Army and Defence Pay Rises 10 Percent From January 2027, by 4,000 to 11,000 Denars a Month
Minister Misajlovski announced the increase as historically the largest in absolute terms. What 10 percent means, what the amounts imply and what has not been published.
Defence Minister Vlado Misajlovski announced at a press conference on November 3 that the pay of employees in the Army and in defence will rise by 10 percent from January 2027. According to him, the increase applies to the base salary and to all components that make up the pay.
How much in denars. The monthly increase is from 4,000 to 11,000 denars, depending on the salary. Misajlovski described it as “the historically largest increase in absolute terms” and added that “the employees deserve this, the Army deserves it”. The increase is provided for in the 2027 budget, which the government adopted at its session on Friday and which entered parliamentary procedure on Saturday.
What the amounts imply. If 4,000 and 11,000 denars are each 10 percent of the same pay base, then the salaries to which the increase applies range from about 40,000 to about 110,000 denars (our calculation). This is an assumption, because it has not been published which salaries the amounts refer to, or whether they are gross or net. The number of employees has not been published either, so we cannot calculate what the increase costs.
How “real” it is. Inflation in September was 2.7 percent and the National Bank projects 3.6 percent. If pay rises 10 percent and prices about 3 to 4 percent, the real rise in purchasing power would be about six to seven percent (our rough calculation, provided prices move as in the projections). That is significant, but only if the whole amount reaches the pay.
Defence in the budget. According to Finance Minister Gordana Dimitrieska-Kochoska, defence and security are planned at 2 percent of GDP. That includes strengthening defence capacities, modernisation and equipment, and the obligations of NATO membership. The brief mentions a defence budget increase of two billion denars in 2027, but we did not find that in the sources we read, so we leave it as unverified.
Personnel. A related piece of news is that professional soldiers could stay in the Army after the age of 45. Together with pay, that is part of the effort to keep people in service. How effectively it attracts personnel will be shown by staffing figures, which are not part of this announcement.
Comparison with other sectors. We found no information on whether a similar increase is planned for the rest of the public sector. It is therefore early to say whether the Army gets more than others or is part of a general increase.
What has not been published. The total cost of the increase, the agreement with trade unions (if any), the effect on soldiers’ pensions and the specific base salary. These data are needed to judge whether “historic” also means sufficient.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · November 4, 2026
