SSC CGL Age Limit 2026: Post-wise and Category-wise (OBC, SC/ST, EWS, PwBD, Female)
SSC CGL has three different age limits — 27, 30 and 32 — depending on the post. The full post-wise table, the upper limit for OBC, SC/ST, EWS, PwBD and ex-servicemen, the date-of-birth windows, and whether women get extra years.
"What is the SSC CGL age limit?" has no single answer: it depends on the post. The 2026 notification sets three different upper limits — 27, 30 and 32 — across its posts, and a few posts start at 20 instead of 18. Most guides print "18–32" and stop, which tells a 29-year-old he can apply for Tax Assistant when he cannot.
Age is counted as on 1 August 2026 for the 2026 cycle. Here is the full picture.
SSC CGL age limit, post by post
| Post (pay level) | Group | Age limit (General) |
|---|---|---|
| Assistant Audit Officer / Assistant Accounts Officer (Level 8) | B (Gazetted) | 18–30 |
| Assistant Section Officer — CSS, Railways, MEA, AFHQ; Sub-Inspector CBI (Level 7) | B | 20–30 |
| Assistant Section Officer (other ministries), Inspector — Income Tax, Central Excise, Preventive Officer, Examiner, Assistant Enforcement Officer, Inspector Posts (Level 7) | B | 18–30 |
| Assistant, Executive Assistant, Divisional Accountant, Sub-Inspector NIA / NCB and similar (Level 6) | B | 18–30 |
| Junior Statistical Officer (Level 6) | B | 18–32 |
| Statistical Investigator Grade II (Level 6) | B | 18–30 |
| Auditor, Accountant, Junior Accountant (Level 5) | C | 18–27 |
| Tax Assistant, Senior Secretariat Assistant / UDC, Postal / Sorting Assistant, Sub-Inspector CBN (Level 4) | C | 18–27 |
So: 27 for the Level 4 and 5 Group C posts, 30 for most Group B posts, and 32 only for Junior Statistical Officer — which also needs 60% in Maths in Class 12 or Statistics in your degree.
Date-of-birth windows (age as on 1 August 2026, General category)
| Age limit | Born not before | Born not after |
|---|---|---|
| 18–27 | 2 August 1999 | 1 August 2008 |
| 18–30 | 2 August 1996 | 1 August 2008 |
| 20–30 | 2 August 1996 | 1 August 2006 |
| 18–32 | 2 August 1994 | 1 August 2008 |
An upper limit of 27 means you must not yet have turned 27 on 1 August 2026. (How the "age as on" date works.)
SSC CGL age limit category-wise
Relaxation is added to the post's own upper limit:
| Category | Relaxation | 27-limit posts | 30-limit posts | JSO (32) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General / UR | — | 27 | 30 | 32 |
| EWS | none | 27 | 30 | 32 |
| OBC (Non-Creamy Layer) | +3 | 30 | 33 | 35 |
| SC / ST | +5 | 32 | 35 | 37 |
| PwBD (General / EWS) | +10 | 37 | 40 | 42 |
| PwBD + OBC | +13 | 40 | 43 | 45 |
| PwBD + SC/ST | +15 | 42 | 45 | 47 |
Ex-servicemen: 3 years after deducting your military service from your actual age as on 1 August 2026. (Group B gazetted posts can follow a different ex-servicemen rule — check the notification's relaxation table for your post.)
Widows, divorced and judicially separated women (not remarried): up to 35 (40 for SC/ST) — for the Group C posts only (Auditor, Accountant, Tax Assistant, UDC, Postal Assistant). The Group B posts keep their normal limit. More in government jobs for widows.
Central Government civilian employees with 3+ years' continuous service: up to 40 (45 for SC/ST), for Group C posts.
SSC CGL age limit for female candidates
Women get no separate age relaxation in SSC CGL. A General-category woman has the same 27/30/32 limits as a man; an OBC woman gets the same +3. What women do get is exemption from the application fee. The exception is the widow/divorced relaxation above.
SSC CGL age limit for EWS
None. EWS is a reservation in seats, not in age. An EWS candidate's limit is the same as General. This is the single most common mistake in CGL applications.
Planning for SSC CGL 2027
If SSC keeps the same pattern, the 2027 cycle will count age as on 1 August 2027 (an inference from past cycles — confirm when the notification is out). Work out your age on that date: if you will be 27 by then, the Level 4–5 posts close for you as General, but every Group B post at 30 stays open.
Check every post at once
CGL is eight post-wise rules, not one. Join Sarkar's free check applies each of them — plus your category, disability, service and marital status — and shows exactly which CGL posts, and which of 140+ other exams, you can still apply for.
Source: SSC Combined Graduate Level Examination 2026 notice — post, group and age table (paras 2.1–2.5), essential qualifications (para 8) and age relaxation (para 5.2). Confirm against the notification of the cycle you apply in.