UPSC: Civil Services Exam Eligibility Criteria

A candidate must have reached the age of 21 and must not be 32 years on 1 August of the year of taking the examination.

The upper age limit may be relaxed in the following cases:

1. Up to five years if a candidate belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe.
2. Up to three years if a candidate belongs to Other Backward Classes who are eligible for reservation.
3. Up to five years if a candidate was living in the State of Jammu & Kashmir between 1 January, 1980 to the 31 day of December, 1989.
4. Up to three years for Defence Services personnel disabled in operations during hostilities with a foreign country (or in a disturbed area) and released as a result.
5. Up to five years for ex-servicemen, including Commissioned Officers and ECOs/SSCOs who have rendered at least five years of military service as of 1 August, 2013, and have been released (1) on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment will be completed within one year from 1 August, 2013) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency, or (2) on account of physical disability from military service, or (3) on impalement.
6. Up to five years in the case of ECOs/SSCOs who have completed an initial period of assignment of five years military service as of 1 August, 2013, 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 month’s notice on selection from the date of receipt of offer of appointment.
7. Up to 10 years in the case of blind, deaf-mute and orthopaedically handicapped persons.

Every candidate appearing for the Civil Services Examination, who is otherwise eligible, will be permitted six (6) attempts at the examination.

There is no such restriction on the number of attempts for eligible Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe candidates.

The number of attempts permissible to candidates belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC), who are otherwise eligible, shall be nine(9). This relaxation will be available to the candidates who are eligible for the applicable reservation.

An attempt at a Preliminary Examination shall be considered to be an attempt at the examination. If a candidate actually appears for any one paper in the Preliminary Examination, this will be considered the equivalent to having made an attempt at the examination. Notwithstanding the disqualification/cancellation of candidature, the fact of appearance of the candidate at the examination will count as an attempt.