Centre approves 30-day ad-hoc bonus for employees ahead of Diwali, up to Rs 6,908

The Union government has decided to pay a bonus to its employees for the financial year 2025-26. It has sanctioned a 30-day non-productivity linked, or ad-hoc, bonus, which will directly benefit lakhs of employees.

The Department of Expenditure in the Ministry of Finance issued an official letter on the subject on October 15, 2026. The letter says the bonus has received the President's approval, so the money will soon be credited to employees' accounts.

The bonus will be calculated on a monthly pay ceiling of Rs 7,000. However high an employee's salary, Rs 7,000 will be taken as the figure for the bonus. On this basis, the maximum bonus for 30 days will be Rs 6,908. An employee whose average pay is below Rs 7,000 will receive a proportionately smaller bonus.

The formula is average pay multiplied by 30 and divided by 30.4. At Rs 7,000, that works out to 7,000 x 30 / 30.4 = 6,907.89, or Rs 6,908.

The government has divided employees into Groups A, B, C and D, and not all of them will get the bonus. Group C employees will receive the full benefit, at 100 per cent of the bonus. This group includes clerks, head clerks, typists, assistants and multi-tasking staff (MTS).

In Group B, only non-gazetted employees will get the bonus. Those who are senior assistants or supervisors will benefit.

Group A officers and the senior gazetted officers of Group B will not get the bonus and have been kept out of the scheme. The decision, coming just before Diwali, has brought cheer to rank-and-file employees and given them considerable relief.