A new circular reportedly circulating online from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) has outlined the details for the conduct of the 2025 Promotion Examination for civil servants across various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs). The circular, dated October 3, 2025, and signed by the Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office, was addressed to top federal government officials, including the Chief of Staff to the President, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission.
According to the document titled “CONDUCT OF 2025 PROMOTION EXAMINATION FOR OFFICERS ON GRADE LEVELS 06–13 UNDER THE COMMON POOL OF THE HEAD OF THE CIVIL SERVICE OF THE FEDERATION,” the process has already commenced. The circular stated that MDAs are to forward Vacancy Returns, PMS/APER Scores, and Eligibility Lists of Officers “duly completed on the attached Template OHCSF-EMD (2025).”
The circular further explained that the field of selection is open to officers who have reached the required maturity on their posts as of January 1, 2025. It noted that “Officers on SGL 06 must have spent a minimum of two (2) years on the post by 1st January 2025, meaning their last promotion must have occurred on or before 1 January 2023.”
For officers between Grade Levels 07 and 13, the circular stated that “a minimum of three (3) years on the post by 1st January 2025” is required, which implies the last promotion should have been on or before January 1, 2022. It added that “only officers who meet these requirements and are not under any disciplinary action shall be eligible for the exercise.”
The 2025 promotion exercise, according to the circular, covers various pool cadres. These include Administrative Officers, Computer Engineers, Confidential Secretaries, Data Processing Officers, Executive Officers, Education Officers (OHCSF), Librarians, Library Officers, Planning Officers, Programme Analysts, Statistical Officers, Statisticians, Procurement Officers, Store Verifiers, and Store Officers.
The circular also provided clear instructions to MDAs on how to prepare their returns. It directed that “all particulars should be entered in capital letters only,” while “surnames should come first, followed by first and other names.” Dates, the circular added, must follow the “dd/mm/yyyy” format.
It further stated that “the state or location of each staff must be clearly indicated (e.g., Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna, Calabar, Bauchi, Enugu).” MDAs are also required to “clearly indicate officers currently on study leave, with or without pay, or on leave of absence, stating the effective date and expected date of resumption.”
The circular cautioned that “names shall not be added to the seniority list at accreditation venues,” and emphasized that “any officer not presented on the MDA’s final submissions shall not be accredited for the examinations.” It warned that “any submissions not in line with the above specifications shall not be processed.”
To ensure proper validation, it explained that all submissions will be checked against Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) records. The statement added that “any discrepancies noticed will be referred back to the MDA concerned,” and stressed that “submissions received after the deadline, or containing ineligible officers, shall not be entertained.”
For the format of submissions, the circular directed that “all returns must be made in Excel format, both soft and hard copies,” and must be “authenticated by the Director (Admin/HRM) of the relevant MDA.” It added that “submissions should reach the Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office (CMO), on or before Friday, 17th October 2025.”
The circular concluded with an instruction to treat the matter as urgent. “Please treat as urgent and bring the contents of this circular to the attention of all concerned officers,” the Permanent Secretary stated.
Although the authenticity of the document circulating on social media platforms, especially Facebook, has not been officially confirmed by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the information has sparked interest among federal civil servants who are due for promotion.