The central government employees are looking toward to key updates regarding the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission. Recently, the Ministry of Finance provided major clarity regarding the time and proposed changes related to salaries, allowances and pensions.
Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, in a written reply in Parliament, informed that the central government formally set up the 8th CPC on Nov. 3, 2025. Chaudhary informed that the Commission was provided 18 months' time to submit its recommendations.
The commission "will make its recommendations on various issues viz. Pay, Allowances, Pension, etc. of the Central Government employees within 18 months of its constitution," the minister said.
How 6th And 7th CPC Set The Fitment Factor?
Recommendations for the 6th CPC got notified in March 2008, while it came into effect from Jan. 1, 2006.
Under the 6th CPC, the minimum entry-level salary in Pay Band-1 was Rs 6,600, which included Rs 4,860 as pay in the band along with Rs 1,800 as grade pay. At that time, the maximum salary stood at Rs 80,000 at the level of secretary. The minimum: maximum salary ratio was 1:12. Notably, the basic pay at cabinet secretary level was increased to Rs 90,000.
Meanwhile, the central government replaced the older system of pay bands and grade pay in the 7th CPC with a new pay matrix system. Under this, grade pay of an employee was subsumed in the pay matrix.
This time, a fitment factor of 2.57 was applied for all the central government employees. This meant that their basix pay increased by 2.57 times.
Following the Aykroyd formula, the government set the minimum pay at Rs 18,000 per month and the maximum pay at Rs 2,25,000 per month. Further, the minimum pay was set at Rs 2,50,000 per month for cabinet secretary and other employees at the same pay level, while the annual increment was at 3% for all the government employees.
The recommendations came into effect from Jan. 1, 2016.
The term of the 7th CPC came to an end on Dec. 31, 2025, which means that the revised pay scales under the 8th CPC are expected to be implemented from Jan. 1, 2026.
The 8th CPC has been provided 18 months time to submit its report, while it might take more time for the government to implement the same. However, government employees are expected to receive arrears, which means that the revised salary could be calculated from Jan. 1, 2026.
ALSO READ: 8th Pay Commission Update: Timeline, Salary Hike Estimate, Arrears Status — All You Need To Know
8th CPC: What To Expect?
If the fitment factor remains the same as the 7th CPC at 2.57, then the basic pay under 8th CPC at Level 1 could go up to Rs 46,260 from Rs 18,000, according to The Economic Times.
For Level 2, it could reach Rs 51,143 from Rs 19,900. Further, it is expect to be Rs 55,769 for Level 3, Rs 65,535 for Level 4, Rs 75,044 for Level 5, Rs 90,978 for Level 6, Rs 1,15,393 for Level 7, Rs 1,22,332 for Level 8, Rs 1,36,467 for Level 9, Rs 1,44,177 for Level 10, Rs 1,73,989 for Level 11, Rs 2,02,516 for Level 12, Rs 3,16,367 for Level 13, Rs 3,36,927 for Level 13A, Rs 3,70,594 for Level 14, Rs 4,68,254 for Level 15, Rs 5,27,878 for Level 16, Rs 5,78,250 for Level 17 and Rs 6,42,500 for Level 18.
The fitment factor gets determined based on the basic salary during the previous pay commission, DA, annual increment, growth factor and other aspects.
ALSO READ: April 1 Rule Changes: 10 Financial Updates That Will Affect Your Wallet
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.