Finance Division extends Rs2,500 M.Phil allowance to HEC-equivalent degrees

September 21, 2026 (MLN): The Finance Division has extended the M.Phil allowance of Rs2,500 per month to federal government employees holding degrees declared equivalent to M.Phil by the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

According to an Office Memorandum issued on September 14, 2026, the benefit will be available to employees who acquire or possess an equivalent degree recognized by HEC, subject to production of an equivalence certificate.

The allowance will take effect from July 17, 2026, the memorandum said.

The Finance Division said the M.Phil allowance is currently set at 25% of the existing Ph.D. allowance, amounting to Rs2,500 per month.

The allowance was originally sanctioned for holders of HEC-recognized M.Phil degrees under an earlier Finance Division memorandum issued on July 1, 2016.

The latest decision marks a change from the Finance Division's position communicated in November 2025.

In its November 24, 2025 memorandum, the Finance Division had clarified that the M.Phil allowance was specifically applicable to holders of an M.Phil degree and that no other degree, whether HEC-equivalent or otherwise, had been placed at par for the purpose of the allowance.

It had also stated that HEC equivalence was generally used for purposes such as recruitment or admission to universities.

Under the original 2016 policy, the Rs2,500 monthly allowance was granted to employees possessing an HEC-recognized M.Phil degree, subject to specified conditions.

The allowance was not admissible to employees already receiving the Ph.D. allowance of Rs10,000 per month, among other restrictions.

The September 2026 memorandum specifically directs that the benefit available to M.Phil holders may also be extended to employees possessing an HEC-recognized equivalent qualification, provided they submit an equivalence certificate.

The memorandum was issued by the Finance Division's Implementation section and circulated to federal ministries and divisions.

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