RismadarVoice Reporters
June 2, 2026
The Federal Government of Nigeria has directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to immediately discontinue the practice of placing civil servants on a mandatory three-month pre-retirement leave, declaring that such a provision does not exist in the Public Service Rules (PSR).
The directive was issued by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, in a circular addressed to ministers, permanent secretaries, service chiefs, heads of government agencies and other senior public officials.
In the circular titled “Correct Interpretation of Public Service Rule 120243 on Pre-Retirement Activities,” Walson-Jack said many MDAs had erroneously interpreted the statutory three-month retirement notice period as an automatic leave period, leading to the premature withdrawal of officers from active service.
According to her, Rule 120243 of the Public Service Rules only requires officers due for retirement to give three months’ notice before their retirement date, attend a one-month pre-retirement seminar or workshop, and use the remaining period to regularise service records and pension documentation.
“The so-called mandatory three-month pre-retirement leave has no basis in the Public Service Rules,” the Head of Service stated.
She explained that the rule establishes three distinct obligations: notification of retirement, participation in a pre-retirement programme, and completion of retirement-related administrative processes.
“A retiring officer must give three months’ notice before their effective date of retirement. This is a notice requirement, not a leave entitlement,” the circular emphasised.
Walson-Jack emphasised that officers approaching retirement remain full-fledged public servants throughout the notice period and are expected to continue performing their official duties, except when attending approved retirement seminars or when granted leave under existing regulations.
“PSR 120243 does not exempt retiring officers from official duties during the notice period, except where they are attending an approved pre-retirement workshop or seminar, or are otherwise authorised to be absent under extant leave rules,” she said.
The circular consequently directed all MDAs to stop compelling retiring officers to vacate their offices before their official retirement dates.
Under the new directive, affected officers are expected to continue discharging their responsibilities while participating in approved pre-retirement programmes and completing pension documentation and service record reconciliations before exiting service.
The Head of Service also instructed permanent secretaries, directors-general, executive secretaries, chief executives and heads of statutory agencies to circulate the directive among staff and ensure strict compliance.
The clarification is expected to impact thaffects of federal civil servants who retire annually. Each year, many government institutions treated the three-month notice period as a form of compulsory leave, often requiring officers to stop reporting for duty immediately after submitting retirement notices. In practice, many employees spent the period away from work while awaiting retirement processing.
Government officials believe the new directive will help standardise the application of Public Service Rules across MDAs, prevent the premature loss of experienced personnel, and improve service delivery by ensuring retiring officers continue contributing their expertise until their official exit dates.
The federal civil service retirement framework is governed by the Public Service Rules and the Pension Reform Act, which stipulate retirement upon attaining 60 years of age or 35 years of service, whichever comes first.
The clarification also forms part of broader efforts to address longstanding challenges associated with pension processing, personnel record verification, and retirement documentation, while eliminating ambiguity surrounding pre-retirement procedures in the public service.
