Eighth Pay Commission
8th pay commission: 2026 is going to be an important year for central government employees and pensioners. The 7th Pay Commission is ending on 31 December 2025 and with this the discussions regarding the 8th Pay Commission have intensified. There is only one question in everyone’s mind that how much will the salary increase now and when will the money be received?
What steps has the government taken on the 8th Pay Commission?
The government has started the process regarding the 8th Pay Commission. The necessary conditions for this i.e. terms of reference were approved in October 2025. After this, the Commission has been given about 18 months time to prepare recommendations related to salary, allowances and pension, which means it is certain to take some time for the report to come.
Applicable from January 1, 2026, but money not immediately
The date of the new pay commission can be considered as 1 January 2026 on paper, however, this does not mean that the increased salary will start coming into the accounts of the employees from the same day. Past experiences show that there is a gap of a few months between government approval and actual payment.
There have been delays before too
If we talk about the last time, the 7th Pay Commission was supposed to be implemented from January 2016, but the government’s approval was received in June. After this the employees received the arrears after some time. Similarly, you may have to wait for the 8th Pay Commission before increasing your salary. It is believed that actual payments may begin sometime in FY 2026–27.
How much salary is expected to increase?
At present, no official figures have been revealed by the government, but estimates are definitely being made. In the 6th Pay Commission, there was an average increase of about 40 percent, whereas in the 7th, the increase was between 23 to 25 percent. The salary increase in the 8th Pay Commission is expected to be in the range of 20 to 35 percent. Especially lower level and entry-level employees may get a little more benefit.
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What will be the fitment factor?
Fitment factor is the basis on which the new basic salary is decided. In the 7th Pay Commission it was 2.57, in the 8th it is said to be between 2.4 to 3.0. If it remains high, then a good increase in basic pay may be seen.
What will the decision depend on
The final salary hike will depend on many things like inflation level, economic condition of the government, tax collection and upcoming political decisions. A balanced and practical salary increase is expected from the 8th Pay Commission by the government.