Age Relaxation in Government Jobs 2026: SC, ST, OBC, PwBD, Ex-Servicemen Rules

Key points

• Age relaxation raises only the upper age limit. The minimum age never changes.
• In central government recruitment the usual relaxation is SC/ST 5 years, OBC (non-creamy layer) 3 years, and PwBD 10 years on top of their category.
• Relaxations do not add up. If you qualify on more than one ground, you get the single highest one.
• If you are SC, ST or OBC but apply against an unreserved (UR) vacancy, you usually get no relaxation.
• Always check the "as on" date. Your age is counted on a fixed cut-off date given in the notification, not on the day you apply.

Every rule below is taken from official 2026 notifications, linked at the end. State government jobs follow their own state's rules, which can differ.

Category-wise relaxation in central recruitment

This table is from the Railway Recruitment Boards' CEN 06/2026 (NTPC Graduate), which follows Government of India rules. Most central recruitments, including SSC and the Supreme Court Registry, use the same pattern.

Category	Relaxation in upper age limit
SC / ST	5 years
OBC (Non-Creamy Layer)	3 years
PwBD – UR / EWS	10 years
PwBD – OBC (NCL)	13 years
PwBD – SC / ST	15 years
Ex-servicemen (UR / EWS), with at least 6 months' continuous service	3 years, after deducting the length of military service from actual age
Ex-servicemen (OBC-NCL)	6 years, after deducting service
Ex-servicemen (SC / ST)	8 years, after deducting service
Widowed, divorced or judicially separated women (not remarried)	Up to 35 years (UR/EWS), 38 (OBC-NCL), 40 (SC/ST)

EWS candidates get no age relaxation in central recruitment. EWS is a reservation in posts, not in age.

Ex-servicemen: how "deducting service" works

For ex-servicemen the calculation is different. You subtract your years of military service from your actual age, and then the relaxation is added to the normal upper limit. Example for RRB NTPC Graduate (upper limit 33):

• An ex-serviceman (UR) aged 45 with 15 years of service: 45 − 15 = 30.
• His limit is 33 + 3 = 36.
• Since 30 is within 36, he is eligible.

Railway and government employees

Serving railway Group C and erstwhile Group D staff, and substitutes, with at least 3 years' service get a higher limit in RRB recruitments: 40 years (UR/EWS), 43 (OBC-NCL), 45 (SC/ST). Some other employers give no relaxation to people already in government service. The Supreme Court's 2026 notices say so explicitly for employees of other departments, PSUs and banks. Read this clause carefully if you are already employed.

Worked example: RRB NTPC 2026 date-of-birth limits

RRB gives the limits as dates of birth, which is the safest way to check. Age is counted on 1 January 2027.

Notification	Age band	Not born after	UR/EWS: not born before	OBC-NCL	SC/ST
CEN 06/2026 (Graduate)	18–33	01.01.2009	02.01.1994	02.01.1991	02.01.1989
CEN 07/2026 (Under Graduate)	18–30	01.01.2009	02.01.1997	02.01.1994	02.01.1992

So an OBC-NCL graduate born on 15 March 1992 is eligible for CEN 06/2026, because the cut-off is 2 January 1991. A UR candidate born on the same day is not, because the cut-off is 2 January 1994.

Example from a court job: Supreme Court Junior Court Attendant 2026

The Supreme Court's JCA notice (age 18–27 as on 1 October 2026) shows a few extra rules you will also see elsewhere:

• Dependants of freedom fighters get up to 5 more years.
• Widows and divorced or judicially separated women (not remarried) can apply up to 35, 38 (OBC-NCL) or 40 (SC/ST).
• No upper age limit for the Registry's own departmental candidates.

Example from a state job: UP TGT 2026

State recruitments set their own rules. UPESSC's TGT advertisement 07/2026 has a minimum age of 21 on 1 July 2026 and the upper limit is the retirement age of 62. Relaxation hardly matters for this post. Don't assume central rules apply to state jobs.

Common mistakes that get forms rejected

1. Using today's date instead of the cut-off date. Calculate your age on the "as on" date in the notification.
2. Claiming OBC relaxation with a creamy-layer or out-of-date certificate. Your OBC-NCL certificate must be in the format and validity period the notification asks for.
3. Adding two relaxations together. A PwBD OBC candidate gets 13 years, not 3 + 10 + something more.
4. Claiming relaxation against a UR vacancy. SC/ST/OBC candidates who choose UR posts lose the relaxation.
5. Date of birth mismatch. Your date of birth must match your Class 10 certificate exactly. RRB does not accept later changes.

How to check your own eligibility

1. Find the "as on" date and the upper age limit in the notification.
2. Find your category's relaxation in the age relaxation table of that notification.
3. Add the relaxation to the upper limit (for ex-servicemen, first subtract your service from your age).
4. Check the date-of-birth range if the notification gives one. It overrides any mental arithmetic.
5. Keep your certificate (caste, PwBD, discharge book, etc.) ready in the format the notification asks for, because relaxation is checked at document verification.