Bangladesh is bringing 82,656 mosques under a state monthly honorarium programme in the 2026-27 fiscal year, the Ministry of Religious Affairs said in a press release on Monday. Imams at selected mosques will receive Tk5,000 a month, muezzins Tk3,000 and caretakers Tk2,000. The government has set mosque-selection quotas based on whether areas are unions, municipalities or city corporations.

Fifteen mosques will be selected from each union. In municipalities, four mosques per ward will be selected in category A areas, three in category B and two in category C. Six mosques per ward will be selected in city corporations. Payments will be sent directly to beneficiaries' bank accounts through electronic fund transfer, rather than through intermediaries.

A total of 86,709 religious institutions and 256,074 religious leaders will receive the monthly support this fiscal year. The institutions include 3,000 temples, 752 Buddhist monasteries and 301 churches, alongside the mosques. The budget allocates Tk110 billion for honoraria to religious leaders, and the government plans to extend coverage to all religious institutions over the next three fiscal years.