PORT MORESBY — The Teaching Service Commission (TSC) has officially released Circular Instruction No. 8 of 2026, announcing exactly 42,000 teaching positions vacancies across the country for the 2027 academic year.

TSC Acting Chairman Maini Mike Ugaia confirmed that this massive deployment consists of 25,147 base-level positions and 16,853 promotional positions across primary, high, secondary, and vocational schools, as well as national institutions.

Chairman Ugaia stated that the Commission has taken full responsibility for all Teacher appointments following formal legal advice from the State Solicitor, which confirms that anything to do with teachers must rest with the TSC as the sole employer of teachers in Papua New Guinea.

He emphasized that this structural shift aligns directly with orders from the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea for the TSC to take over all teacher business completely.

According to the Chairman, these vacant teaching positions were identified after a rigorous teaching position cleansing workshop conducted by the TSC. This process is designed to fix long-standing appointment issues and safeguard teachers’ salaries. He strongly urges all eligible teachers to apply immediately to fill the available base-level positions, noting that this gazette is strictly for current serving members of the teaching workforce and certified 2027 graduates.

Regarding strict requirements and next steps, Chairman Ugaia announced that teachers have until the end of July to apply, and all completed forms must reach TSC Provincial Offices by the absolute deadline of July 31, 2026.

A strong emphasis is placed on all base-level teachers applying for all advertised base teaching positions. All 2026 admitted new graduates holding a TSC Admission Certificate are eligible to apply, as are all current serving members of the teaching workforce. For promotional positions, all teachers are encouraged to attach their inspection and eligibility reports to all TSC forms and submit them to their respective Provincial TSC and Provincial Education Offices before 31st July 2026.

The Chairman urged teachers applying for promotional positions to provide and attach their official inspection report and eligibility certificate to their Form 30. He also made it clear that exclusions apply, meaning teachers who have retired, resigned, or are currently on long service leave are barred from applying.

In his mandatory instructions for Provincial Education Boards, Chairman Ugaia stated that all boards are to follow the schedule provided in Circular Instruction No. 8. The TSC further calls for all Provincial Education Board (PEB) memberships to be current and active. Those PEBs that have expired must ensure their full board is in place within this month (July) in preparation for the 2027 teacher appointments.

He noted with grave concern that teacher appointments for Hela, Manus, and Gulf provinces were nullified during 2026 due to the PEBs’ failure to comply; hence, this must not be repeated for the 2027 teacher appointments. Teachers’ welfare, terms, and conditions of employment are of paramount importance, and as such, the Commission will not tolerate administrative failures that affect all teachers.

Furthermore, the Chairman urged provinces where Provincial Education Board (PEB) terms have expired to immediately appoint new boards or get them reinstated. He warned that if provinces fail to do so, the TSC Head Office will intervene, centralize the entire process, and make all teacher appointments directly from Port Moresby.

Chairman Ugaia concluded that immediate compliance is required to ensure payroll and occupancy data are fully updated by Pay One of 2027, preventing unexpected pay suspensions or delayed teacher salaries.

The Vacancy Gazettes can be downloaded from the official Teaching Service Commission website.  https://www.tsc.gov.pg/careers/