The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has released the notification for the Combined Higher Secondary Level (10+2) Examination, 2026 (CHSL), inviting applications for 2,536 tentative vacancies in the posts of Lower Divisional Clerk (LDC)/Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA) and Data Entry Operator (DEO)/DEO Grade ‘A’, across various Ministries, Departments, and Constitutional/Statutory Bodies of the Government of India. This article covers every important detail — vacancy information, eligibility, the complete two-tier exam pattern, salary, fee, and how to apply.

1. Recruitment Overview

Particular	Details
Conducting Body	Staff Selection Commission (SSC)
Examination Name	Combined Higher Secondary Level (10+2) Examination, 2026 (CHSL)
File Number	HQ-C1102/5/2026-C-1
Posts	Lower Divisional Clerk (LDC)/Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA); Data Entry Operator (DEO); Data Entry Operator, Grade ‘A’
Total Tentative Vacancies	2,536
Mode of Application	Online only, via ssc.gov.in or the “my SSC” mobile app
Selection Stages	Tier-I (CBT) and Tier-II (CBT with skill/typing test)

Important: Vacancies mentioned are tentative. Final vacancies, along with post-wise and category-wise breakup, will be published later on the SSC website (Candidate’s Corner → Tentative Vacancy) after scrutiny of details from User Departments.

2. Important Dates

Event	Date
Notice release date	7 September 2026
Online application start	7 September 2026
Online application close	7 October 2026, 11:00 PM
Last date for online fee payment	8 October 2026, 11:00 PM
Application Form Correction Window	14 – 16 October 2026, 11:00 PM
Tier-I (CBT) schedule	To be notified later
Tier-II (CBT) schedule	To be notified later

3. Vacancy Details

Total Tentative Vacancies: 2,536, spread across three post categories:

Post	Pay Level	Pay Scale
Lower Divisional Clerk (LDC)/Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA)	Level-2	₹19,900 – ₹63,200
Data Entry Operator (DEO)	Level-4 and Level-5	₹25,500 – ₹81,100 and ₹29,200 – ₹92,300
Data Entry Operator, Grade ‘A’	Level-4	₹25,500 – ₹81,100

• State-wise/zone-wise vacancy details are not collected by SSC — candidates must approach the concerned User Department for this information.
• Reservation for SC, ST, OBC, EWS, ESM, and PwBD is determined and communicated by the Indenting Ministries/Departments — SSC has no role in fixing these numbers.
• Only male candidates are eligible for any vacancies reported in the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). Candidates opting for LDC posts in BRO must fulfil specific Physical Standard, Physical Efficiency Test, and Medical Standard requirements detailed in the official notification — posts once allotted are not changed if a candidate fails to meet these standards later.

4. Eligibility Criteria

Nationality

A candidate must be an Indian citizen, a subject of Nepal or Bhutan, or a person of Indian origin who migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, or specified East African countries/Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India (with an eligibility certificate from the Government of India, where applicable).

Educational Qualification (as on 7 October 2026)

Post	Qualification
DEO/DEO Grade ‘A’ in Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, SSC, and Ministry of Culture	12th standard pass in Science stream with Mathematics as a subject
LDC/JSA and all other DEO/DEO Grade ‘A’ posts	12th standard or equivalent, from a recognised Board or University

• Candidates who have appeared for their 12th standard exam can also apply, provided they possess the qualification on or before the cut-off date (7 October 2026).
• The result of the qualifying exam must have been declared by the cut-off date — mere processing of results by the Board/University does not satisfy this requirement.

Age Limit (as on 1 August 2026)

• 18 to 27 years — candidates born between 2 August 1999 and 1 August 2008 are eligible.

Category	Age Relaxation
SC/ST	5 years
OBC	3 years
PwBD	10 years
PwBD (OBC)	13 years
PwBD (SC/ST)	15 years
Ex-Servicemen (ESM)	3 years after deducting military service rendered
Defence personnel disabled in operations	3 years
Defence personnel disabled in operations (SC/ST)	8 years
Central Govt civilian employees with 3+ years’ regular service	Up to 40 years of age
Central Govt civilian employees with 3+ years’ regular service (SC/ST)	Up to 45 years of age
Widows/Divorced/Judicially separated women (not remarried)	Up to 35 years of age
Widows/Divorced/Judicially separated women (not remarried) (SC/ST)	Up to 40 years of age

Note: Age relaxation is not admissible to sons, daughters, or other dependents of Ex-Servicemen.

5. Selection Process

CHSL 2026 selection is based on two Computer Based Examination tiers, plus a mandatory skill/typing test within Tier-II.

Tier-I Exam Pattern

Part	Subject	Questions/Marks	Duration
I	English Language (Basic Knowledge)	25 / 50	60 minutes total, with a 15-minute sectional timer for each part
II	General Intelligence	25 / 50
III	Quantitative Aptitude (Basic Arithmetic Skill)	25 / 50
IV	General Awareness	25 / 50
Total		100 / 200

• Objective, multiple-choice questions only, set in English, Hindi, and other regional languages (except Part-I).
• Negative marking: 0.50 marks deducted for every wrong answer.
• Candidates eligible for a scribe get 80 minutes total (20-minute sectional timer per part).

Tier-II Exam Pattern (Conducted in Two Sessions, Same Day)

Session	Section	Subject	Questions	Marks	Duration
Session-I	Section-I	A: Mathematical Abilities (30Q) + B: Reasoning & General Intelligence (30Q)	60	180	1 hour (30-min sectional timer each)
Session-I	Section-II	A: English Language & Comprehension (40Q) + B: General Awareness (20Q)	60	180	1 hour (40+20 min sectional timers)
Session-I	Section-III	Computer Knowledge Test	15	45	15 minutes
Session-II	Section-IV	Skill Test (DEO)/Typing Test (LDC/JSA)	—	—	15 minutes (DEO skill test); 10 minutes (LDC/JSA typing test)

• Session-I duration totals 2 hours 15 minutes; each section closes automatically once its time is up.
• Negative marking: 1 mark deducted for every wrong answer in Section-I, Section-II, and Section-III.
• Section-III (Computer Knowledge Test) is mandatory but qualifying only — no marks count toward merit.
• Section-IV (Skill Test/Typing Test) is also qualifying only, but mandatory for all qualified candidates (with limited exemptions for PwD candidates certified unable to type).
• It is mandatory to qualify all four sections of Tier-II.

Skill Test / Typing Test Details

Post	Test Requirement
DEO/DEO Grade ‘A’ (Consumer Affairs, SSC, Culture)	15,000 key depressions per hour; 15-minute test
DEO/DEO Grade ‘A’ (other departments)	8,000 key depressions per hour; 15-minute test
LDC/JSA (English medium)	35 words per minute (approx. 10,500 key depressions/hour); 10-minute test
LDC/JSA (Hindi medium, Mangal font only)	30 words per minute (approx. 9,000 key depressions/hour); 10-minute test

Candidates choosing the Hindi medium typing test must type in Mangal Font only — using any other font results in disqualification from the test.

Qualifying Marks (Tier-I and Sections I, II, III of Tier-II)

Category	Minimum Qualifying Marks
UR	30%
OBC/EWS	25%
All other categories	20%

Merit List & Final Selection

• The final merit list is based only on the aggregate marks scored in Section-I and Section-II of Tier-II, subject to qualifying Section-III and Section-IV.
• Tie-breaker (in order): Marks in Section-I of Tier-II → Marks in Tier-I → Date of birth (older candidate ranked higher).
• Post allocation is based on merit-cum-preference — candidates give post/department preferences online before the result is declared, and this choice is final and irreversible. Candidates who don’t submit preferences in time will not be considered for any post.
• Selected candidates serve a probation period of 2 years.
• All posts carry All India Service Liability (AISL) — selected candidates may be posted anywhere in India.

6. Salary & Pay Structure

Post	Pay Level	Monthly Pay Range
LDC/JSA	Level-2	₹19,900 – ₹63,200
DEO	Level-4 / Level-5	₹25,500 – ₹81,100 / ₹29,200 – ₹92,300
DEO Grade ‘A’	Level-4	₹25,500 – ₹81,100

In addition to basic pay, selected candidates receive Dearness Allowance, House Rent Allowance, and other benefits applicable to Central Government employees.

7. Application Fee

Category	Fee
General/OBC/EWS male candidates	₹100
Women candidates (all categories)	Exempted
SC/ST/PwBD/ESM candidates	Exempted

• Fee is payable online via BHIM UPI, Net Banking, or Visa/MasterCard/Maestro/RuPay Debit Cards, until 8 October 2026, 11:00 PM.
• Fee once paid is non-refundable and cannot be adjusted against any other examination.

Application Form Correction Fee (14–16 October 2026): ₹200 for the first correction, ₹500 for a second correction. No further corrections are allowed after this window closes.

8. How to Apply

1. Visit the official SSC website: ssc.gov.in, or use the “my SSC” mobile app (available on Google Play Store).
2. Complete your One-Time Registration (OTR) on the new website — note that OTR generated on the old website (ssc.nic.in) is not valid here. Once done, your OTR remains valid for all future SSC exams on the new portal.
3. Opt for Aadhaar-Based Authentication during OTR if possible — this exempts you from certain photograph/signature rejection issues and from carrying a physical photo ID at the exam venue.
4. Log in and fill out the CHSL application form with personal and educational details.
5. If not using Aadhaar authentication, capture your photograph live through the application module (no pre-existing photo allowed) and upload your signature in JPEG format (10–20 KB, approximately 6.0 cm × 2.0 cm).
6. Select your three preferred exam centres, in order of priority, within the same region — this cannot be changed later at any stage.
7. Review your application carefully using the Preview option before final submission.
8. Pay the applicable fee online, if not exempted.
9. Submit the application and retain a printed copy, along with your Registration Number, for at least 3 years.

Important: Only one application is allowed per candidate. Submitting multiple applications leads to rejection of all of them and cancellation of candidature.

9. Frequently Asked Questions

10. Official Links

Resource	Link
Official Notification – SSC CHSL Recruitment 2026	Download PDF
Official SSC Portal (Login/Apply)	ssc.gov.in/login
Official SSC Website	ssc.gov.in
Toll-Free Helpline	1800 309 3063

Read the complete 88-page official notification carefully before applying — it contains detailed post-wise physical standards, PwBD certification formats, and regional exam centre lists. Rely only on the official SSC website for updates on Tier-I and Tier-II exam schedules.