ExplainedPay Commission
8th Pay Commission explained: when salaries and pensions will rise, and what the fitment factor means
Set up on November 3, 2025, the 8th Central Pay Commission has until about May 2027 to report. What it covers, who heads it, what has and has not been decided, how a fitment factor changes your pay, and how dearness allowance fits in.
The short answer
The 8th Central Pay Commission was constituted on November 3, 2025, under former Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, and has 18 months, until about May 2027, to recommend new pay, allowances and pensions for central government employees and pensioners. As of November 2026 it has not reported, no fitment factor or implementation date has been decided, and salaries and pensions have not been revised. Figures circulating online, such as a ₹25,000 pension becoming ₹87,500, are arithmetic on assumed factors, not decisions. Meanwhile, dearness allowance was raised from 60% to 63% from July 1, 2026.
The 8th Pay Commission has not yet reported, and no pay rise has been decided. That is the most important thing to know amid the flood of salary calculators and viral posts. The Commission was set up on November 3, 2025, and has 18 months, until about May 2027, to make its recommendations. Only after that will the government decide what to accept and from when.
What is the 8th Pay Commission?
A body that recommends new pay and pensions for central government staff, roughly once a decade. Its terms of reference cover pay scales, dearness allowance, other allowances, pensions and family pensions, and service conditions for central government employees and pensioners. The 7th Pay Commission’s recommendations took effect from January 1, 2016; the 8th is its successor.
It is chaired by former Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai. Professor Pulak Ghosh is a part-time member and Pankaj Jain is the member-secretary.
The 8th Pay Commission
- Nov 3, 2025constituted by government resolution
- May 2027approximate deadline: 18 months
- 35.77 lakhcivilian central employees, March 2026
- 33.76 lakhcivilian pensioners and family pensioners, December 2025
When will the report come, and when will salaries rise?
The report is due by about May 2027; the rise depends on what the government then decides. On August 10, 2026, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Lok Sabha that the Commission “will make its recommendations within 18 months of the date of its constitution”, that it had not yet submitted them, and that the government had not decided when they would be implemented. The Commission is not required to give regular progress reports.
Submitting the report does not change anyone’s pay by itself. The government will study the recommendations, decide which to accept, and fix an effective date. No implementation date has been announced.
The Pay Commission so far
- Jan 1, 20167th Pay Commission's pay structure takes effect.
- Nov 3, 20258th Pay Commission constituted, with 18 months to report.
- 2026Consultations with unions and pensioners in cities including Jaipur, Chennai, Puducherry, Chandigarh and Mumbai.
- Aug 10, 2026Finance Ministry tells Lok Sabha no report submitted and no implementation date decided.
- Oct 28, 2026Cabinet raises DA and DR to 63% from July 1, 2026.
- May 2027Approximate deadline for the Commission's report.
What is the fitment factor?
The multiplier that converts your old basic pay into the new one. When a pay commission revises the pay structure, each employee’s existing basic pay is multiplied by a fitment factor to arrive at the new basic pay. The 6th Pay Commission used a factor of 1.86, and the 7th used 2.57.
Under the 7th Commission, the minimum basic pay became ₹18,000. As an illustration only: if a new factor were 2.57 again, that ₹18,000 would become ₹46,260; at 2.86 it would become ₹51,480. No factor has been fixed for the 8th Commission.
What about the viral “₹25,000 to ₹87,500 pension” claims?
They are arithmetic, not decisions. Fitment factors of 2.57, 2.86, 3.00 and 3.15 are all circulating online, and the claim that a ₹25,000 basic pension would become ₹87,500 simply assumes a factor of 3.5. None of these has been approved by the Commission or the government.
The employees’ side has its own demands: it reportedly wants a minimum basic pay of ₹69,000 and a fitment factor of 3.833. These are negotiating positions put to the Commission, not outcomes.
Decided or not?
How does dearness allowance fit in?
DA keeps rising until the new pay structure arrives. Dearness allowance for employees, and dearness relief for pensioners, is revised twice a year to offset inflation. On October 28, 2026, the Union Cabinet raised both from 60% to 63% with effect from July 1, 2026, a decision covering about 48.54 lakh employees and 68.71 lakh pensioners at an annual cost of ₹10,016.10 crore. When a new pay structure is introduced, accumulated DA is usually built into the new basic pay and the count starts again.
Who is covered?
Central government employees and pensioners, not state staff directly. According to the Finance Ministry, the Commission’s remit covers about 35.77 lakh civilian central government employees, as of March 1, 2026, and about 33.76 lakh civilian pensioners and family pensioners, as of December 31, 2025. Defence pensioners are counted separately. Many states revise their own employees’ pay after a central pay commission, but each state decides for itself.
What should employees and pensioners watch for?
Three official signals. First, any interim report: the Commission may report early on issues it settles first, though that does not mean the final report will come sooner. Second, the final report, due around May 2027. Third, the government’s notification accepting it, which will set the fitment factor, the new pay matrix and the effective date. Until then, online calculators give only estimates, and the only reliable figures are those published by the Commission, the Finance Ministry or the Press Information Bureau.