UPSC Exam Calendar 2026 Out: Check Dates of Important Exams

Know complete schedule for exams like NDA, CDS, CSE and others!

UPSC Exam Calendar 2026: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the exam calendar for the 2026 session. Students preparing for various examinations conducted by UPSC can check the exam calendar and note down the important dates.

The UPSC exam calendar 2026 contains a complete schedule of all major examinations that will be conducted by UPSC in the upcoming year. The exam calendar was released by UPSC on 15 May 2025 on its official website at www.upsc.gov.in

UPSC Exam Calendar

Below we have given the UPSC exam calendar 2026, which contains notification date, application date, examination dates, and duration of exam of all major examinations conducted by the UPSC in the upcoming year.

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newiconUPSC Exam Calendar 2026 – Released

The schedule of events for UPSC examinations 2026 are given in the table below:

Sl. NoExaminationNotification DateLast date of ApplicationExam commencement dateExam duration
1Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 10.01.2026

(Saturday)

2 Days
2Reserved for UPSC Examination17.01.2026 (Sunday)2 Days
3Combined Geo-Scientist (Preliminary) Examination, 202603.09.2025 23.09.2025 8.02.2026 (Sunday)1 DAY
4Engineering Services (Preliminary) Examination, 202617.09.2025 07.10.2025 08.06.2026 (Sunday) 1 DAY
5CBI (DSP) LDCE24.12.2025 13.01.202628.02.2026 (Saturday) 2 Days
6CISF AC(EXE) LDCE-202603.12.202523.12.2025 08.03.2026 (Sunday) 1 DAY
7N.D.A. & N.A. Examination (I), 202610.12.2025 30.12.2025 12.04.2026

(Sunday)

1 DAY
8C.D.S. Examination (I), 2026
9Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 202614.01.202603.02.202624.05.2026 (Sunday) 1 DAY
10Indian Forest Service (Preliminary) Examination, 2026 through CS(P) Examination 2026
11Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination06.06.2026 (Saturday)2 DAYS
12I.E.S./I.S.S. Examination, 202611.02.202603.03.2026 19.06.2026 (Friday)3 DAYS
13Combined Geo-Scientist (Main) Examination, 202620.06.2026
(Saturday)
2 DAYS
14Engineering Services (Main) Examination, 202621.06.2026 (Sunday)1 DAY
15Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination04.07.2026
(Saturday)
2 DAYS
16Central Armed Police Forces (ACs) Examination, 202618.02.2026 10.03.2026 19.07.2026 (Sunday) 1 DAY
17

Combined Medical Services Examination, 2026

11.03.202631.03.2026

02.08.2026 (Sunday)

1 DAY
18Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 08.08.2026 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
19Civil Services (Main) Examination, 202621.08.2026
(Friday) 
5 DAYS
20N.D.A. & N.A. Examination (II), 202620.05.2026 09.06.2026 13.09.2026
(Sunday) 
1 DAY
21C.D.S. Examination (II), 2026
22Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 26.09.2026 (Saturday)2 DAYS
23Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 10.10.2026 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
24Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 31.10.2026 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
25Indian Forest Service (Main) Examination, 2026 22.11.2026
(Sunday) 
7 DAYS
26S.O./Steno (GD-B/GD-I) LDCE 16.09.202506.10.202612.12.2026
(Saturday) 
2 DAYS
27Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination19.12.2026 (Saturday) 2 DAYS

UPSC Important Exam Dates 2026

Candidates must keep in mind important exam dates for various examinations like NDA, CDS, civil services examination, central armed forces (ACs) examination, etc. Below we have given the schedule for important exams:

UPSC NDA 2026 Exam Schedule

The registration for UPSC N.D.A. & N.A. 2026 Examination (I) will start from 10 December 2025, and the last date for registration is 30 December 2025. NDA I 2025 will be conducted on 12 April 2026.

The registration for UPSC N.D.A. & N.A. Examination (II) will start from 20 May 2026 and the last date for registration is  09 June 2026. NDA II will be conducted on 13 September 2026.

UPSC CDS 2026 Exam Schedule

The registration for UPSC CDS 2025 Examination (I) will commence from 10 December, 2025, and the last date for registration is 30 December 2025. CDS I will be conducted on 12 April 2026.

The registration for UPSC CDS Examination (II) will start from 20 May, 2026, and the last date for registration is 09 June 2026. CDS II will be conducted on 13 September 2026.

UPSC Civil Services Exam Schedule 2026

The notification and registration for UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination will be released on 14 January 2026, and the last date for registration is 03 February 2026. The exam will be conducted on 24 May 2026.

The Civil Services (Main) Examination will start from 21 August 2026.

UPSC Engineering Services Exam Schedule 2026

The notification and registration for UPSC Engineering Services (Preliminary) Examination, will be released on 17 September, 2025 and the last date for registration is 07 October 2025. The exam will be conducted on 08 June 2026.

The Engineering Services (Main) Examination will start from 21 August 2026.

UPSC Exam Calendar 2026: PDF Link

Candidates preparing for UPSC examinations 2026 can download the PDF calendar for the 2026 session from the below given link:

Click Here to download UPSC exam calendar 2026 (PDF format)

UPSC Exam Calendar 2025

As some of the examinations of UPSC are scheduled for 2025, therefore candidates can check the dates for the UPSC examinations 2025, from the below table.

Sl. NoExaminationNotification DateLast date of ApplicationExam commencement dateExam duration
1Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 11.01.2025

(Saturday)

2 Days
2Combined Geo-Scientist (Preliminary) Examination, 2025 04.09.2024 24.09.2024 09.02.2025 (Sunday)1 DAY
3Engineering Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2025 18.09.2024 22.11.2024 08.06.2025 (Sunday) 1 DAY
4CBI (DSP) LDCE27.11.2024 17.12.202408.03.2025 (Saturday) 2 Days
5CISF AC(EXE) LDCE-202504.12.202424.12.2024 24.04.2025 (Sunday) 1 DAY
6N.D.A. & N.A. Examination (I), 202511.12.2024 31.12.2024 13.04.2025 (Sunday)1 DAY
7C.D.S. Examination (I), 2025
8Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 202522.01.202521.02.202525.05.2025 (Sunday) 1 DAY
9Indian Forest Service (Preliminary) Examination, 2025 through CS(P) Examination 2025
10Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination14.06.2025 (Saturday)2 DAYS
11I.E.S./I.S.S. Examination, 2025 12.02.202504.03.2025 20.06.2025 (Friday)3 DAYS
12Combined Geo-Scientist (Main) Examination, 2025 21.06.2025 (Saturday)2 DAYS
13Engineering Services (Main) Examination, 2025 10.08.2025 (Sunday)1 DAY
14Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination05.07.2025 (Saturday)2 DAYS
15Combined Medical Services Examination, 2025 19.02.2025 11.03.202520.07.2025 (Sunday)1 DAY
16Central Armed Police Forces (ACs) Examination, 202505.03.2025 25.03.202503.08.2025 (Sunday) 1 DAY
17Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 09.08.2025 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
18Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2025 22.08.2025 (Friday) 5 DAYS
19N.D.A. & N.A. Examination (II), 202528.05.2025 17.06.2025 14.09.2025 

(Sunday) 

1 DAY
20C.D.S. Examination (II), 2025
21Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 04.10.2025 (Saturday)2 DAYS
22Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination 01.11.2025 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
23Indian Forest Service (Main) Examination, 2025 16.11.2025 (Sunday) 7 DAYS
24S.O./Steno (GD-B/GD-I) LDCE 17.09.202507.10.202513.12.2025 (Saturday) 2 DAYS
25Reserved for UPSC RT/ Examination20.12.2025 (Saturday) 2 DAYS

newicon LatestUPSC has released a revised annual calendar on 7th November 2024. Click Here to check the updated calendar.

UPSC Exam Calendar 2026 FAQs

Answer: The official website to check the UPSC exam calendar is [www.upsc.gov.in].
Answer: The UPSC Engineering Services Examination (ESE), also known as the Indian Engineering Services (IES) exam, is conducted to recruit engineers for various government sector posts.
Answer: The NDA 2026 notification will be released on 10 December 2025. The last date for application is 30 December 2025.
Answer: The candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree from a recognized university to be eligible for the UPSC Civil Services exam.
Answer: General category candidates are allowed 6 attempts, while OBC candidates can attempt 9 times, and SC/ST candidates have unlimited attempts until they reach the age limit.
Answer: The Prelims syllabus includes General Studies Paper I (Current events, History, Geography, Polity, etc.) and General Studies Paper II (CSAT – aptitude, logical reasoning, etc.).
Answer: The UPSC CDS exam will be conducted on 12 April 2026 for CDS I and on 13 September 2026 for CDS II.
Answer: The CDS exam consists of three sections: English, General Knowledge, and Elementary Mathematics. Each section carries 100 marks.
Answer: The UPSC 2025 exam calendar was released on 15 May 2025.

If you have any doubts regarding UPSC exam calendar 2026, feel free to drop your queries in the comment box, our experts will reply you shortly. 

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