Meeting of the Council of Ministers on December 3rd 2025
Presidency of the Council of Ministers
Spokesperson of the Government of Timor-Leste
Ninth Constitutional Government
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Press Release
Meeting of the Council of Ministers on December 3rd 2025
The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and approved the draft Decree-Law presented by the Minister of Finance, Santina José Rodrigues F. Viegas Cardoso, for the approval of an extraordinary payment of one month's additional salary to the Civil Service.
This decree-law aims to ensure, throughout 2025, the exceptional payment of an additional salary as a recognition of the commitment and dedication of civil servants and equivalent workers. The measure upholds the principle of universality, covering public office holders, civil servants, agents, members of defence and security forces, workers subject to the Labour Law, and public administration contractors, excluding foreign contractors.
The extraordinary payment generally corresponds to the salary earned in December 2025. To ensure uniformity, the amount allocated to contractors is aligned with the general regime and restricted to the maximum grade and level of the salary scale, similar to civil servants and agents. The law also states that the amount of the extraordinary payment cannot surpass the salary of the President of the Republic.
The payment will be made during December 2025 and will be financed from the funds available in the budgets of the respective employers. In cases where budgetary resources are insufficient, priority should be given to paying workers with the lowest salaries, with the remaining amounts being covered by the General State Budget for 2026.
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The draft Decree-Law, also presented by the Minister of Finance, Santina José Rodrigues F. Viegas Cardoso, on the execution of the 2026 General State Budget, was approved.
This decree-law sets out the rules for implementing the General State Budget for 2026, approved by Law No. 8/2025 of November 27th, defining the deadlines for closing the fiscal year, the terms for using letters of credit and fiduciary accounts, as well as the conditions for utilising cash advances and working capital funds, in accordance with the prevailing general regime.
Aiming to curb the growth of current expenditure and improve the management of public resources, the decree-law introduces specific rules for overtime, business travel, allowances, and catering services, thereby enhancing control over especially sensitive headings. It also prioritises strengthening internal auditing by requiring half-yearly reports on these expenses and the use of working capital and cash advances, thereby promoting greater accountability, transparency, and discipline in budget implementation in 2026.
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The Council of Ministers approved the Government's draft resolution, submitted by the Vice Minister for ASEAN Affairs, Milena Maria da Costa Rangel, authorising a financial contribution of four hundred thousand US dollars to the Unit for Timor-Leste at the ASEAN Secretariat.
This contribution aims to support the operation of the Unit above and to ensure the continuation of essential activities to monitor Timor-Leste's integration into ASEAN following its full accession, formalised on October 26th, 2025.
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The Council of Ministers analysed the preliminary presentation by Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, the President of the Civil Service Commission (CFP – acronym in Portuguese) of Timor-Leste, Agostinho Letêncio de Deus, and the working group for the reform of human resources management in the Public Administration regarding the project to reorganise the structure of the public administration of the Special Administrative Region of Oé-Cusse Ambeno.
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Lastly, the Council of Ministers decided to grant the Minister of Education, Dulce de Jesus Soares, full powers to sign a cooperation agreement in education with the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC – acronym in Portuguese). END
