Staff Selection Commission (SSC), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
Last Date: 07 October 2026

SSC CHSL Recruitment 2026: Quick Overview

Feature	Details
Organization	Staff Selection Commission (SSC), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
Advertisement No.	F. No. HQ-C1102/5/2026-C-1
Post Name	Lower Divisional Clerk (LDC) / Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA), Data Entry Operator (DEO), DEO Grade 'A'
Total Vacancies	2536 (tentative)
Job Type	Central Government, Group C
Application Mode	Online, through ssc.gov.in or the my SSC mobile app
Application Start Date	07 September 2026
Last Date to Apply	07 October 2026 (11:00 PM)
Minimum Qualification	Class 12 pass (Science with Maths for select DEO posts)
Age Limit	18 to 27 years (as on 01 August 2026)
Selection Process	Tier-I, Tier-II and Skill Test / Typing Test
Salary / Pay Scale	Pay Level-2 to Level-5 (Rs 19,900 to Rs 92,300 basic pay range)
Job Location	Anywhere in India (All India Service Liability)
Official Website	ssc.gov.in
Topic/Subject-wise Practice Quizzes For All Types of Exams	apnaupdates.com/apna-quiz

SSC CHSL Recruitment 2026: Quick Intro

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has released the notification for the Combined Higher Secondary Level Examination 2026 (SSC CHSL). The recruitment covers 2,536 tentative vacancies for Lower Divisional Clerk (LDC), Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA) and Data Entry Operator (DEO) posts in various central government ministries and offices. Online applications are open from 7 September to 7 October 2026.

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) conducts the CHSL examination every year to recruit Class 12 pass candidates for clerical and data entry positions in central government ministries, departments and other eligible offices. These are Group C posts with the applicable Central Government pay scale. Selected candidates will undergo a two-year probation period before their appointment is confirmed.

The SSC CHSL exam attracts a very large number of applicants every year. In the previous CHSL cycle, 3,131 vacancies were advertised and the number of applications crossed 30 lakh. That means there were roughly 950 to 980 applicants for each vacancy. For 2026, the notification lists 2,536 tentative vacancies, which is lower than last year. If the number of applicants remains at a similar level, the competition for each vacancy could be higher this time.

The SSC CHSL recruitment does not include an interview stage. Candidates are selected through written examinations followed by a skill or typing test, depending on the post. This selection process has remained in place for the last few recruitment cycles.

Vacancy Details

The SSC CHSL 2026 recruitment has 2,536 tentative vacancies for LDC, JSA, DEO and DEO Grade 'A' posts. The Commission has not released the post-wise or category-wise vacancy breakup yet. SSC will publish the detailed vacancy details later on its official website under the Candidate's Corner section. The final number of vacancies may change after the concerned departments verify and confirm the reported vacancies.

Application Fee

The application fee for SSC CHSL 2026 is Rs.100. Women candidates, SC, ST, PwBD and eligible Ex-Servicemen candidates are exempt from paying the fee.

The application fee must be paid online only through BHIM UPI, Net Banking, or Visa, MasterCard, Maestro and RuPay debit cards. The fee payment facility will remain available until 8 October 2026. Once paid, the fee will not be refunded or adjusted against any other examination, even if the candidate later chooses not to appear.

Candidates who need to correct details in their submitted application can use the correction window from 14 to 16 October 2026. A fee of Rs.200 for the first correction and Rs.500 for the second correction will apply to all candidates, regardless of their category or gender.

Age Limit

Candidates must be 18 to 27 years old as on 1 August 2026. This means the candidate's date of birth should be between 2 August 1999 and 1 August 2008, as per the basic age limit. SSC also provides upper age relaxation for eligible candidates under different categories. The category-wise relaxation details are given below:

Educational Qualification

For LDC, JSA and most DEO posts, candidates must have passed Class 12 or an equivalent examination from a recognised board or university. There is no stream-specific requirement, so candidates from Arts, Commerce and Science backgrounds can apply if they meet the other eligibility conditions.

For certain DEO and DEO Grade 'A' posts, candidates must meet an additional educational requirement. This applies to posts under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, the Staff Selection Commission and the Ministry of Culture. For these posts, candidates must have passed Class 12 in the Science stream with Mathematics as a subject. For DEO posts in other departments, the general Class 12 pass qualification applies.

Note: Candidates who are waiting for their Class 12 results can also apply for SSC CHSL 2026. However, they must have their qualifying result officially declared by 7 October 2026, which is the last date for submitting the application. Appearing for the Class 12 examination alone is not sufficient if the result has not been declared by the deadline.

Selection Process

The SSC CHSL selection process consists of two computer-based examinations, Tier-I and Tier-II, followed by a mandatory Skill Test or Typing Test, depending on the post. There is no interview at any stage of this selection.

Tier-I has four sections: English Language, General Intelligence, Quantitative Aptitude and General Awareness. Each section contains 25 questions, giving candidates 60 minutes to complete the paper. There is a negative marking of 0.50 marks for every wrong answer. The Tier-I paper consists of objective-type multiple-choice questions. Questions are available in English and Hindi, along with the language selected by the candidate in the application form.

Tier-II is divided into 4 sections. Section-I covers Mathematical Abilities and Reasoning, while Section-II includes English Language & Comprehension and General Awareness. Section-III tests Computer Knowledge, and Section-IV is the Skill Test or Typing Test, conducted separately in the second session on the same day.
Sections I to III consist of objective-type multiple-choice questions, while Section IV is a skill or typing test. The questions are available in English and Hindi, along with the language selected by the candidate in the application form.
Tier-II has negative marking of 1 mark for each wrong answer.

The minimum qualifying marks are 30% for General category candidates, 25% for OBC and EWS candidates, and 20% for candidates from other categories. These qualifying marks apply separately to Tier-I and Sections I, II and III of Tier-II.

One important point for candidates is that Tier-I marks are not counted in the final merit list. Tier-I is only used to shortlist candidates for Tier-II. Final selection is based on the combined marks of Tier-II Section-I and Section-II, carrying a maximum of 360 marks. Candidates must also qualify Section-III and Section-IV to be considered for final selection. 

*Tie-Breaking Rules: If two or more candidates obtain the same score in Tier-II, SSC will use the following criteria to decide their merit, in this order:
> Higher marks in Tier-II Section-I
> Higher marks in Tier-I
> Older candidate by date of birth.

Note: The complete Tier-I and Tier-II syllabus, along with details of the Skill Test/Typing Test, is available from page 19 onwards of the official notification. The PET and Physical and Medical Standards for LDC posts in the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) are provided in Annexure-XVI, from page 77 onwards.
The official notification PDF is available in the Important Links section below.

Salary, Job Location and Service Conditions

The pay scale varies depending on the post, so candidates should consider the salary structure when choosing their post preferences.

All these posts come with All India Service Liability, so selected candidates may be posted to any state or Union Territory as decided by the concerned department. Posting is not limited to the candidate's home state.
After Tier-II, candidates will submit their post and department preferences through a separate online option form. Once submitted, these preferences are treated as final and cannot be changed later.

For this recruitment cycle, LDC vacancies in the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) are open only to male candidates. Applicants for these posts must also meet the physical efficiency and medical standards prescribed by BRO, in addition to the regular SSC CHSL selection process.
Selected candidates for all posts will undergo a two-year probation period before their appointment is confirmed.

How to Apply

1. Candidates who have not completed One Time Registration (OTR) must register on the new SSC portal at ssc.gov.in before applying. OTR created on the old ssc.nic.in website will not be transferred to the new portal.
2. Candidates should preferably use Aadhaar-based authentication during OTR, as it can make the identity verification process at the examination centre easier and may reduce the need to carry a physical photo ID and printed photographs.
3. Log in with your registration number and password, then open the CHSL 2026 application link listed under Latest Notifications.
4. Fill in your personal, educational and category details, and select your preferred examination centres in order of priority within one region.
5. Candidates must capture a live photograph using the camera feature provided in the application form instead of uploading an old photograph. The signature should be scanned and uploaded according to the prescribed file size and dimensions.
6. Choose the language for the Computer Based Examination and the Typing Test, choosing either English or Hindi. This choice is final and cannot be changed later.
7. Candidates who are not exempt from the fee must complete the application fee payment. Before final submission, carefully review all the details shown on the preview screen and make sure everything is correct.
8. Download and save a printout of your submitted application for your own records, in case it is asked for later.

Required Documents and Important Instructions

For One Time Registration (OTR), candidates should keep their Aadhaar number ready. If Aadhaar is not available, SSC also allows alternative identity documents such as Voter ID, PAN Card, Passport, Driving Licence, or a school/employer ID.
Candidates will also need their Class 10 board details, roll number and year of passing. The name, father's name, mother's name and date of birth entered in OTR should match the Matriculation certificate exactly.
Category, PwBD, EWS and Ex-Servicemen certificates are not required while submitting the application. These documents are required later during Document Verification, when they are checked by the concerned department.
 

A few instructions need special attention while submitting the application. A pre-existing photograph uploaded instead of the required live camera capture may lead to rejection, unless the candidate has opted for Aadhaar-based authentication. Using another person's name or photograph to create a fake or fraudulent application can result in legal action under the applicable IT laws.
*Candidates eligible to use a scribe under PwBD provisions must register the scribe's details in advance. The scribe must also carry the required photo ID and medical certificate to the examination centre. Without these documents, the candidate may not be allowed to use the scribe during the examination.

Related Article:

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• SSC Selection Post Phase-XIV Recruitment 2026: Exam Date Announced
• Andaman Nicobar Combined Higher Secondary Level Recruitment 2026
• SSC Combined Graduate Level CGL Notification 2026

❓Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How many vacancies are available in SSC CHSL 2026?

The Commission has announced 2536 tentative vacancies for LDC, JSA, DEO and DEO Grade 'A' posts together, spread across various central ministries and departments. The final number depends on scrutiny of documents by the departments that reported these posts, so it may still change before the actual selection process begins.

What is the last date to apply for SSC CHSL 2026?

Online applications close on October 7, 2026 at 11:00 PM, and Fee payment is accepted a day longer, until October 8, 2026 at the same time.

What is the age limit for SSC CHSL 2026, including relaxations?

Candidates need to be between 18 and 27 years as on August 1, 2026. Relaxation goes up to 15 years for PwBD candidates from SC or ST categories and up to 10 years for other PwBD candidates, with smaller relaxations for SC, ST, OBC, Ex-Servicemen and certain categories of women.

What educational qualification is required for SSC CHSL 2026?

A pass in Class 12 or an equivalent examination from a recognised board covers LDC, JSA and most DEO posts. DEO and DEO Grade 'A' posts in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, SSC and the Ministry of Culture need Science stream with Mathematics specifically.

What is the selection process for SSC CHSL 2026?

Selection runs through Tier-I, Tier-II and a mandatory Skill Test or Typing Test, with no interview anywhere in the process. Only Tier-II's Section-I and Section-II, worth up to 360 marks combined, decide the final merit list, since Tier-I and the remaining Tier-II sections are qualifying in nature only.

What is the salary for LDC, JSA and DEO posts?

LDC and JSA posts carry Pay Level-2, with basic pay starting at Rs 19,900. DEO posts fall under Level-4 or Level-5, and DEO Grade 'A' under Level-4, going up to Rs 92,300 depending on the exact post and department.

What is the application fee for SSC CHSL 2026?

The fee is Rs 100, payable online through BHIM UPI, net banking or debit cards. Women candidates and those from SC, ST, PwBD and Ex-Servicemen categories eligible for reservation are exempted from paying it, and the fee is non-refundable once paid.

How can candidates apply online for SSC CHSL 2026?

What is the official website for SSC CHSL 2026?

All updates, the application link and the final answer key will appear on https://ssc.gov.in, along with the relevant regional SSC office website. 

Is there an interview in the SSC CHSL 2026 selection process?

No interview is part of this selection at any stage. CHSL has run purely on written tests and a skill or typing test since the two-tier format was introduced a few years ago, and this notification confirms the same structure for 2026.

Conclusion

We hope the information provided above helps you understand the SSC CHSL 2026 recruitment process clearly. At ApnaUpdates, we aim to provide only the relevant information in a simple and concise manner to make the recruitment details easier to understand.

The Tier-I and Tier-II examination dates have not been announced yet. SSC has also not released the category-wise vacancy breakup or the post-wise distribution of LDC/JSA and DEO vacancies. These details will be useful when candidates submit their post and department preferences after Tier-II. Candidates should regularly check ssc.gov.in and the Candidate's Corner section for updates instead of relying only on SMS or email alerts, as SSC does not guarantee individual notifications for every stage of the recruitment process. (You can also bookmark this page for quick reference and follow our Telegram and WhatsApp channels to receive important recruitment updates and notifications without missing any major announcement)

 

This article is based on the official notification and simplified for easy understanding. For the most accurate and updated information, always refer to the official website.

 
Tags: SSC CHSL 2026, SSC Recruitment, Government Jobs, LDC JSA Vacancy, Data Entry Operator Jobs, Staff Selection Commission, 12th Pass Government Jobs