FG Caps Imprest: Ministers Get ₦700k, DGs ₦500k
…New Rules Mandate Formal Contracts for Every Public Purchase Over ₦1m
By Patience Ikpeme
In a major fiscal policy shift targeting public expenditure, the Federal Government has restricted the maximum reimbursable corporate imprest for Honourable Ministers to ₦700,000.00.
Under the newly approved Year 2026 Annual General Imprest Warrant, Permanent Secretaries and Directors-General are capped at ₦500,000.00, while Directors or Heads of Departments are limited to ₦300,000.00. Heads of Formations in each State and any other authorized imprest holders will operate with a strict ceiling of ₦100,000.00.
The financial directive, which is set to alter day-to-day cash management across public institutions, also introduces a rigid procurement threshold. The government has ordered that all local procurement of stores and services costing above ₦1,000,000.00 shall be made only through the award of contracts, except as otherwise provided by the Public Procurement Act, 2007.
Furthermore, the frequency of refreshing these funds has been tightly regulated, as the treasury specifies that “the frequency of reimbursement of any standing imprest shall normally be once in a quarter and shall not exceed twice in a quarter where the need arise”.
The sweeping reforms were made public in a Federal Treasury Circular dated June 3, 2026, issued from the Treasury House in Abuja by the Accountant-General of the Federation, Dr. Shamseldeen Ogunjimi.
The circular noted that the implementation of the new limits follows the signing of the Annual General Imprest Warrant by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, acting in accordance with the provisions of Financial Regulation 1003.
Under this authority, all Accounting Officers in the three arms of Government, including Ministries, Extra-Ministerial Offices and Agencies, are authorized to approve funds to eligible imprest holders within the newly established boundaries.
To enforce maximum transparency, the federal government has introduced strict administrative deadlines and compliance frameworks. All Self-Accounting Ministries, Extra-Ministerial Offices and Agencies, including all arms of Government, are required to submit detailed financial returns to the Accountant-General of the Federation within thirty days from the date of the circular.
These statutory returns must explicitly show “the particulars of the vouchers with which the Imprest in respect of Year 2025 were retired,” alongside “the list of entitled imprest holders and their locations for Year 2026”.
In line with the national transition toward digital financial tracking, the circular noted that “for the purpose of compliance with the e-payment circular, imprest holders are to open Operational Bank Accounts for the management of imprest”. To maintain continuous oversight, the government requires that “monthly returns of detailed imprest paid into Operational Account and the retirement thereof shall be rendered to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation”.
Imprest holders are further directed to “adhere strictly to the provisions of Financial Regulations Nos. 1005 to 1012 in maintaining proper accounts of their” corporate funds.
The treasury has made it clear that accountability will be enforced aggressively through regular field audits. The Treasury Inspectorate Department of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation shall carry out regular inspection of all accounts during the financial year to block loopholes.
Warning public officers of the high stakes involved, the circular declared that “any breach of the regulations in the operation of imprest accounts shall lead to the withdrawal of the right to issue any imprest by the affected Accounting Officer and appropriate sanctions shall be applied accordingly”.
Dr. Ogunjimi concluded the directive by ordering all administrative heads to bring the contents of the circular to the attention of all officers concerned for strict compliance.
