UPSC CDS

UPSC CDS is a government competitive examination used to select candidates for officer training in the Armed Forces. The CDS (II) 2026 notice covers entry to IMA, INA, AFA, and OTA; final admission is based on the written examination, SSB selection process, medical fitness, service preferences, merit and available vacancies.

For the 2026 CDS (II) cycle, UPSC listed tentative vacancies for courses beginning in July or October 2027. These vacancy figures are not guarantees: the official notice states that Services Headquarters may change them during selection.

• IMA, INA and AFA are regular-commission pathways described in the notification; OTA is for Short Service Commission courses.
• Candidates must state eligible service/course preferences in the examination-specific application module; candidates are considered only for the preferences they exercise, subject to the rules in the notice.

Eligibility is course-specific and must be verified against the notification for the particular CDS cycle. In CDS (II) 2026, IMA and INA were for unmarried men aged 19–24; AFA was generally for candidates aged 20–24, with a higher upper limit for holders of a valid current DGCA commercial pilot licence; OTA (Men) was for unmarried men aged 19–25; and OTA (Women) was for unmarried women, eligible issueless widows and eligible issueless divorcees aged 19–25. The notice specifies exact eligible dates of birth rather than relying solely on an age calculation.

The notice permits final-year/semester degree candidates to apply, but they must furnish the required evidence of passing by the stipulated deadline. Candidates must also meet the prescribed physical and medical standards; an e-admit card or provisional admission does not itself confirm final eligibility.

Nationality rules include Indian citizens, subjects of Nepal, and specified persons of Indian origin intending permanent settlement in India, with a Government of India eligibility certificate required in applicable cases.

• Degree requirement: recognised degree/equivalent for IMA and OTA.
• INA: engineering degree, or B.Sc. with Physics as core/elective plus Physics and Mathematics at 10+2.
• AFA: degree with Physics and Mathematics at 10+2, or Bachelor of Engineering.
• Women candidates in the CDS (II) 2026 notice were considered for OTA’s Short Service Commission course only.

The written examination uses objective-type papers. For IMA, INA and AFA, the papers are English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics, each for two hours and 100 marks. For OTA, the papers are English and General Knowledge, each for two hours and 100 marks. General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics papers are bilingual in Hindi and English; the Elementary Mathematics standard is matriculation level, while the other papers are approximately graduate level.

UPSC applies negative marking to the objective papers: one-third of the marks assigned to a question is deducted for a wrong answer, while an unanswered question has no penalty. Calculators are not permitted.

Candidates who clear the written stage may be called for SSB. The SSB process has Stage I—Officer Intelligence Rating tests and Picture Perception & Description Test—and Stage II, comprising interview, group-testing tasks, psychology tests and conference. Stage II is conducted over four days according to the UPSC notice.

• Maximum written marks are 300 for IMA, INA and AFA, and 200 for OTA; the interview maximum is equal to the corresponding written-exam total.
• The 2026 official previous-question-paper archive provides CDS English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics papers.

Applications are submitted online through UPSC’s application portal. For CDS (II) 2026, the process used four modules: account creation, Universal Registration Number (URN), Common Application Form (CAF), and the examination-specific module. Applicants submit identity, date-of-birth and education details, documents, service preferences, fee information where applicable, and an examination-centre choice.

For CDS (II) 2026, the notice specified 9 June 2026 at 6:00 p.m. as the application deadline, so that application window is closed as of 19 July 2026. Candidates should rely on the next UPSC notification and calendar rather than assuming a future CDS deadline, because UPSC states that examination dates may be altered.

UPSC required an acceptable government photo ID in the URN profile and instructed applicants to upload a photograph, capture a live photograph for the CAF, and upload a clear signature. The CDS (II) 2026 notice states that submitted examination applications could not be withdrawn or corrected; a separate one-time URN-profile update facility does not revise an application already submitted.

• Use the official UPSC portal only; do not rely on third-party application services.
• Keep both the URN and the exam-specific application number for future correspondence.
• Apply early in a future cycle if a particular test city matters: allotment can be subject to centre capacity and first-apply-first-allot rules.

Start with the current official notification: it defines the applicable eligibility, syllabus, paper structure, marking rules, medical requirements and course preferences. Build a paper-specific plan: English and General Knowledge for all relevant courses, with Elementary Mathematics additionally required for IMA, INA and AFA.

Use UPSC’s official previous-question-paper archive for timed practice in the actual subjects. Practise accuracy as well as speed because the objective papers carry a one-third-mark penalty for wrong answers. For SSB, preparation should focus on understanding the selection stages and presenting authentic, consistent evidence of officer-like qualities rather than treating it as a written-test extension.

Physical and medical readiness should begin early. The official notice makes medical fitness a condition of selection and links candidates to the applicable armed-forces medical standards; candidates with a health concern should consult the standards and a qualified clinician rather than self-assessing eligibility.

• Read the full notification and appendices before choosing course preferences.
• Use official papers to diagnose weak areas and to simulate two-hour papers.
• Do not bring calculators or prohibited electronic items to the written exam.

A written-exam result alone does not confer appointment. Candidates must clear SSB, satisfy medical standards, meet documentary eligibility requirements, rank sufficiently in the relevant merit process and be accommodated within vacancies. Successful candidates join the academy/course allocated under the applicable rules.

The CDS (II) 2026 notice describes IMA training as about 18 months, after which successful medically fit officer cadets are granted Permanent Commission as Lieutenants. The other courses have their own service and training terms in the notification.

Pay information is variable and should be treated as dated policy context, not a salary promise. In the CDS (II) 2026 notice, the starting Level-10 pay range for a Lieutenant was listed as ₹56,100–₹177,500 per month, and the fixed cadet-training stipend was listed as ₹56,100 per month; the same notice explicitly says pay, allowances and rules may be revised from time to time.

• The 2026 notice lists 451 tentative vacancies for CDS (II), distributed across IMA, INA, AFA and OTA courses; the Services may revise vacancies.
• During academy training, Government bears specified training costs, while candidates are expected to meet their own pocket expenses under the terms stated for the relevant academy.