The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has prepared a draft of rules and regulations for conducting class 10 board exams twice a year. According to senior CBSE officials, conducting board exams twice a year will start from the academic year 2026-27.
👉 Draft Scheme for Two Examinations Policy Notice, Class X from 2026
👉 Feedback on Two Board Examination in Class X
Implementation from Academic Year 2026-27
According to the draft, the first board exam in a year will be held in February-March and the second in May. Officials said the draft will be put in the public domain and all stakeholders will be able to give their feedback till March 9, after which the policy will be finalised.
Apart from the proposed schedule of two board exams for class 10 students from next year, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Tuesday released draft norms, according to which students can choose to take the exam once or both times. If they choose the latter option, they can "opt out" of the subjects/papers they do not want to take again.
Exam Schedule & Dates
According to the draft norms, the first phase of CBSE Class 10 board exams will be held from February 17 to March 6, while the second phase will be held from May 5 to 20. In both cases, the duration of the exam has been limited to 16-18 days, which is almost half the current duration of 32 days.
The entire examination process will last for 34 days, covering 84 subjects. Around 26.60 lakh students are expected to appear in the CBSE Class 10 exam in the year 2026. In future also, CBSE 10th board exams will begin every year on the first Tuesday after February 15 and May 5.
Purpose & Benefits
The proposal to conduct 10th board exams twice a year aims to provide students an opportunity to improve their performance, thereby reducing the pressure and stress of the exam on them. This means that students will get only a day or two between the two papers, depending on their subject choice - much less than the current gap, which can extend to five or even 10 days.
The result of the first exam is likely to be declared by April 20 and the second by June 30. Students who choose to appear for both exams will get their best score on the final mark sheet.
Public Feedback & Finalization
The CBSE has sought public feedback on its proposal by March 9. It will be reviewed based on the suggestions received and then finalised. "We want to finalise the plan before the new academic session begins for Class 10 students in April," a senior CBSE official said.
Registration & Exam Centers
Both the stages of board exams will be conducted based on the full syllabus and candidates will be allotted the same exam centres in both versions. The exam fee for both exams will be determined at the time of filing the application and candidates will have to deposit it at the time of registration. Registration for the Class 10 board exams in 2026 will be completed by September this year, when students will have to indicate whether they wish to appear for the first exam, both exams or just the second one.
Result Declaration
After the results of the first exam are declared in April, only students who have registered for the second board exam in September will be allowed to take the exam, with the option of “dropping” subjects or papers they do not wish to retake.
Option to Drop Subjects in Second Exam
“After the results of the first exam are released, and if you are happy with your marks in social sciences, English and mathematics, you can drop these papers for the second exam and sit for only the remaining subjects. The best of the scores will be reflected in the final score card,” said a source, on condition of anonymity.
However, if a student has registered only for the second board exam, “no further exams will be conducted”.
Alignment with National Education Policy (NEP) 2020
"Only the first and second edition of the CBSE Class 10 board exams will act as supplementary exams and no special exams will be conducted under any circumstances," the official said. The new National Education Policy (NEP) recommended that to eliminate the "high-risk" aspect of board exams, all students should be allowed to appear for exams on a maximum of two occasions during any school year. The policy change was discussed in detail at a crucial education ministry meeting chaired by education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The results of the first exam will be made available on DigiLocker, and students can use it for admission to Class 11 if they do not wish to appear for the second exam. However, "passing documents" will not be issued after the first exam; they will be issued only after the results of the second exam are declared. As per the draft norms, internal assessment will be conducted only once.
CBSE's proposal to hold two board exams in Class 10 is in line with the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which states that "to eliminate the high-stakes aspect of board examinations, all students will be allowed to appear for board examinations on two occasions during any school year, one for the main examination and one for improvement, if desired."
The CBSE was grappling with the challenge of conducting the two board exams in a manner that the next academic year is not affected.
According to the draft rules, there will be a single exam for both the exams.
Key Takeaways
- CBSE will conduct Class 10 board exams twice a year from 2026-27.
- Students can choose to appear once or twice, with their best scores being considered.
- First exam: February 17 – March 6 | Second exam: May 5 – May 20.
- The exam duration will be reduced to 16-18 days, down from 32 days.
- Public feedback is open until March 9, with final implementation before April 2025.
- The move aligns with NEP 2020, reducing the pressure of high-stakes board exams.
- Results of the first exam will be available on DigiLocker, but passing certificates will be issued only after the second exam.
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