Quick answer

Usually, no. A government employee who is merely designated as Acting Department Head or Officer-in-Charge (OIC) does not automatically receive the higher basic salary attached to that position. The employee generally keeps the salary of the permanent position to which they were appointed.

A higher salary may be lawful when the employee receives a valid appointment—not merely a designation—to the higher position, issued by the proper appointing authority and effective under civil-service and budget rules. Certain performance-based allowances, such as Representation and Transportation Allowance (RATA), may also be allowed even without a salary increase, but only when the applicable appropriation and DBM rules authorize them and the designation order expressly provides for them.

For LGUs, the sanggunian may in some circumstances authorize an honorarium for a qualified employee concurrently designated to fill a temporary vacancy. That is different from granting the full salary or salary differential of the department-head position.

The document—not the word “acting”—controls

The first question is whether the person received:

A designation or OIC order imposing additional duties; or
A duly issued appointment to the higher position.

The title printed beside the employee’s name is not conclusive. An office order may call someone “Acting Department Head” while legally doing no more than designating that employee to perform additional functions.

Under the Civil Service Commission’s 2025 Omnibus Rules on Appointments and Other Human Resource Actions (2025 ORAOHRA), a designation is a temporary personnel movement that may involve performing another position’s duties concurrently or full-time. An Acting designee may exercise discretionary as well as ministerial functions, while an OIC ordinarily has more limited administrative powers. Neither label, by itself, creates an appointment.

The 2025 ORAOHRA expressly states that designees cannot be granted the salary of the positions to which they are designated. This is consistent with the Supreme Court’s long-standing distinction between appointment and designation.

General rule: a designation does not carry the higher salary

In Dimaandal v. Commission on Audit, G.R. No. 122197, June 26, 1998, the Supreme Court held that an employee designated in an acting capacity was not entitled to the salary differential of the higher position.

The Court explained that:

An appointment is the selection, by the proper authority, of a person who will exercise the powers and functions of an office.
A designation merely imposes new or additional duties on someone who already holds a government appointment.
The right to the salary attached to a position ordinarily comes from a duly issued and approved appointment, not from the actual performance of the duties alone.

The Court reaffirmed this rule in Funa v. Manila Economic and Cultural Office, G.R. Nos. 156556-57, October 4, 2011 and again in Pallasigue v. People, G.R. Nos. 248653-54, July 14, 2021.

Accordingly, performing all the work of a department head—even full-time and for an extended period—does not by itself create a right to:

The higher position’s basic salary;
The difference between the two salaries;
Allowances attached to the higher position; or
Retroactive conversion of the designation into a promotion.

An available plantilla item or an existing appropriation also does not, by itself, cure the absence of a valid appointment.

When the higher salary may be paid

A valid appointment to the higher position

The employee may receive the salary attached to the department-head position when there is a valid appointment that:

Comes from the official or body legally authorized to appoint;
Identifies the position, status, salary or salary grade, and agency;
Complies with the position’s qualification standards and applicable eligibility requirements;
Is supported by an authorized plantilla position and lawful appropriation;
Has been processed under applicable CSC rules; and
Has become effective according to its terms and the governing rules.

Payment ordinarily begins from the lawful effective date or assumption under the appointment. A later appointment does not automatically make an earlier acting designation retroactive. In Dimaandal, the employee’s subsequent permanent appointment did not validate the salary differential previously paid for the period covered only by the defective designation.

A document should therefore be examined for its legal substance. Calling an issuance an “acting appointment” does not make it valid if the issuing official lacked appointing authority or if the document was only an office designation.

A government-wide adjustment to the employee’s regular salary

An acting department head may still receive a salary increase applicable to the employee’s own permanent position. For example, the current national salary schedule under Executive Order No. 64 is being implemented in four tranches from 2024 through 2027.

For national-government civilian personnel, the third tranche took effect on January 1, 2026 under DBM National Budget Circular No. 601.

For LGU personnel, implementation is governed by DBM Local Budget Circular No. 172, subject to the LGU’s income classification, financial capacity, personnel-services limitations, and appropriation ordinance.

That adjustment is based on the employee’s appointed position. It is not a salary differential earned merely because the employee is temporarily acting as department head.

Possible allowances are separate from basic salary

The prohibition on receiving the higher position’s basic salary does not necessarily answer whether a designee may receive RATA, Extraordinary and Miscellaneous Expenses, or another function-related allowance.

Under the 2025 ORAOHRA, allowances connected with actually performing the designated functions may be granted only when:

The General Appropriations Act, DBM issuance, or applicable LGU appropriation ordinance authorizes the allowance;
The employee and designated position satisfy the governing conditions;
Funds are lawfully available; and
The designation order specifically provides for the allowance.

An allowance should not be treated as an indirect salary differential. Each benefit needs an independent legal and budgetary basis.

For example, an unauthorized designation by the wrong official cannot support payment merely because the employee performed the work. In Dimaandal, even the claimed RATA differential failed because the governor lacked authority over the particular designation and the required local authorization was absent.

Special rule for provincial, city, and municipal governments

The Local Government Code, Republic Act No. 7160 gives provincial, city, and municipal sanggunians authority to:

Authorize compensation for a qualified person outside government service who fills a temporary vacancy; or
Grant an honorarium to a qualified official or employee designated, in a concurrent capacity, to fill a temporary vacancy, at the rate authorized by law.

This authority appears in Sections 447, 458, and 468 for municipalities, cities, and provinces, respectively.

It does not mean that an LGU may automatically pay the full salary difference whenever a mayor or governor signs an acting designation. A lawful honorarium still requires:

A genuine temporary vacancy;
A qualified designee serving concurrently;
Designation by the legally competent authority;
Authorization by the appropriate sanggunian;
A valid appropriation and available funds;
Compliance with DBM, CSC, and COA rules; and
A rate authorized by law.

The department involved may also be subject to a special statutory appointment process. Local treasurers and their assistants, for example, are governed by provisions assigning appointment authority to the Secretary of Finance. The local chief executive cannot bypass that process through an office order.

How long may an acting designation last?

Under the 2025 ORAOHRA:

When the position has an incumbent who is temporarily unable to perform the duties, the designation should generally correspond to the incumbent’s absence, unless earlier revoked or recalled.
When the position has no incumbent, a designation may initially be made for a maximum of one year.
In the exigency of the service, a designation may be renewed, but not beyond the limits stated in the rules—currently no more than two renewals.
The designation must be made through an office order issued by the proper appointing officer or authority.

The rules also generally require a designee to hold a permanent appointment to a career position, meet the qualification standards of the designated position, and remain within the permissible position level. Limited exceptions may apply in calamities, agency organization, or a duly established exigency of the service.

The official source is the CSC 2025 ORAOHRA, effective August 3, 2025.

Practical steps before accepting or paying a higher rate

For the acting employee

Obtain and preserve copies of:

Your original appointment and service record;
The designation or appointment to the department-head position;
The position description and qualification standards;
The plantilla showing whether the higher position is vacant and funded;
The incumbent’s leave, suspension, separation, or other document establishing the vacancy;
The applicable appropriation ordinance or General Appropriations Act provision;
Any sanggunian ordinance or resolution authorizing an honorarium;
DBM or agency guidance on RATA and other allowances;
Notices of salary adjustment, payrolls, payslips, and disbursement vouchers; and
Written advice from HR, the budget officer, accountant, treasurer, resident auditor, CSC, or DBM.

Ask HR to state in writing whether the issuance is an appointment or only a designation, who holds the appointing authority, and what exact legal basis supports any proposed salary differential, honorarium, or allowance.

For HR, accounting, and approving officials

Before processing additional compensation, verify:

Who has statutory appointing or designating authority over the position;
Whether the issuance is an appointment or designation;
Whether the appointee or designee satisfies the qualification standards;
Whether the position is legally vacant;
Whether the applicable time limit has expired;
Whether the plantilla and appropriation support the payment;
Whether the sanggunian or another approving body must first act;
Whether the designation order expressly authorizes any allowable RATA or similar benefit; and
Whether current DBM and COA documentary requirements have been met.

If the legal basis is uncertain, obtain a written ruling or opinion before releasing public funds.

Common mistakes

Assuming that equal work automatically means the higher salary

Government compensation is position- and appointment-based. The principle of equal pay for work of equal value does not dispense with appointment, appropriation, qualification, and audit requirements.

Confusing an office order with an appointment

An office order imposing acting duties is usually a designation. Check whether an authorized appointment form was issued and properly processed.

Treating a vacant, funded item as automatic authority to pay

A vacant plantilla item and available funds are necessary in many cases, but they do not substitute for a valid appointment or a legally authorized honorarium.

Paying first and seeking approval later

A later appointment, appropriation, or ratification may not legalize an earlier unauthorized payment. COA may disallow the amount and determine liability under the rules applicable to audit disallowances.

Assuming that long service creates a vested right

Months or years of acting service do not automatically create tenure, promotion, or entitlement to the higher salary.

Ignoring special appointment laws

Some department-head positions have appointing authorities or procedures fixed by statute. A designation from the usual agency head or local chief executive may still be defective if a special law assigns the power elsewhere.

When help is urgent

Seek immediate written advice from the agency legal office, CSC, DBM, or a Philippine lawyer experienced in administrative and audit law when:

COA has issued a Notice of Suspension, Notice of Disallowance, or demand for refund;
Payroll personnel are being instructed to pay a differential without a clear appointment or appropriation;
The designation was signed by an official whose authority is doubtful;
The acting arrangement has exceeded the allowable period;
A regular incumbent still occupies the position;
The employee does not meet the qualification standards;
The agency proposes to backdate an appointment or designation;
The employee is being asked to sign a refund undertaking; or
An appeal or reconsideration period stated in an official notice is already running.

Do not ignore the date of receipt of a CSC, DBM, or COA notice. The proper remedy and deadline depend on the issuing body, the type of action, and the documents served.

Frequently asked questions

Can an Acting Department Head receive the difference between their regular salary and the department head’s salary?

Generally, no, if the employee holds only a designation. A duly issued and effective appointment to the higher position is normally required.

Does full-time performance of the higher duties change the answer?

Not by itself. Full-time work may support the factual need for a designation, but it does not convert that designation into an appointment.

Can the designation order itself grant a salary increase?

A designation order cannot create a right to the higher basic salary contrary to CSC, budget, and audit rules. It may specify an allowance such as RATA only when another valid legal and appropriation authority permits it.

Can an LGU give the designee an honorarium?

Possibly. The Local Government Code permits the appropriate sanggunian to authorize an honorarium for a qualified employee concurrently designated to fill a temporary vacancy, at a legally authorized rate. A mere designation from the mayor or governor is not enough.

What if the employee later receives a permanent appointment?

The employee may receive the higher salary from the lawful effectivity of that appointment. The appointment ordinarily does not retroactively validate salary differentials paid during the earlier designation.

Can the employee receive the 2026 government salary adjustment?

Yes, if the employee’s appointed position is covered and the applicable national-agency or LGU implementation requirements are satisfied. The adjustment applies to the regular appointed position; it does not necessarily pay the rate of the acting position.

Does the next-in-rank employee automatically become department head?

No. Next-in-rank status does not itself constitute appointment, nor does it automatically confer the position’s salary or tenure.

Who should confirm the exact entitlement?

Start with the agency’s HR, budget, accounting, and legal offices. For unresolved issues, obtain written guidance from the CSC or DBM. Questions involving an audit disallowance should be assessed under current COA rules and the specific notice received.

Official references

This article provides general legal information, not legal advice. Entitlement depends on the actual appointment or designation, the office involved, the issuing authority, qualification and budget documents, and current agency rules. Official sources were checked as of July 27, 2026.