SSC CHSL Recruitment 2026: 2,536 LDC, JSA and DEO Vacancies, Eligibility, Fee and Dates

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) is recruiting 12th-pass candidates for Lower Division Clerk (LDC), Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA), Data Entry Operator (DEO) and DEO Grade 'A' posts through the Combined Higher Secondary (10+2) Level Examination, 2026. The notice mentions about 2,536 tentative vacancies. As of 13 October 2026, the online application and fee-payment windows have closed, and the application correction window opens on 14 October 2026.

This is a competitive-examination recruitment to Group C posts in Government of India ministries, departments and offices, and in certain constitutional and statutory bodies and tribunals. It is not an apprenticeship. The notice text we reviewed does not describe the nature of the appointment beyond Group C posts with government pay levels.

Tier-I dates: what the notice says

The request for this post mentioned a Tier-I window of 30 November to 31 December. The official notice does not say this. It lists the schedules of both Tier-I and Tier-II as "to be notified later", and says any change in schedule will be communicated only through the SSC website. Treat the exam dates as unannounced until SSC publishes them.

Key dates and their status as of 13 October 2026

Who is recruiting and for which posts

The recruiting body is the Staff Selection Commission. It conducts the examination on behalf of various user ministries and departments. Posts and pay levels listed in the notice:

• LDC / JSA: Pay Level-2 (Rs. 19,900-63,200).
• DEO: Pay Level-4 (Rs. 25,500-81,100) and Level-5 (Rs. 29,200-92,300).
• DEO Grade 'A': Pay Level-4 (Rs. 25,500-81,100).

One secondary source shows pay levels for DEO and DEO Grade 'A' differently. This post follows the official notice.

Vacancies

The notice gives approximately 2,536 tentative vacancies. Final numbers will be set after SSC scrutinises documents from the user departments. The notice says updated post-wise and category-wise vacancies will appear on the SSC website under Candidate's Corner > Tentative Vacancy. The text we reviewed gives no post-wise split. SSC does not collect state-wise or zone-wise vacancies, so candidates should ask the concerned user departments for location details. Reservation is applied by the indenting departments as per government orders. Vacancies in the Border Roads Organization, if any are reported, are open to male candidates only.

Eligibility

Age limit

The age limit is 18 to 27 years as on 1 August 2026, meaning candidates born between 2 August 1999 and 1 August 2008, both dates included. Upper-age relaxations in the notice include:

• SC/ST: 5 years; OBC: 3 years
• PwBD: 10 years; PwBD (OBC): 13 years; PwBD (SC/ST): 15 years
• Ex-servicemen: 3 years after deducting military service from actual age
• Central government civilian employees with at least 3 years of regular, continuous service: up to 40 years (45 for SC/ST)
• Widows, divorced and judicially separated women who have not remarried: up to 35 years (40 for SC/ST)

The notice also lists relaxations for certain disabled defence personnel. Date of birth as entered in the form and as recorded in the matriculation or secondary certificate is accepted, and later change requests are not considered.

Educational qualification

• LDC/JSA and DEO/DEO Grade 'A' (general): 12th standard or equivalent from a recognised Board or University.
• DEO/DEO Grade 'A' in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, the Staff Selection Commission and the Ministry of Culture: 12th pass in the Science stream with Mathematics as a subject.

The cut-off date for the qualification is 7 October 2026. Candidates who appeared in the 12th examination could apply, but the result must have been declared on or before that date. Merely having the result processed by the Board does not count. Degrees through open and distance learning are accepted only under the conditions in the notice.

Nationality

Candidates must be Indian citizens, subjects of Nepal or Bhutan, or persons of Indian origin who migrated from the listed countries to settle in India. Candidates in the last three groups need a certificate of eligibility from the Government of India.

Application fee

The fee is Rs. 100. Women candidates and SC, ST, PwBD and ex-servicemen candidates eligible for reservation are exempt. Payment is online through BHIM UPI, net banking, or Visa, MasterCard, Maestro or RuPay debit cards. The fee is not refunded, and an application is rejected if a required fee has not been received.

How to apply

Applications were accepted only online at ssc.gov.in or through the "my SSC" mobile app. The steps in the notice were:

1. Complete One-Time Registration (OTR) on the new SSC website. OTR from the old website does not work on the new one. Aadhaar-based authentication is advised.
2. Fill in the application form. The photograph is captured live through the application module, so no existing photo is needed. Candidates who used Aadhaar authentication will not be rejected over photo or signature standards.
3. Upload a scanned signature in JPEG/JPG format, 10 to 20 KB.
4. Choose three exam centres in order of preference, all within the same SSC region. Centre changes are not allowed later.
5. Pay the fee if not exempt, preview the form, and keep a copy.

The notice lists a toll-free helpline for form-filling difficulty: 18003093063. The notice also refers to Annexures III and IV for detailed instructions. The part of the notice we reviewed did not include those annexures.

Correction window, 14 to 16 October 2026

Only candidates whose completed application and fee were received on time may correct their forms. The notice allows two corrections: the first costs Rs. 200 and the second Rs. 500, for all candidates regardless of gender or category. Correction charges are paid online and are non-refundable. If the charge is not received, the earlier submitted application stays valid. No changes are allowed after the window closes.

Selection process and exam pattern

Tier-I

Tier-I is a computer-based, multiple-choice test of 100 questions and 200 marks in 60 minutes, with a sectional timer of 15 minutes for each part. Each wrong answer carries a 0.50 mark penalty.

Tier-II

Tier-II is held in two sessions on the same day. Session-I has Section-I (Mathematical Abilities and Reasoning with General Intelligence, 30 questions each, 180 marks, 1 hour), Section-II (English Language and Comprehension, 40 questions, and General Awareness, 20 questions, 180 marks, 1 hour) and Section-III (Computer Knowledge, 15 questions, 45 marks, 15 minutes). Each wrong answer in Sections I to III costs 1 mark. Session-II is the skill or typing test.

• Candidates must qualify in all sections of Tier-II. Computer Knowledge and the skill/typing test are qualifying in nature.
• DEO skill test: mandatory for every DEO candidate. It lasts 15 minutes at 15,000 key depressions per hour for the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, SSC and Ministry of Culture posts, and 8,000 per hour for the other DEO posts.
• LDC/JSA typing test: 10 minutes, in Hindi or English.

Candidates eligible for a scribe get compensatory time. Document verification is done by the user departments after the final result. Multi-shift scores will be normalised under SSC's published procedure. Answer-key objections cost Rs. 50 per question, and there is no re-evaluation or re-checking of scores.

Limits of this summary

• The notice runs to 88 pages, and only part of the text was available for this summary. The annexures, certificate formats and the LDC/JSA typing-speed details were not fully visible, so check the full PDF.
• Post-wise and category-wise vacancy figures were not in the available text.
• Exam dates for both tiers are not yet announced.

The official notice is available as the SSC CHSL 2026 notice PDF. Further updates will appear on ssc.gov.in.

FAQs

Can I still apply for SSC CHSL 2026?

No. As of 13 October 2026, the application deadline (7 October) and the fee deadline (8 October) have passed. Only candidates who completed an application and fee on time can use the 14 to 16 October correction window.

Is this an apprenticeship?

No. It is an SSC recruitment examination for Group C posts in central government bodies.

Which stream is needed for DEO posts?

Any stream at 12th level is enough for most posts. The Science stream with Mathematics is required for DEO posts in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, the Staff Selection Commission and the Ministry of Culture.