Eligibility conditions for candidates appearing in the Civil Services Examination

1. UPSC Eligibility includes parameters such as age limit, nationality, educational qualification, etc. which decides whether or not an individual is eligible to apply for the UPSC CSE exam.
2. Candidates appearing for Civil Services Examination must meet specific UPSC eligibility criteria to be eligible to appear for the Prelims and Mains exam. 
3. This rigorous selection process aims to ensure that only the most qualified and competent individuals join the esteemed civil services of India, contributing to the efficient governance and development of the nation.

Nationality 

1. For the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Foreign Service and the Indian Police Service, a candidate must be a citizen of India. 
2. For other services, a candidate must be either:— 
   1. a citizen of India, or 
   2.  a subject of Nepal, or
   3. a subject of Bhutan, or 
   4. a Tibetan refugee who came over to India before 1st January, 1962 with the intention of permanently settling in India, or 
   5. a person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India.
3. Provided that a candidate belonging to categories (b), (c), (d) and (e) shall be a person in whose favour a certificate of eligibility has been issued by the Government of India.
4.  A candidate in whose case a certificate of eligibility is necessary, may be admitted to the examination but the offer of appointment may be given only after the necessary eligibility certificate has been issued to him/her by the Government of India.  

Age Limit

1. The minimum age to appear for the Civil Service Exam is 21 years. 
2. 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 of the year of the  examination.
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.

Age Relaxation-

The upper age-limit prescribed above will be relaxable:

1. up to a maximum of five years if a candidate belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe; 
2. 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; 
3. 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;
4. 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,YYYY (Year of Examination) and have been released: 
   1. on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be completed within one year from 1st August, YYYY(Year of Examination), otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency); 
   2. on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service; or 
   3. on invalidment
5.  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, YYYY(Year of Examination) 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. 
6. up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of candidates belonging to Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) categories viz.
   1. blindness and low vision; 
   2. deaf and hard of hearing; 
   3. locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims and muscular dystrophy; 
   4. autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability and mental illness; 
   5. multiple disabilities from amongst person under clauses (i) to (iv) including deaf-blindness

                      Age Relaxation for different categories of Candidates

Minimum Educational Qualification:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. Candidates possessing professional and technical qualifications which are recognised by the Government as equivalent to professional and technical degree would also be eligible for admission to the Civil Services Examination. 
4. 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 (Main) 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

Number of Attempts

1. An attempt at a Preliminary Examination shall be deemed to be an attempt at the Civil Services Examination. 
2. 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. 
3. Notwithstanding any subsequent disqualification/cancellation of candidature, the fact of appearance of the candidate at the Examination will count as an attempt.

Restrictions on applying for the examination: 

1. A candidate who is appointed to the Indian Administrative Service or the Indian Foreign Service 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 of the current year.
2. A candidate who is appointed to the Indian Police Service based on the results of an earlier Examination and continues to be a member of that Service shall not be eligible to opt for the Indian Police Service on the basis of the result of the current year. 

Medical and Physical Standards:

1.  Candidates must be physically fit according to physical standards for admission to Civil Services Examination, as per guidelines given in the Rules for Examination published in the Gazette of India.
2. Candidates who successfully pass the UPSC CSE undergo several stages, including qualifying for a medical test. Upon clearing this specific test, candidates become eligible to be appointed as Civil Servants.
3. Certain standard physical requirements such as weight, height, and chest measurements are necessary for the selection of officers, especially those being appointed as IPS officers for districts or Indian Railway services and the police services of Pondicherry, among others.
4. However, non-technical fields do not have stringent physical standards, but candidates are expected to meet basic demands, such as being physically fit and mentally stable.
5. A medical examination is done for all candidates appearing for the UPSC personality test at prescribed hospitals in Delhi.