HRA rules for central government employees

Updated 11 October 2026

Central government employees get House Rent Allowance (HRA) of 30%, 20% or 10% of basic pay, depending on whether their place of duty is an X, Y or Z city, with a minimum of ₹5,400, ₹3,600 or ₹1,800 a month. HRA is paid whether you rent or own your home, as long as you are not in government accommodation. Getting it tax-free is a separate question: that needs actual rent and the old tax regime.

HRA rates and how they changed

The 7th CPC linked HRA to DA (DoE OM of 7 July 2017):

The 30%, 20% and 10% rates are the last step under the 7th CPC. HRA is a percentage of basic pay alone, meaning the pay in your level of the pay matrix; DA, non-practising allowance and special pay are left out. So a DA hike no longer changes your HRA; only an increment or promotion does.

X, Y and Z cities

Cities are classed by the population of the urban agglomeration in the 2011 Census: X for 50 lakh and above, Y for 5 lakh to 50 lakh, and Z for smaller places. There are eight X cities: Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Greater Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune. HRA follows your place of duty, not where you live. Places within 8 km of a classified city can get the same class if the Collector certifies them as dependent on it. The full list is on our HRA city classification page.

HRA at common pay levels

At the Level 1 entry cell the percentages land exactly on the minimums. For your own cell, multiply basic pay by the rate, or open your level page, such as Level 7 salary.

When HRA is not paid

• You occupy government accommodation (general pool or departmental). HRA stops once you take it.
• You share government accommodation allotted to another government employee.
• You live in accommodation allotted to your parents, son or daughter by the central or a state government, a public sector undertaking or a similar body.
• Your spouse has been allotted government accommodation at the same station. The Finance Ministry restated this in Parliament in August 2026 and said no change is being considered.
• You stay in a government-run hostel for working women.

If both spouses are government employees living in rented or owned private housing, each draws HRA at their own rate. Sharing a private house with other government employees does not stop HRA, provided you pay or contribute to the rent.

HRA during leave, training and transfer

• Leave: HRA continues at the same rate during leave of up to 180 days; longer spells need a prescribed certificate, and for TB, cancer and certain other illnesses the period is eight months. Child care leave counts like any other leave.
• Training in India: HRA of the training station or of the duty station, whichever is more favourable.
• Temporary transfer: for a transfer of up to 90 days, the old station's rate continues.

These rules come from the Department of Expenditure's consolidated HRA instructions of 30 December 2022 (see doe.gov.in).

HRA and income tax

Under the old regime, the exempt part of HRA is the least of: the HRA received; rent paid minus 10% of salary (basic + DA); and 50% of salary in eight cities or 40% elsewhere. From tax year 2026-27, the 50% cities are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad, the same eight cities that are X class for government HRA. If you live in your own house, or choose the new regime, all your HRA is taxable. More in our HRA exemption guide and the HRA exemption calculator.