SSC CHSL 2026 Notification Released: 2,536 Vacancies Announced, Check Major Changes This Year | Education and Career News

Candidates will also get an opportunity to make corrections to their applications. The correction window will remain open from October 14 to October 16, with corrections permitted until 11 pm on both days.

SSC CHSL: Major Changes Introduced In 2026 Exam

This year’s recruitment introduces several changes, including a sectional timer in Tier 1, a reduction in the answer-key objection fee, and the formal implementation of the sliding mechanism and FRTA.

– One of the biggest changes in CHSL 2026 is the introduction of a 15-minute timer for each section of the Tier 1 examination. Previously, candidates had 60 minutes to attempt 100 questions across English, General Intelligence, Quantitative Aptitude and General Awareness and could divide the available time between sections as they wished.

Under the new system, each section will have a separate 15-minute time limit. Once the allotted time expires, the section will automatically close and candidates will move on to the next section. Tier 1 will continue to have 100 questions carrying 200 marks, with 25 questions each from the four sections. The sectional timer will also apply to the Tier 2 examination.

– SSC has reduced the fee for challenging an answer in the provisional answer key. Candidates appearing for CHSL 2026 will have to pay Rs 50 per question to raise an objection, compared with Rs 100 per question in CHSL 2025, along with applicable bank charges.

– The recruitment process has also changed with the formal implementation of the sliding mechanism and FRTA. Under the earlier process, the Single Round Post Allocation Sliding Scheme was considered for filling vacancies after document verification. For CHSL 2026, the sliding mechanism and FRTA have been officially incorporated into the recruitment process.

– The document verification process has also been revised. After the final results are declared, the respective user departments will directly verify candidates’ documents.

SSC CHSL 2026 Eligibility Criteria

The basic educational qualification for most CHSL posts is Class 12 pass. However, specific DEO and DEO Grade ‘A’ posts have additional requirements. For DEO/DEO Grade ‘A’ posts in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, SSC and Ministry of Culture, candidates must have passed Class 12 in the Science stream with Mathematics as a subject.

Candidates should be 18 to 27 years old as on August 1, 2026. Accordingly, they should not have been born before August 2, 1999, or after August 1, 2008. Relaxation in the upper age limit will be available to eligible reserved-category candidates according to government rules. SC and ST candidates receive five years of relaxation, while OBC candidates receive three years.