titled Government Service (Pay and Allowances) Order, 2026, outlines that officials in grades 1 to 9 will receive 40 percent of their increased basic pay starting from July 1, 2026, while employees in grades 10 to 20 are set to receive 50 percent. These rates will apply until December, with the increased amounts being added to the salaries as of June 30. From January 1, 2027, the percentages will increase to 70 percent for grades 1 to 9, and 75 percent for grades 10 to 20, with the full 100 percent increase coming into effect from July 1, 2027, when annual increments will also begin.
The new pay scale, effective from July this year, ensures that government employees will receive the remaining portion of the increased salary as arrears from July 1, 2026. Other benefits linked to the new structure, such as increased house rent, medical, and mobile allowances, are scheduled to be effective from January 1, 2028.
Pensioners will also benefit under the new pay structure, receiving benefits according to their respective pension slabs, starting from July 1, 2026. The government's decision to implement the pay scale in three phases over two fiscal years includes salary increases ranging from 100 percent to a maximum of 142 percent.
The basic salary for employees in the lowest, 20th grade, has been significantly increased from Tk 8,250 to Tk 20,000, marking a 142 percent increase. At the top level, the basic salary for first-grade officials has been raised from Tk 78,000 to Tk 1,56,000. Senior secretaries will see their salaries rise from Tk 82,000 to Tk 1,64,000, while the Cabinet secretary, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, and officials of equivalent rank will receive a salary increase from Tk 86,000 to Tk 1,72,000.
Currently, Bangladesh employs approximately 1.4 million government employees and supports nearly 900,000 pensioners. The fiscal year's budget has allocated Tk 89,836 crore for the salaries and allowances of government officials and employees. The last pay scale for government employees was announced in 2015.