8th Pay Commission new updates: 5 developments in January 2026

Even though the 8th Central Pay Commission (CPC) has only recently been formed, misinformation and speculations about possible salary and pension hikes are already circulating widely

As the first month of 2026 draws to a close, you may have come across numerous speculative articles and videos predicting what the 8th CPC might recommend.

In reality, the 8th CPC may take another 12-16 months to submit its report. Only after the government accepts the report and makes it public will the actual details on salary and pension hikes be known.

Until then, anything being said or written about salary and pension hikes should be treated as mere speculation, or at best wishful thinking. Against this backdrop, we have focused only on credible and officially verified developments related to the 8th Pay Commission, along with insights from the past pay panels.

In today's article, we highlight five new and verified developments related to the 8th Pay Commission in January 2026:

NC-JCM Staff Side has planned a meeting of its drafting committee on February 25, 2026, in New Delhi to discuss and decide on the process and modalities of drafting a memorandum on common service matters of central government employees.

The drafting committee will stay for a week in Delhi to discuss and finalise the Staff Side's proposals on each issue.

The Staff-Side officials are anticipating that they may be asked to submit the memorandum once the 8th CPC office starts functioning.

The Government has allocated office accommodation to the 8th Pay Commission at Chandralok Building, Janpath, New Delhi.

However, the new pay panel's office is yet to start functioning, according to the Staff-Side.

In its letter to the drafting committee members on January 20, 2026, Shiva Gopal Mishra, Secretary, NC-JCM Staff Side, mentioned the non-functioning status of the 8th CPC office, saying: "At present, the Government have allotted office accommodation for the 8th CPC at Chandralok Building, Janpath, New Delhi — 110001. Once the 8th CPC office start functioning then we may be asked to submit memorandum on the common service matters of Central Government employees."

The officials of the 8th CPC have not yet been fully finalised.

On January 20, the government issued a vacancy circular seeking applications/nominations for the post of PSo/Sr.PPs/ PPS/ PS in the 8th Pay Commission. The eligible candidates have been asked to apply "in the prescribed proforma along with the supporting documents i.e. APAR for last 5 years, Vigilance Clearance, Cadre Clearance etc." by February 5, 2026

Earlier on December 29, the government had issued a vacancy circular for filling two posts of Principal Staff Officer (PSO) in the 8th Pay Commission.

These posts will be filled by employees from various central government departments on a deputation basis.

The All India Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (AICPI-IW), which is an important metric for determining dearness allowance hike, has increased for five consecutive months from July to November 2025.

There is no official statement yet about the payment of arrears of salary under the 8th Pay Commission. This is likely to become clear after the submission of the 8th CPC report in 2027.

However, industry experts have estimated the number of months of arrears the government may need to pay after implementing the 8th CPC recommendations in FY28.