Palau: jobs and pay

What is the minimum wage in Palau?

The lowest step of Palau's national government pay scale is USD 5.50 an hour, or USD 11,440 a year, from 1 October 2025, under the National Government Salary and Wage Act of 2025 (RPPL 11-40).

The pay scale covers national government employees, not private-sector workers. In his State of the Republic Address of July 2026, the President proposed raising the national minimum wage by 50 cents in the coming year and again the year after, "moving up to a $6 national minimum wage", along with a 5% pay rise for government employees in the FY2027 budget. The IMF notes that across-the-board wage increases have compressed public pay scales.

Official sources: Government of Palau: 2025 Pay Scale, RPPL 11-40 (PDF) · Office of the President: State of the Republic Address, 22 July 2026 (PDF)

How many people work in Palau?

Total employment in Palau rose from under 10,000 workers in 2021 to more than 12,000 in 2025, according to the President's State of the Republic Address of July 2026. The IMF's 2025 Article IV staff report says the public sector employs nearly a quarter of the working-age population.

No official unemployment rate for recent years was found on the government's statistics pages, checked on 15 October 2026. The IMF report describes labour shortages, especially of skilled workers such as teachers, doctors and accountants, linked to emigration to Guam and other US areas. It says foreign workers returned after the pandemic.

Official sources: Office of the President: State of the Republic Address, 22 July 2026 (PDF) · IMF: Republic of Palau, 2025 Article IV consultation, Country Report No. 26/22 (PDF)

What is happening to pensions in Palau?

Palau's Social Security and Civil Service Pension systems carry an unfunded liability of roughly USD 300 million, according to the President's State of the Republic Address of July 2026. The proposed reforms would gradually raise the retirement age to 65, adjust length-of-service rules and contribution rates, and review benefit formulas.

The IMF's 2025 Article IV staff report says the pension system faces underfunding and pressure from an ageing population and emigration, particularly in the Civil Service Pension Plan (CSPP), and that reforms of the CSPP and Social Security Administration schemes depend on Congress passing the reform laws. A Social Security bill was first introduced in 2022.

Official sources: Office of the President: State of the Republic Address, 22 July 2026 (PDF) · IMF: Republic of Palau, 2025 Article IV consultation, Country Report No. 26/22 (PDF)

What is Palau's minimum wage?

According to the ILO, the statutory minimum wage in Palau was $883 a month in 2024. It is the top of the series, which starts in 2012.

What is the average wage in Palau?

The latest figure from the ILO, for 2023, is $1,042 a month. Across East Asia & Pacific the middle value was $358 a month, and Palau placed 1st highest of 9. Of 80 countries with 2023 data, 35th highest.