The Bhutanese Leading the way.
With the 35-year plus age visa restrictions coming into play in Australia it is found that an increasing number of civil servants on Extra Ordinary Leave (EOL), most of whom went to Australia, are now coming back after completing their studies.
As per the Royal Civil Service Commission (RCSC) while there were 465 civil servants on EOL as of December 2024.
However, from January 2024 till 11th April 2025 a total of 228 civil servants have come back to their jobs.
While increased numbers are coming back, a new problem has cropped up.
Most of the civil servants on EoL went for higher studies to Australia, however, when they come back the RCSC does not recognize or register their Masters and other Degrees in the Civil Service system.
This has led to come returnees to even appeal with the RCSC to recognize their degree and put it in the system. The feeling among them is that this would enhance their chances during promotions or when they apply for posts within the civil service.
When asked about this the RCSC said, “EoL period is not considered as active service and is therefore not considered active for any HR-related actions.”
A source explained saying that under the Bhutan Civil Service Regulations (BCSR) if a civil servant wants to go for higher studies and wants it recognized by RCSC then they have to apply for study leave.
During that time the RCSC will pay the salary of the civil servant and in return for that the civil servant has to sign a bond committing a certain number of years in service after finishing the studies. The RCSC also considers this an active period.
The source said that is up to a civil servant to do whatever they want in the EoL and that will not be reflected in the RCSC records.
Further explaining, the source said that if the civil servants were really genuine about studies and coming back then they would have applied for study leave. The study leave is also important as the agency and RCSC can assess if the course will be useful for the agency.
“The plan may have been to take EoL and study in Australia and be there for longer if visa conditions permitted but with the change in visa conditions they are now coming back.”
On the fear of some recently returned civil servants that RCSC not recognizing their degrees will impact their promotion, the RCSC said, “For promotions the criteria pertain to the performance, duration, post availability and other criteria which are spelt out in the BCSR 10.7.3. Degree qualification is generally not a pre-requisite for promotion.”
One recently returned civil servant was so upset with RCSC not recognizing his degree that he resigned and headed back to Australia.
The head of an educational consultancy in Australia said one of the grounds on which EoL is given is professional enhancement and so why is RCSC not recognizing a degree gained during this period.
The consultancy source said that it is not like people cannot stay back in Australia after 35 as they have the option to study further and stay on.
The source said that the degree may not be entered in the RCSC system but it does not mean that the degree is not recognized by others outside.
