The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has extended the deadline for the ongoing mandatory One-Time Online Verification and Enrolment Exercise for employees of treasury-funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) entitled to accrued pension rights to December 31, 2026.

The exercise, which commenced in February 2026 and was initially scheduled to end on July 31, has been extended following requests from several MDAs for additional time to enable eligible employees to complete the online enrolment process.

PenCom said the extension provides eligible employees who are yet to enrol, as well as those who started but have not completed the process, another opportunity to ensure their accrued pension rights are accurately determined ahead of retirement.

The Commission said low participation necessitated the extension, noting that as of July 2026, MDAs had uploaded 62,320 records of active employees and retirees, while only 31,099 employees had successfully completed the enrolment process. The figures are below the estimated 150,000 active Federal Government employees entitled to accrued pension rights.

The exercise is part of the Federal Government’s efforts to address pension liabilities inherited from the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), which preceded the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) introduced in 2004. Under Section 15(1) of the Pension Reform Act 2014, employees who transitioned to the CPS are entitled to accrued pension rights earned under the former scheme.

‎The accrued rights cover pension and gratuity benefits earned by eligible employees from their dates of first appointment up to June 30, 2004, with their determination based on an actuarial valuation process. PenCom said the exercise is necessary to establish the Federal Government’s outstanding pension liabilities and facilitate adequate budgetary provisions for their settlement.

‎The enrolment exercise is fully digital and conducted through PenCom’s Contributions and Bond Redemption Application (COBRA), a platform designed for data capture, validation and processing.

MDAs are required to upload eligible employees’ details, after which affected employees are expected to visit their respective Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) with the required documents to complete the process, while Pension Desk Officers assist in coordinating the exercise.

PenCom urged all eligible employees and treasury-funded MDAs to take advantage of the extension and complete the enrolment process before the new December 31, 2026 deadline.

It said early completion would facilitate the determination and funding of accrued pension rights, with approved amounts subsequently credited to employees’ Retirement Savings Accounts to enable them earn investment returns ahead of retirement.