Full Text
REGD. No. D. L.-33004/99
The Gazette of India
EXTRAORDINARY
PART I—Section 1
PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY
No. 26] NEW DELHI, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2026/MAGHA 15, 1947
CG-DL-E-04022026-269828
755 GI/2026 (1)
MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
(Department of Personnel and Training)
NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the 4th February, 2026
CIVIL SERVICES EXAMINATION RULES - 2026
F. No. 13018/02/2025-AIS-I.—
INDEX
Sl.
No.
Particulars
+-----+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| (1) | Participating Services |
| (2) | Rules |
| | 1 General Information |
| | 2 Vacancies and Reservation |
| | 3 Number of Attempts |
| | 4 Nationality |
| | 5 Age |
| | 6 Educational Qualification |
| | 7 Fees |
| | 8 Undertaking by Government Servants/PSU Employees |
| | 9 Fulfilling Eligibility Conditions |
| | 10 Admission Certificate |
| | 11 Withdrawal of Application |
| | 12 Restrictions in Application |
| | 13-14 Universal Registration Profile and Common Application Form |
| | 15-16 Minimum Qualification Marks, Medium of Language |
| | 17 Minimum Qualification Marks for Persons with Benchmark Disability |
| | 18 Medical Examination |
| | 19 Disqualification, Debarment, Disciplinary Action, Criminal Prosecution |
| | 20-21 Declaration of Results, Allocation to Service and Cadre for IAS/IPS |
| | 22 Communication of the Results of the Examination |
| | 23-24 Suitability for Appointment |
| | 25 Reservation against Vacancies for PwBD |
| | 26 Change of Category |
| | 27-29 Eligibility for Availing Reservation |
| (3) | Appendices |
| | I Plan, Scheme, Syllabi of Examination |
| | II Brief Particulars Related to Participating Services |
| | III Regulations Relating to the Medical Examination of the Candidates |
| | IV Services Identified Suitable for Persons with Benchmark Disability along with the |
| | details of Suitable Category of Benchmark Disabilities and Functional Requirements |
| | V & VII Certificate regarding physical limitation in an examinee to write |
| | VI & VIII Letter of Undertaking for Using Own Scribe |
+-----+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Note : The Index above is provided to facilitate reference for relevant information. Candidates are
advised that they must go through the Rules and the Appendices following, together with the
Annexures thereof, in their entirety for proper understanding.
Participating Services:
The Rules for Civil Services Examination (CSE)- 2026 to be held by the Union Public
Service Commission (UPSC) for the purpose of filling vacancies in the following Services are, with
the concurrence of the Ministries concerned and the Comptroller and Auditor General ofIndia
in respect of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service, published for general information:-
(i) Indian Administrative Service
(ii) Indian Foreign Service
(iii) Indian Police Service
(iv) Indian Audit and Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
(v) Indian Civil Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
(vi) Indian Corporate Law Service, Group ‘A’
(vii) Indian Defence Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
(viii) Indian Defence Estates Service, Group ‘A’
(ix) Indian Information Service, Group ‘A’
(x) Indian Postal Service, Group ‘A’
(xi) Indian Post & Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service, Group ‘A’
(xii) Indian Railway Management Service, (Accounts) Group ‘A’
(xiii) Indian Railway Management Service, (Personnel) Group ‘A’
(xiv) Indian Railway Management Service, (Traffic) Group ‘A’
(xv) Indian Railway Protection Force Service, Group ‘A’
(xvi) Indian Revenue Service (Customs & Indirect Taxes) Group ‘A’
(xvii) Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax) Group ‘A’
(xviii) Indian Trade Service, Group ‘A’ (Grade III)
(xix) Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Service, Group ‘B’ (Section Officer’s Grade)
(xx) Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and
Dadra &Nagar Haveli Civil Service (DANICS), Group ‘B’
(xxi) Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and
Dadra &Nagar Haveli Police Service (DANIPS), Group ‘B’
(xxii) Pondicherry Civil Service (PONDICS), Group ‘B’
(xxiii) Pondicherry Police Service (PONDIPS), Group ‘B’
General Information:
1. In these Rules, unless it has been specified or the context requires otherwise – the terms
“Commission” or UPSC shall imply the Union Public Service Commission; the term “DoPT”
shall imply the Department of Personnel and Training of the Ministry of Personnel, Public
Grievances and Pensions, Government of India; the terms “Examination” or “CSE” shall imply
the Civil Services Examination; the term “Main Examination” shall imply the Civil Services
(Main) Examination; the term “Preliminary Examination” shall imply the Civil Services
(Preliminary) Examination; and the terms “Rules” or “CSE Rules” shall imply the Civil
Services Examination Rules.
All candidates (Male/Female/Transgender) must carefully read these Civil Services
Examination- 2026 Rules together with all the Appendices along with the Annexures thereof and the
Examination Notice of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) derived from these Rules, in
entirety for gaining awareness of the current Rules and Regulations as changes may have been
incorporated since the previous Examination Rules.
The CSE-2026 will be conducted by the Commission in the manner prescribed in
Appendix- I to these Rules. The dates on which and the places at which the Preliminary
Examination and Main Examination of CSE- 2026 will be held, shall be fixed and notified by the
Commission.
Brief particulars relating to the Services/Posts to which recruitment is being made through
CSE- 2026 are given in Appendix-II for preliminary information of candidates.
Vacancies and Reservation:
2. The tentative number of vacancies to be filled through the examination will be specified in the
Examination Notice issued by the Commission.
Reservation will be made for candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled
Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections as well as candidates belonging
to persons with Benchmark Disability categories in respect of vacancies as may be fixed by the
Government.
Number of Attempts:
3. Every candidate appearing at the examination who is otherwise eligible, shall be permitted six
(6) attempts at the CSE. However, relaxation in the number of attempts will be available to the
SC/ST/OBC and PwBD category candidates who are otherwise eligible. The number of attempts
available to such candidates as per relaxation is as under:
Category to which the Candidate Belongs
+------------+-----------+-----+------------+
| | SC /ST | OBC | PwBD |
+============+===========+=====+============+
| Number of | Unlimited | 09 | 09 for |
| attempts | | | GL/EWS/OBC |
| | | | Unlimited |
| | | | for SC/ST |
+------------+-----------+-----+------------+
Provided that attempts available to a candidate shall be restricted in terms of provisions under
Rule-12.
Note-I : The terms – GL for General, EWS for Economically Weaker Sections, SC for Scheduled
Castes, ST for Scheduled Tribes, OBC for Other Backward Classes and PwBD for Persons with
Benchmark Disability – are used for denoting the categories of candidates taking an attempt at
the Examination.
Note-II : An attempt at a Preliminary Examination shall be deemed to be an attempt at the Civil
Services Examination.
Note-III : If a candidate actually appears in any one paper in the Preliminary Examination, it will
be deemed that the candidate has made an attempt at the Examination.
Note-IV : Notwithstanding any subsequent disqualification/cancellation of candidature, the fact
of appearance of the candidate at the Examination will count as an attempt.
Nationality:
4.(1) For Indian Administrative Service, Indian Foreign Service and Indian Police Service, a
candidate must be a citizen of India.
(2) For other Services, a candidate must be either-
(a) a citizen of India, or
(b) a subject of Nepal, or
(c) a subject of Bhutan, or
(d) a Tibetan refugee who came over to India before the 1st of January, 1962 with the
intention of permanently settling in India, or
(e) a person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma (Myanmar), Sri
Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia or Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling
in India.
Provided that a candidate belonging to any of the categories (b), (c), (d) or (e) shall be a
person in whose favour a certificate of eligibility has been issued by the Government of India; and
that a candidate in whose case a certificate of eligibility is necessary may be admitted to the
examination but the offer of appointmentshall be given only after the necessary eligibility certificate
has been issued to the candidate by the Government of India.
Age:
5.(1) A candidate must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained the age of 32
years on the 1st of August, 2026 i.e., the candidate must have been born not earlier than 2nd August,
1994 and not later than 1st August, 2005.
(2) The upper age-limit prescribed above will be relaxable:
(a) up to a maximum of five years if a candidate belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled
Tribe;
(b) up to a maximum of three years in the case of candidates belonging to Other Backward
Classes who are eligible to avail of reservation applicable to such candidates;
(c) up to a maximum of three years in the case of Defence Services Personnel, disabled in
operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area and released
as a consequence thereof;
(d) up to a maximum of five years in the case of ex-servicemen including Commissioned
Officers and Emergency Commissioned Officers (ECOs)/Short Service Commissioned
Officers (SSCOs) who have rendered at least five years Military Service as on 1st
August, 2026 and have been released:
(i) on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be
completed within one year from 1st August, 2026, otherwise than by way of
dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency); or
(ii) on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service; or
(iii) on invalidment.
(e) up to a maximum of five years in the case of ECOs/SSCOs who have completed an initial
period of assignment of five years of Military Service as on 1st August, 2026 and
whose assignment has been extended beyond five years and in whose case the Ministry
of Defence issues a certificate that they can apply for civil employment and that they
will be released on three months’ notice on selection from the date of receipt of offer
of appointment.
(f) up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of candidates belonging to Persons with
Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) categories viz.
(i) blindness and low vision;
(ii) deaf and hard of hearing;
(iii) locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack
victims and muscular dystrophy;
(iv) autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability and mental illness;
(v) multiple disabilities from amongst person under clauses (i) to (iv) including deaf
blindness.
Note-I : Candidates belonging to either the SC or the ST or the OBC category who are also
covered under any other clauses of Rule 5(2) above, viz. those coming under the category of Ex
servicemen or PwBD, will be eligible for grant of cumulative age-relaxation under both
categories.
Note-II : The term Ex-servicemen will apply to the persons who are defined as Ex-servicemen
in the Ex-servicemen (Re-employment in Civil Services and Posts) Rules, 1979, as amended from
time to time.
Note-III : The age concession under Rule 5(2)(d) and (e) will be admissible to Ex-servicemen
i.e. a person who has served in any rank whether as combatant or non-combatant in the Regular
Army, Navy and Air Force of the Indian Union and who either has been retired or relieved or
discharged from such service whether at own request or being relieved by the employer after
earning pension.
Note-IV : Notwithstanding the provision of age-relaxation under Rule 5(2)(f) above, candidates
of PwBD category will be considered to be eligible for appointment only if they (after such
Medical Examination as the Government or appointing authority, as the case may be, may
prescribe) are found to satisfy the requirements of physical and medical standards for the
concerned Services to be allocated to the candidates of PwBD category by the Government.
Note-V: Save as provided under Rule 5(2) above, the age-limits prescribed can in no case be
relaxed.
(3) The date of birth, accepted by the Commission is that entered in the Matriculation or Secondary
School Leaving Certificate or in a certificate recognised by an Indian University as equivalent to
Matriculation or in an extract from a Register of Matriculates maintained by a University which
extract must be certified by the proper authority of the University or in the Higher Secondary
examination certificate or an equivalent examination certificate. The certificate in support of the
date of birth is required to be submitted by a candidate only at the time of applying for the Civil
Services Examination. No other document relating to age like horoscopes, affidavits, birth extracts
from Municipal Corporation, Service records and the like will be accepted.
Note-I : Candidate should note that only the date of birth as recorded in the Matriculation or
Secondary School Leaving Certificate or in an equivalent certificate as mentioned in Rule 5(3)
above and issued prior to the date of submission of application will be accepted by the
Commission, and no subsequent request for its change will be considered or granted.
Note-II : Candidates should also note that once a date of birth has been submitted by them in the
Universal Registration Profile and Common Application Form and entered in the records of the
Commission for the purpose of admission to an Examination, no change will be allowed
subsequently or at any other Examination of the Commission on any grounds whatsoever.
Educational Qualification:
6. A candidate must hold a Graduate degree of any of the Universities incorporated by an Act of
the Central or State Legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an Act of
Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of the University Grants
Commission Act, 1956 or possess an equivalent qualification.
Note-I : Candidates who have appeared at a qualifying examination the passing of which would
render them educationally qualified for the Commission’s Examination but have not been
informed of the result as also the candidates who intend to appear at such a qualifying
examination will also be eligible for admission to the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination.
However, all such candidates, who are declared qualified by the Commission for
Interview/Personality Test, will be required to produce proof of passing of the requisite qualifying
examination within the time limit prescribed in Rule 13.
Note-II: In exceptional cases, the Commission may treat a candidate who does not have any of
the foregoing qualifications as a candidate, provided that the candidate has passed an examination
conducted by any other institution the standard of which in the opinion of the Commission
justifies the admission to the Civil Services Examination.
Note-III: Candidates possessing professional and technical qualifications which are recognised
by Government as equivalent to professional and technical degree would also be eligible for
admission to the Civil Services Examination.
Note-IV : Candidates who have passed the final professional M.B.B.S or any other equivalent
professional examination leading to a medical degree or certificate but have not completed their
internship by the time of submission of their applications for the Civil Services Examination, will
be provisionally admitted to the Civil Services Examination, provided they submit along with
their application a copy of certificate from the concerned authority of the University/Institution
that they had passed the requisite final professional examination. In such cases, the candidates
will be required to produce at the time of their Interview/Personality Test the original degree or
a certificate from the concerned competent authority of theUniversity/Institution that they had
completed all requirements (including completion of internship) for the award of the Degree.
Fees:
7. Candidates must pay the fees as prescribed in the Commission’s Notice.
Undertaking by Government/PSU Employees:
8. (1) All candidates in Government service, whether in a permanent or temporary capacity or as
work-charged employee (other than casual or daily rated employees) or those serving under Public
Enterprises, will be required to submit an undertaking that they have informed in writing to their
Head of Office/Department that they have applied for the Examination. Candidates should note
that in case a communication withholding permission to the candidates applying for appearing at the
Civil Services Examination is received from their employer by the Commission, their applications
will be liable to be rejected and their candidature will be cancelled.
(2) All candidates who are in service (Central / State Government / PSU) will be required to
tender technical resignation / resignation from their existing service before joining the new service
on the basis of CSE- 2026.
9. The candidates applying for the Civil Services Examination should ensure that they fulfill all
the eligibility conditions for admission to the Examination. Their admission at all the stages of
Examination for which they are admitted by the Commission viz. Civil Services (Preliminary)
Examination, Civil Services (Main) Examination – either Written or the Interview/Personality
Test – will be purely provisional, subject to their satisfying the prescribed eligibility conditions. If
on verification at any time before or after the Preliminary Examination, Main Examination (Written)
and Interview/Personality Test, it is found that they do not fulfill any of the eligibility conditions,
their candidature for the Examination will be cancelled by the Commission. The decision of the
Commission as to the eligibility or otherwise of a candidate for admission to the Examination shall
be final.
Admission Certificate:
10. No candidate will be admitted to the Preliminary/Main Examination unless he holds a valid
certificate of admission for the Examination.
Withdrawal of Application:
11. The candidates will not be allowed to withdraw their applications after the submission of the
same.
Restrictions in Application:
12.(1) A candidate who is appointed to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) or the Indian Foreign
Service (IFS) based on the results of an earlier Examination and continues to be a member of
that Service will not be eligible to appear at the Civil Services Examination-2026. In case such a
candidate is appointed to the IAS or IFS after the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination- 2026 is
over and the candidate continues to be a member of that Service, the candidate shall not be eligible to
appear in the Civil Services (Main) Examination- 2026 notwithstanding having qualifiedin the Civil
Services (Preliminary) Examination- 2026. If such a candidate is appointed to the IAS or IFS after the
commencement of the Civil Services (Main) Examination- 2026 but before the result thereof is
declared by the Commission and continues to be a member of that Service, the candidate shall not be
considered for appointment to any Service/Post on the basis of the result of the CSE- 2026.
(2) A candidate who has been selected or appointed to the Indian Police Service on the basis of the
results of the earlier examination shall be eligible to opt for or allocated to Indian Police Service on
the basis of the result of CSE- 2026.
(3) A candidate allocated to Indian Police Service or a Central Service Group 'A' on the basis of result
of the CSE-2026, will have the option to appear in immediate subsequent CSE-2027, if otherwise
eligible, subject to following restrictions:
(a) Such a candidate shall be eligible to appear for the CSE-2027 if he/she is granted exemption
from training for the service allocated to him/her on the basis of CSE-2026 from the Authority
concerned. He/she will be eligible for grant of one-time exemption only from joining the training
in order to enable him/her to appear in CSE- 2027.
(b) The selected candidate shall join the training in Foundation Course (FC) only.
(c) However, if such a candidate neither joins the training for the service allocated on the basis of
CSE-2026 nor takes exemption from joining training, his/her allocation of service on the basis of
CSE-2026 shall stand cancelled.
(d) If he/she is finally recommended on the basis of CSE-2027, he/she can accept the service
allocated either on the basis of CSE-2026 or CSE-2027 and will join the training scheduled for
CSE-2027. His/her allocation to the service other than the one opted shall stand cancelled at this
stage. In case he/she is not allocated to any service on the basis of CSE-2027 then he/she can join
the service allocated through CSE-2026.
(e) However, if he/she doesn’t join training for service allocated on the basis of CSE-2026 or CSE
2027, his/her allocation to both the services shall stand cancelled.
(f) The seniority of such candidates will be decided according to his/her joining the service
allocated on the basis of CSE-2026 or CSE-2027 and the same shall not be depressed.
(g) However, he/she shall not be allowed to appear for CSE-2028 and any CSE thereafter, unless
he/she resigns from the allocated service.
(h) If the candidate is desirous of availing his/her remaining attempts to appear in any subsequent
CSE, if otherwise eligible, after availing such onetime exemption from joining training, he/she
must not join any service allocated to him/her on the basis of CSE-2026 or CSE-2027, as the case
may be, and the said Service Allocation shall stand cancelled automatically.
(i) In respect of a candidate who has been allocated to any service based on CSE-2025 or earlier
years, he/she will be given a one-time opportunity to appear in either CSE-2026 or CSE-2027, as
per his/her choice to enable him/her to utilize his/her remaining attempt, subject to fulfilling other
eligibility criteria, without the need to resign from service. However, such candidates desirous of
appearing in CSE-2028 or beyond, he/she shall have to resign from his/her allocated service.
Universal Registration Profile and Common Application Form (CAF):-
13. (1) A candidate who is willing to apply for Civil Services Examination shall be required to apply
on-line and submit the requisite information and supporting documents towards various claims, such
as date of birth, category [viz. SC/ST/OBC/ EWS/PwBD/Ex-Servicemen], educational qualification
and Service preference etc. as may be sought by the Commission alongwith the Common Application
Form. For detailed instructions for filling up the form, the Notice for Civil Services Examination, 2026
may be referred. The failure to provide the required information/documents alongwith the Universal
Registration Profile and Common Application Form will entail cancellation of candidature for the
examination.
Note : The candidates should also note that no addition/deletion/any changes are allowed in the Online
Application Form in any circumstances once it is submitted.
(2) The Commission shall provide a window of 10 (ten) days after the declaration of result of Civil
Services (Preliminary) Examination. All the candidates qualified for Civil Services (Main)
Examination will have to mandatorily login to the portal (https://upsconline.nic.in) during this window
and update and/or reconfirm their details etc. and submit the Application Form to enable the
Commission to generate e-Admit Card, failing which, such candidates will not be allowed to
participate in the further stages of examination. The candidates, who are required to pay fee, shall have
to pay fee during this window.
(3) The Commission shall also provide a window of 15 (Fifteen) days after the declaration of result of
written part of Civil Services (Main) Examination to the candidates qualified for Personality
Test/Interview. All the candidates, who qualified for the Personality Test (Interview), are mandatorily
required to fill/update the requisite field(s) [viz. details of educational qualification status (whether
appearing/appeared) along with proof of passing the requisite qualifying Examination, and upload the
relevant document as proof of their claim, failing which his/her candidature shall stand cancelled and
no correspondence will be entertained by the Commission in this regard. Further, no e-summon letter
will be issued to such candidates.
Note-I:- In addition to the above para (3), the candidates (wherever applicable) are required to update
the Correspondence/Permanent Postal Address, Higher Educational Qualification, Achievement in
different fields (if any), Employment Details/Service Experience, Details of the Service allocated on
the basis of earlier/previous Civil Services Examinations (if any), Marital Status, PwBD
Recommendation details in past, Parental Details, Debarment information, Earlier Examination details,
Attempt Information, OBC/EWS Annexure (wherever applicable), socio-economic questionnaire],
whichever is applicable and submit their Application Form.
Note-II:- Candidates who have uploaded the required documents/information earlier and have no
information to update/fill in, are also required to login and finally submit after verifying the details so
as to generate the e-summon letter for the Personality Test.
Note-III:- The candidates are advised to regularly visit the Commission’s website with regard to further
updates.
14. (1) A candidate shall be required to mandatorily indicate order of preferences only for those
Services which are participating in the Civil Services Examination-2026 and for which the candidate
is interested to be allocated to in case of eventual selection. In case of recommendation of candidature
by UPSC for Service Allocation, the candidate shall be considered by the Government for allocation
to one of those Services for which the preference has been indicated by the candidate in the Online
Application Form subject to fulfillment of other conditions. In case preference for none of the
Services is indicated, the candidate will not be considered for Service Allocation.
(2) A candidate who wishes to be considered for Indian Administrative Service or Indian Police
Service shall be required to indicate, as and when asked for by the Commission, and in the manner
prescribed by it, their Home cadre preference in case of appointment to the IAS or IPS.
Note-I : The candidates are advised to indicate preferences for various services or posts very
carefully. Attention is also invited to Rule 21 (1) in this connection.
Note-II : The candidates are advised to periodically visit DoPT’s website https://dopt.gov.in or
https://cseplus.nic.in for information or details about Service Allocation, Cadre allotment, etc.
Note-III: As per the extant Cadre Allocation Policy applicable for the Civil Services Examination
2026, the candidates who wish to indicate IAS/IPS as their Service preference are advised to
indicate, as and when asked for by the Commission, and in the manner prescribed by it, their home
cadre preference in case of appointment to the IAS or IPS.
(3) No change in preference for Services and Home Cadre (applicable for IAS/IPS) once
submitted by a candidate would be permitted except as provided in Rule 13 (3).
Minimum Qualification Marks and Language Medium:
15.(1) Candidates who obtain such minimum qualifying marks in the General Studies Paper-I of
Preliminary Examination as may be fixed by the Commission at their discretion and a minimum of
33% marks in General Studies Paper-II of Preliminary Examination shall be admitted to the Civil
Services (Main) Examination. The candidates who obtain such minimum qualifying marks in the
Main Examination (Written) as may be fixed by the Commission at their discretion shall be invited
for Interview/Personality Test.
Provided that candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes or Other
Backward Classes or the Economically Weaker Sections or Persons with Benchmark Disability
category(ies) may be invited for Interview/Personality Test by the Commission by applying relaxed
standards in the General Studies Paper-I of the Preliminary Examination as well as Main
Examination (Written) if the Commission is of the opinion that sufficient number of candidates
belonging to these categories are not likely to be invited for Interview/Personality Test on the
basis of the general standard in order to fill up vacancies reserved for them.
(2) Candidates are required to indicate in relevant column of the Online Application Form for
about the language medium in which they would like to be interviewed at the time of
Interview/Personality Test as below:-
(a) The candidates, opting for an Indian Language medium for the written part of the Civil
Services (Main) Examination, may choose either the same Indian Language or English or
Hindi as the medium for the Interview/Personality Test.
(b) The candidates, opting to write the Civil Services (Main) Examination in English, may
choose as the medium for Interview/Personality Test either English, or Hindi, or any other
Indian Language opted by them for the compulsory Indian Language Paper in the written
part of the Civil Services (Main) Examination. However, the candidates, who are exempted
from the compulsory Indian Language Paper, will have to choose either English or Hindi
as medium for Interview/Personality Test.
16. Candidates are informed that some knowledge of Hindi prior to entry into Service would be
of advantage in passing the departmental examinations which the candidates have to take after entry
into Service.
Minimum Qualification Marks for Persons with Benchmark Disability:
17. The minimum qualifying marks as specified under Rule 15 and Rule 20 may be relaxable
at the discretion of the Commission in favor of Candidates belonging to Persons with Benchmark
Disability category in order to fill up the vacancies reserved for them.
Medical Examination:
18.(1) A candidate must be in good mental and bodily health and free from any physical defect likely
to interfere with the discharge of duties as an officer of a Service. Any candidate called for the
Interview/Personality Test by the Commission shall be required to undergo such Medical
Examination, as the Government or the appointing authority, as the case may be, may prescribe.
(2) The prescribed Medical Examination shall be deemed to be an essential part of the
Examination process and the onus to cooperate fully with and desist from non-appearance on
scheduled dates or leaving incomplete the Medical Examination or malingering etc. before the
Expert Panels and Medical Boards shall be upon the candidates.
(3) Failure for any reason whatsoever on part of candidates to complete the Medical
Examination/s as per the specified details or within the time-limit as may be prescribed by the
Government or the appointing authority or as per the advice of the Expert Panels or Medical
Boards, as the case may be, shall render such candidates liable for cancellation of their
candidature at the Civil Services Examination - 2026; and no extra opportunities for
completion of the prescribed Medical Examination/s shall be provided in any case.
(4) Any candidate who after such Medical Examination/s as may be prescribed by the
Government or the appointing authority, as the case may be, is found not to satisfy the
requirements as per prescribed standards will not be appointed;
Provided that in the case of a candidate who is declared to be Temporarily Unfit, an
opportunity for re-examination within a specified period not exceeding the maximum period that
may be specified shall be given. On reexamination, the said candidate should not be declared
Temporarily Unfit for a further period but a final decision in regard to the candidate’s fitness for
appointment or otherwise should be given.
Note-I : The Regulations providing particulars of the nature and detailed procedures of various
tests and required qualifying standards at the Medical Examination to which candidates will be
subjected before appointment are given in Appendix-III.
Note-II : For the disabled ex-Defence Services Personnel, the standards will be relaxed consistent
with the requirements of the Service(s).
Note-III : A candidate may be recommended as Fit or Unfit for All Services or Temporarily
Unfit or Unfit for Specific Services as per the extant Regulations given in Appendix-III. The
onus for carefully reading those to familiarize themselves of the relevant provisions shall be upon
the candidates.
Note-IV: The conditions that render candidates as “Temporarily Unfit” may relate to a
temporary disability presently disqualifying a candidate for Government Service but which can
be cured by medical or surgical treatment viz. the conditions that may originate from excessive
Body Mass Index, Pregnancy, Varicose Veins, Diabetic conditions, Hearing Defects or any other
conditions as included in the Regulations at Appendix-III. The onus for carefully reading those
to familiarize themselves of the relevant provisions shall be upon the candidates, who may also
consider having themselves treated for such temporary but treatable disability conditions even
before or while appearing for the Examination.
Note-V: In order to be aware of their medical fitness condition, candidates may consider having
themselves examined by a Government Medical Officer of the standing of a Civil Surgeon, before
applying for admission to the Examination. However, it is to be clearly noted that while this may
make the candidates aware and prevent the possibility of any eventual disappointment, the
prescribed Medical Examination as per these Rules shall be mandatory and only the results of the
prescribed Medical Examination shall be deemed valid for assessing whether a candidate meets
the requirements to be appointed.
Disqualification, Debarment, Disciplinary Action, Criminal Prosecution:
19.(1) A candidate who is or has been declared by the Commission to be guilty of :-
(a) Obtaining support for candidature by the following means, namely :-
(i) offering illegal gratification to; or
(ii) applying pressure on; or
(iii) blackmailing, or threatening to blackmail any person connected with the conduct of
the examination; or
(b) impersonation; or
(c) procuring impersonation by any person; or
(d) submitting fabricated/incorrect documents or documents which have been tampered with;
or
(e) uploading irrelevant or incorrect photo/signature in the application form in place of actual
photo/signature; or
(f) making statements which are incorrect or false or suppressing material information; or
(g) resorting to the following means in connection with the candidature for the examination,
namely :-
(i) obtaining copy of question paper through improper means; or
(ii) finding out the particulars of the persons connected with secret work relating to the
examination; or
(iii) influencing the examiners; or
(h) being in possession of or using unfair means during the examination; or
(i) writing obscene matter or drawing obscene sketches or irrelevant matter in the scripts; or
(j) misbehaving in the examination hall including tearing of the scripts, provoking fellow
examinees to boycott examination, creating a disorderly scene and the like; or
(k) harassing, threatening or doing bodily harm to the staff employed by the Commission for
the conduct of the examination; or
(l) being in possession of or using any mobile phone, (even in switched-off mode), pager or
any electronic equipment or programmable device or storage media like pen drive, smart
watches etc. or camera or bluetooth devices or any other equipment or related accessories
(either in working or switched-off mode) capable of being used as a communication device
during the examination; or
(m) violating any of the instructionsissued to candidates along with their admission certificates
permitting them to take the examination; or
(n) attempting to commit or, as the case may be, abetting the commission of all or any of the
acts specified in the foregoing clauses;
In addition to being liable to criminal prosecution shall be disqualified by the Commission
from the Examination held under these Rules; and/or shall be liable to be debarred either
permanently or for a specified period :-
(i) by the Commission, from any examination or selection held by them;
(ii) by the Central Government from any employment under them;
and shall be liable to face disciplinary action under the appropriate rules if already in service under
Government;
Provided that no penalty under this rule shall be imposed except after :-
(i) giving the candidate an opportunity of making such representation in writing as the
candidate may wish to make in that behalf; and
(ii) taking the representation, if any, submitted by the candidate within the period
allowed for this purpose, into consideration.
(2) Any person who is found by the Commission to be guilty of colluding with a candidate(s) in
committing or abetting the commission of any of the misdeeds listed at the clauses (a) to (m) above
will be liable to action in terms of the clause (n) in Rule 19 (1) above.
Declaration of Results, Allocation to Service and Cadre for IAS/IPS:
20.(1) After Interview/Personality Test, the candidates will be arranged by the Commission in the
order of merit as determined by the aggregate marks finally awarded to each candidate in the Main
Examination. Thereafter, the Commission shall, for the purpose of recommending candidates
against unreserved vacancies, fix a qualifying mark (hereinafter referred to as general qualifying
standard) with reference to the number of unreserved vacancies to be filled up on the basis of the
Main Examination. For the purpose of recommending reserved category candidates belonging to
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections and
candidates belonging to Persons with Benchmark Disability category against reserved vacancies,
the Commission may relax the general qualifying standard with reference to number of reserved
vacancies to be filled up in each of these categories on the basis of the Main Examination.
Provided that the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other
Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections and Persons with Benchmark Disability who
have not availed of any of the concessions or relaxations in the eligibility or the selection
criteria, at any stage of the examinationand who after taking into account the general qualifying
standards are found fit for recommendation by the Commission, shall not be recommended against
the vacancies reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes,
Economically Weaker Sections, and Persons with Benchmark Disability but shall in the first
instance be recommended by the Commission against the unreserved vacancies.
Note: The facility of scribe, along with compensatory time which is available for eligible candidates
belonging to Person with Benchmark Disability category and the disability of such
candidates, which he is suffering from in respect of Medical Fitness, shall not be treated as
relaxations/concession.
(2) While making Service Allocation, the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the
Scheduled Tribes, the Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections and Persons with
Benchmark Disability recommended against unreserved vacancies may be adjusted against
reserved vacancies by the Government, if bythis process they get a Service of higher choice in the
order of their preference.
(3) The Commission may further lower the general qualifying standards to take care of any
shortfall of candidates for appointment against resultant unreserved vacancies and any surplus of
candidates against reserved vacancies arising out of the process as per provisions of sub-rule (2)
above; and the Commission may make the recommendations in the manner prescribed in sub-rules
(4) and (5).
(4) (a)(1) While recommending the candidates, the Commission shall, in the first instance,
take into account the total number of vacancies in all categories. The total number of
recommended candidates shall be reduced by the number of candidates belonging to
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker
Sections and Persons with Benchmark Disability who acquire the merit at or above the
fixed general qualifying standard without availing of any concession or relaxation in the
eligibility or selection criteria in terms of the proviso to sub-rule (1).
(4)(a)(2) While exercising the method defined in sub rule (4)(a)(1), due consideration may be taken
to secure the vacancy(ies) for PwBD candidates expected to be recommended from Reserve
List and if required, the total number of recommended candidates shall be reduced
appropriately in addition to reduction as per sub rule (4)(a)(1).
(b) Along with this list of recommended candidates, the Commission shall also maintain a
Consolidated Reserve List of candidates which will include candidates from unreserved, reserved
categories and PwBD Category, ranking in order of merit below the last recommended candidate
under each category. The number of candidates of unreserved category in the Consolidated
Reserve list will be equal to the number of reserved category candidates and of PwBD Category
who in the first instance were included in the list of recommended candidates as per proviso to
sub-rule (1) and reduction in recommendation against unreserved vacancy(ies), if any, in light of
sub-rule (4)(a)(2)."
(c) The number of candidates of reserved category in the Consolidated Reserve List, from each
category of Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Other Backward Class, Economically Weaker
Sections and Persons with Benchmark Disability will be equal to the respective number of
candidates reduced in each category while recommending candidates in the first instance as per
sub rule (4)(a)(1) and (4)(a)(2).
Along with the Consolidated Reserve List, the Commission shall also maintain an
Extended List which will include sufficient number of candidates, as in the discretion of the
Commission, from unreserved, reserved and PwBD category, ranking in order of merit below
the last candidate included in the Consolidated Reserved List under each category.
(d) The Consolidated Reserve List as well as the Extended List so maintained shall be treated
as confidential till the process of recommendation(s) in terms of sub-rule (5) is finally
concluded by the Commission.
(5)(a)(1): The candidates recommended in terms of the provisions of sub-rule (4), shall be allocated
services by the Government. After finalizing the service allocation, including the candidates
belonging to reserved category, who acquire the merit at or above the fixed general qualifying
standard without availing of any concession or relaxation in the eligibility or selection criteria in
terms of the proviso to sub-rule (1) and after ascertaining the resultant vacancies due to migration
of the reserve category candidates to their respective category, the Government may forward a
requisition to the Commission requesting it to recommend, in order of merit, from the Consolidated
Reserve List, the same number of candidates as requisitioned for the purpose of filling up the
unfilled vacancies in each category.
(5)(a)(2): Along with the requisition for recommending the candidates from the Consolidated
Reserve List, the Government may also forward a requisition to the Commission requesting it to
recommend, in order of merit, from the Extended List and below the last recommended candidate
in each category from the Consolidated Reserve List, the same number of candidates as requisitioned
for the purpose of filling up of vacancies that remained unfilled due to limited preferences expressed
by the candidates, invalid reservation claims of the candidates and cancellation of candidature in
each category. No further requisition to the Commission for filling up the unfilled vacancies, arising
out of whatsoever reason(s) thereafter, shall be forwarded by the Government.
Note: Vacancies arisen due to any reason other than mentioned in Rule 20(5)(a)(2) above, shall not
be considered to be filled up through the Extended List. Further, no reallocation/upgradation of
Service of the candidates shall be considered against such vacancies."
(6) For candidates recommended on Provisional basis by the Commission either in the results
declared in the first instance or from the Consolidated Reserve List and the Extended List due to
non-completion of any requisite formalities by the candidates or for any other reason whatsoever,
the remedial action for meeting the requisite formalities shall be completed by the candidate without
any undue delay and in any case within a period of time allowed further from the date of declaration
of such Provisional result as the Government may prescribe and notify.
21.(1) Due consideration will be given at the time of allocation of Service based on the results of
the Examination to the order of preference expressed by a candidate in respect of Services in the
Online Application Form/ updated Online Application Form for Civil Services Examination- 2026.
The appointment to various Services will also be governed by the Rules/Regulations in force as
applicable to the respective Services at the time of appointment.
(2) The Cadre Allocation of candidates selected for appointment to IAS or IPS will be governed
by the policy of Cadre Allocation in force at the time of allotment of cadre.
Communication of the Results of the Examination:
22. The form and manner of communication of the results of the examination to individual
candidates shall be decided by the Commission at their discretion and the Commission will not enter
into correspondence with candidates regarding the results.
Suitability for Appointment:
23. (1) No right to allocation and appointment to a Service is conferred to a candidate declared
as successful by the Commission as per the results of the Examination, unless the Government is
satisfied after such enquiry as may be considered necessary that the candidate, having regard to
character and antecedents and certificates produced during the course of examination for the
purpose of eligibility as well as for claiming any kind of benefit for reservation and to the Medical
Examination Reports, is suitable in all respects for allocation/appointment to the Service. The
decision of the Government in this regard shall be final.
(2) In case, a candidate who has been allocated and appointed to any All India Service (AIS) /
Group ‘A’ Service on the basis of CSE- 2026, does not join the mandatory Foundation Course
without being granted exemption for the same, his/her candidature shall be liable to be cancelled for
the CSE-2026.
24. No person –
(a) who has entered into or contracted a marriage with a person having a spouse living,
or
(b) who, having a spouse living, has entered into or contracted a marriage with any other
person,
– shall be eligible for appointment to Service.
Provided that the Central Government may, if satisfied that such marriage is permissible
under the personal law applicable to such person and the other party to the marriage and there are
other grounds for doing so, exempt any person from the operation of this rule.
Reservation against vacancies for Persons with Benchmark Disability:
25. The eligibility for availing reservation against the vacancies reserved for the Persons with
Benchmark Disability shall be the same as prescribed in “The Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Act, 2016 (RPwD Act, 2016)”. The candidates of Multiple Disabilities will be eligible for
reservation under category (e) Multiple Disabilities only of Section 34(1) of RPwD Act, 2016 and
shall not be eligible for reservation under any other categories of disabilities i.e. (a) to (d) of Section
34(1) of RPwD Act, 2016 on account of having disability of 40% and above in any ofthese sub
categories of PwBD.
Provided further that the candidates from Persons with Benchmark Disability category shall
also be required to meet special eligibility criteria in terms of ‘Suitable Category of Benchmark
Disabilities’ and ‘Functional Requirements’ [erstwhile Functional Classification and Physical
Requirements (abilities/disabilities) (FC&PR)] consistent with requirements of the identified
Service/post as may be prescribed by the Government.
Note-I : The details of ‘Suitable Category of Benchmark Disabilities’ and ‘Functional
Requirements’ of Services participating in CSE- 2026 are indicated in Appendix-IV of these
Rules which are identified and prescribed by the Government as per the provisions of Section 33
and 34 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
Note-II : Persons with Benchmark Disability with only those category(ies) of disability(ies)
mentioned in Appendix-IV shall be eligible to apply for the Examination under PwBD category.
Therefore, candidates concerned are advised to read it carefully before applying appropriately for
admission to the Examination.
Note-III : Candidates belonging to Persons with Benchmark Disability category are likely to
have been previously tested and in possession of related medical certificates even before applying
for admission to the Examination. However, it is to be clearly noted that the prescribed Medical
Examination as per these Rules, also including that for benchmark disability category(ies), shall
be mandatory and only the results of the prescribed Medical Examination shall be deemed valid
for assessing whether a PwBD category candidate meets the requirements to be appointed.
Change of Category:
26.(1) If the category indicated by a candidate in the Online Application Form for the Civil Services
Examination is unreserved category but the candidate subsequently writes to the Commission to
change the category to a reserved one, such request shall not be entertained by the Commission.
Further, once a candidate has chosen a reserved category, no request shall beentertained for change
to other reserved category viz. SC to ST, ST to SC, OBC to SC/ST or SC/ST to OBC, SC to EWS,
EWS to SC, ST to EWS, EWS to ST, OBC to EWS, EWS to OBC, etc. No Reserved category
candidates other than those who qualified each stage of the Examination on General standard, shall
be allowed to change (on their request or as decided by the Commission/Government based on the
documents submitted by them) their category from reserved to unreserved or claim the vacancies
(Service/Cadre) for unreserved category after the declaration of final result by UPSC. In cases where
such candidates do not qualify on General Standard, their candidature shall be cancelled. Further,
no candidate belonging to any sub-category of Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) shall
be allowed to change the sub-category of disability.
(2) While the above principle will be followed in general, there may be a few cases where
there was a gap of not more than 3 months between the issuance of a Government Notification
enlisting a particular community in the list of any of the reserved communities and the date of
submission of the application by the candidate. In such cases, the request of change of category from
unreserved to reserved may be considered by the Commission on merit.
(3) In case of a candidate becoming a candidate belonging to Persons with Benchmark Disability
category during the course of the examination process, the candidate must produce valid document
of acquiring a disability to the extent of 40% or more as defined under the RPwD Act, 2016 to
consider drawing the benefits of reservation as available to the Persons with Benchmark Disability
(PwBD) category.
Eligibility for Availing Reservation:
27.(1) A candidate will be eligible to get the benefit of community-based reservation only in case
the particular community/caste to which the candidate belongs is included in the list of reserved
communities issued by the Central Government.
(2) The OBC candidates applying for CSE- 2026 must produce OBC (Non Creamy Layer)
certificate based on the income for the Financial Years (FYs) 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25
and issued on/after 01.04.2025 (after the completion of FY 2024-25) but not later than the closing
date of the Online Application Form for Civil Services Examination-2026.
(3) A candidate at CSE-2026 will be eligible to get the benefit of the Economically Weaker
Section reservation only in case the candidate meets the criteria issued by the Central Government
and is in possession of requisite Income & Asset Certificate based on the income for Financial Year
(FY) 2024-25 and issued on/after 01.04.2025 ( after the completion of FY 2024-25) but not later
than the closing date of the Online Application Form for Civil Services Examination-2026.
28. Candidates seeking reservation/relaxation benefits available for SC/ST/OBC/EWS/PwBD/
Ex-servicemen must ensure that they are entitled to such reservation/relaxation as per eligibility
prescribed in the Rules/Notice. They should also be in possession of all the requisite certificates in
the prescribed format in support of their claim as stipulated in the Rules/Notice for such benefits by
the closing date of the Online Application Form for Civil Services Examination- 2026.
29. The closing date fixed for the receipt of the Online Application Form of Civil Services
Examination-2026 will be treated as the date for determining the OBC status (including that of
creamy layer) of the candidates.
YASHU RUSTAGI, Director