Parliament has passed a bill setting the maximum age limit for direct recruitment to government jobs at 32.
The bill was passed by voice vote on Sunday on the eighth day of the first session of the 13th National Parliament, following its introduction by State Minister for Public Administration, Md Abdul Bari. The session was presided over by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, Bir Bikram.
According to the day’s agenda, the Maximum Age Limit for Direct Recruitment to Government, Autonomous, Statutory Authorities and Public Non-Financial Corporations Bill, 2026 was placed before Parliament.
The main provision of the bill states that the maximum entry age for all cadres of the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS), as well as non-cadre government jobs, will be 32 years. For positions in autonomous and statutory bodies where the age limit was previously set at 30 or up to 32, the new limit will now uniformly be 32 years.
However, for posts where the recruitment rules already set a higher age limit—such as 35, 40, or 45 years—that higher limit will remain unchanged. In other words, the law will not reduce existing opportunities.
It was also stated that recruitment rules for the Defence Services and law enforcement agencies will remain unaffected, and their existing regulations will continue to apply.
In the statement of objectives and reasons, the government said the increase aims to provide greater opportunities for educated unemployed youth to contribute to nation-building and to create a positive impact on the labour market.
The bill also formalizes two ordinances issued in 2024 and 2025 by repealing them and giving them permanent legal status.
The statement further noted that earlier ordinances had created some technical complications, particularly where age limits for certain specialized posts were inadvertently reduced. The new bill seeks to remove those ambiguities and retain existing higher age limits for relevant positions.
