PM Al-Sudani Orders Disbursement of Kurdistan August Salaries After KRG Transfers Part of Non-Oil Revenues

Peregraf- Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has directed the Ministry of Finance to release the long-delayed August salaries for public employees in the Kurdistan Region, an informed source told Peregraf on Tuesday.

According to the source, al-Sudani issued the instruction during today’s Council of Ministers meeting, ordering Finance Minister Taif Sami to proceed with disbursing the payments. The funds are expected to be transferred to the Kurdistan Region within the next couple of days, with salary distribution anticipated to begin early next week.

Earlier on Tuesday, a source from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) confirmed to Peregraf that 120 billion dinars of the KRG’s non-oil revenues had been handed over to Baghdad as part of the fiscal arrangement between the two governments. “The handover was completed today, and now we are waiting for Baghdad to release the salary funds,” the source said.

The KRG’s move fulfills its financial obligations under the budget-sharing mechanism agreed upon with the Iraqi federal government earlier this year.

Despite these developments, salaries for September 2025 remain unpaid for around 1.2 million public employees in the Kurdistan Region — more than two and a half months after they were due. The delay has deepened frustration among teachers, civil servants, and security forces, many of whom accuse both Erbil and Baghdad of neglecting their responsibilities.

Prime Minister al-Sudani said on Monday that the federal government had resolved its long-standing oil dispute with the Kurdistan Region, adding that discussions over non-oil revenue sharing are ongoing but “will not affect the regular payment of salaries.”

However, public employees in the Kurdistan Region are growing increasingly skeptical, as repeated assurances have yet to translate into timely payments. The prolonged salary crisis continues to strain relations between Baghdad and Erbil while fueling discontent across Kurdistan’s public sector.