Frequently Asked Questions for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) Candidates

Jul 16, 2026

Frequently asked questions address reservation provisions and eligibility for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) candidates, including application limits, required application fees, valid income and asset certificate (I&AC) conditions, age relaxation rules, and limits on examination attempts. Guidance is provided on selection recommendations between reserved and unreserved vacancies, permissible selection standard relaxations, and restrictions on changing category before and after UPSC results, including I&AC issue authorities and the applicable income year.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

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Pages5

Reading Time13 min

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR THE CANDIDATES BELONGING TO ECONOMICALLY WEAKER SECTION (EWS) Q.1 What are reservation provisions available for the candidates of the EWS categories? A . Reservation is made for the candidates belonging to the EWS in respect of vacancies as may be fixed by the Government. Q.2 Are the EWS candidates eligible/allowed to apply for all the Posts/Services under any Examination/Selection? A . Yes, provided they otherwise fulfill other eligibility criteria. Reservation is, however, not available in respect of examinations conducted for recruitment to Defence Services viz. , NDA &NA Examination and Combined Defence Services Examination. Q.3 Can the EWS candidates be considered against the vacancies reserved for them even though Income & Asset Certificate (I&AC) is not available? A . No. An EWS candidate is considered against EWS vacancies only if he/she possesses a valid I&AC. Q.4 How much age relaxation could be allowed to the candidates of EWS categories? A . No age relaxation is admissible for EWS category Q.5 What are the permissible number of attempts available to the EWS category candidates in the Civil Services Examination and Indian Forest Service Examination? A . Six (6) as admissible to Unreserved/General category candidates. Q.6 Are EWS category candidates required to pay application fee? A . The candidates of EWS category are required to make payment towards application fee. Q.7 Whether an EWS candidate selected on his/her own merit adjusted against reserved vacancy or unreserved vacancy? A . A candidate of EWS category, selected on his/her own merit, without availing of any of the concessions or relaxations to which such candidates are entitled to, is recommended against unreserved vacancies. If any concessions or relaxed standards of selection is applied at any stage of selection process, such candidates will be considered against vacancy reserved for the EWS category only. Q.8 What are the concessions and relaxations in standards of selection applicable to EWS category? A . The candidates of EWS category are entitled to relaxed standards of selection vis-a-vis the standards of selection adopted for General Category. Q.9 Whether change of category is allowed in case of EWS category candidates? A . If the category indicated by a candidate in the application form for any Examination of the Commission is Unreserved/General category but the candidate subsequently writes to the Commission to change the category to a reserved one i.e. EWS, such request is not entertained by the Commission. Further, once a candidate has chosen a reserved category (EWS), no request is entertained for change to other reserved category. Q.10 Whether change of category to Unreserved/General category is allowed in case of EWS category candidates? A . No, the EWS candidate, other than those recommended on General Merit, shall not be allowed to change their category from EWS to Unreserved/General

Jul 16, 2026

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