UPSC 2025: Notification, Registration, Exam Date, Pattern and Syllabus

UPSC 2025 - The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the IAS prelims examination on May 25, 2025. The commission has released the UPSC admit card on May 14, 2025. The commission has also released the UPSC Exam Calendar 2026. As per the calendar, the UPSC prelims exam 2026 will be conducted on May 24, the registration for which will start on January 14, 2026.

With the release of the notification, the registration for the exam has also started. Candidates who meet the eligibility requirements can apply for the UPSC exam 2025 till February 21. To fill out the application form, eligible aspirants have to register at upsconline.nic.in and fill out personal and education details. Candidates who qualify the preliminary examination are eligible to appear for the mains round. The UPSC Mains exam is scheduled to start from August 22, 2025. The complete schedule will be released soon by the commission at upsc.gov.in. 

The UPSC CSE 2025 is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to select candidates for prominent government jobs such as Indian Administrative Services (IAS), Indian Police Services (IPS), Indian Revenue Services (IRS), Indian Foreign Services (IFS), and others.

Latest Updates: 

• UPSC Exam Calendar 2026 has also been released. UPSC Prelims 2026 will be conducted on May 24.
• UPSC Prelims Admit Card 2025 Released on May 14; exam is scheduled to be conducted on May 25, 2025.
• UPSC Final Result 2024 announced on April 22, 2025.
• UPSC exam date 2025 for the preliminary exam will be conducted on May 25.
• UPSC Prelims Registration 2025 has commenced from 22nd January at upsconline.nic.in. The last date to apply extended to February 21, 2025.
• UPSC Interview Dates 2024 Announced; Will be conducted from January 7, 2025 to April 17, 2025. UPSC final result to be released in the last week of April 2025.

Candidates must note that the UPSC syllabus does not vary as per the post. The commission releases the detailed syllabus for the UPSC CSE exam on the official website along with the notification. Aspirants must download the UPSC Syllabus and keep it with them to make sure they study only relevant topics from the exam point of view. The extensive syllabus of the Civil Services Examination (CSE) necessitates candidates to establish a well-organized study plan in order to thoroughly address its course structure.

All government ministries and departments in the state and union governments are led by IAS officers, making this examination the most coveted in the country. The IAS exam topper has the prospect to become the Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India which is the topmost bureaucratic rank that exists in India.

UPSC Mock Test 2024 (Download PDF)

UPSC Notification 2025

The Union Public Service Commission will release the UPSC notification on January 22, 2025. The UPSC 2025 notification will be released at upsc.gov.in. With the release of the notification, the application process for UPSC will also start. UPSC notification will have complete details on eligibility criteria, vacancy, syllabus, and exam pattern. 

UPSC 2025 CSE Notification - Download PDF

UPSC Exam Date 2025

The Union Public Service Commission has released the UPSC exam calendar 2025 on its official website. Eligible candidates can check the prelims and mains dates in the table below: 

UPSC Prelims Question Paper 2025

The UPSC prelims question paper 2025 will be released soon officially. Meanwhile, candidates can download the UPSC GS 1 and GS 2 previous year question papers below: 

UPSC Mains Previous Question Paper

Candidates who are eligible to appear for UPSC Mains can download the previous years' question papers from the table given below:

UPSC IAS Vacancy 2025

The number of UPSC IAS vacancies to be filled through the examination is expected to be approximately 1105 which include 37 vacancies reserved for Persons with Benchmark Disability Category, i.e. 7 vacancies for candidates of (a) blindness and low vision; 5 Vacancies for (b) deaf and hard of hearing; 15 Vacancies for (c) locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims and muscular dystrophy; and 10 Vacancies for (e) multiple disabilities from amongst persons under clauses (a) to (c) including deaf-blindness. The final number of vacancies may undergo change after getting the firm number of vacancies from Cadre Controlling Authorities.

UPSC DAF 2025: How to Fill?

The UPSC DAF 1 is to be filled by candidates who qualified the preliminary exam. The DAF form will be released on the official website of UPSC. The guidelines to fill out the UPSC DAF form is as follows:

• Visit the official website of UPSC and register before filling out the Detailed Application Form
• Candidates will need to click the relevant link provided beneath the "login" button in order to create registration accounts. 
  
• Name (as it appears on the matriculation/secondary examination certificate), Roll Number (in six-digit format), Date of Birth (as it appears on the matriculation/secondary examination certificate), and email address must all be entered on the registration module. 
• All fields must be filled out.  The login credentials will be issued to the specific registered e-mail addresses provided by the applicants, therefore they should make sure they have entered a valid and active e-mail address.
• The candidates will receive a message on their screen after clicking the submit button, clearly stating their name and email that they have been registered. A password will also be issued to the candidate's email address.
• Go back to the official website of UPSC and log in using roll number and password
• UPSC DAF 2025 has SIX modules, namely- Personal, Educational Information, Parental Information, Employment Information, Upload documents and Final Submission. 
• Fill all the modules completely and submit the DAF form using the Final Submission Module.
• After finishing each module, candidates should save it. Prior to the final DAF submission, applicants will have the chance to modify any module. Online changes cannot be made after the Final Submission has been made. 

Documents Required for UPSC DAF 2025

There are certain documents that needed to be uploaded while filling out the UPSC DAF 2025. Interested candidates can check the list of documents required for UPSC DAF 1 below:

• Matriculation Certificate (For Proof of Age)
• Class XII Marksheet
• Graduation Marksheet/Final year Appearing Certificate
• Community Certificate/Caste Certificate (If applicable)
• PH Certificate (If applicable)

UPSC Prelims Answer Key 2025

The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC Prelims Answer Key for GS I and GS II. Interested candidates can download the answer keys for both prelims paper in the table below:

UPSC IAS Eligibility Criteria 2025

Candidates planning to appear for the UPSC IAS 2025 examination must fulfil the eligibility criteria set by the commission. UPSC publishes the eligibility requirements for the IAS exam in its official announcement. The UPSC specifies the qualifying requirements for the candidate's age, minimum educational qualification, and nationality. Aspiring applicants must meet their eligibility requirements in order to participate in all phases of the exam. Based on the previous years’ trend, the UPSC IAS eligibility criteria is as follows:

UPSC IAS Education Qualification

• Candidates must have a graduation degree in any field from a recognised university or institution
• Candidates in their final year/semester of degree are also eligible to take the UPSC Preliminary exam.

UPSC IAS Age Limit

To take the examination, the candidate must be at least 21 years old. Similarly, individuals beyond the age of 32 are not permitted to take the exam. The commission does, however, grant age relaxation of 3 years and 5 years for students belonging to OBC and SC/ST category, respectively.

UPSC IAS Nationality

Candidates must exclusively be an Indian citizen to get recruited for Indian Administrative Services (IAS), Indian Police Services (IPS), and Indian Foreign Service (IFS). Additionally, Nepalese and Bhutanese citizens may apply for UPSC exams for other services.

UPSC IAS Number of Attempts

All applicants are offered six attempts at the IAS exam. It should be highlighted, though, that the limitation on the number of attempts does not apply to SC/ST applicants. Candidates from the OBC and Persons with Benchmark Disabilities categories are also given a total of nine attempts.

UPSC 2025 Exam Pattern

Candidates must be familiar with the UPSC exam pattern if they are planning to start their preparation for the UPSC examination. The UPSC exam is held in three stages: Preliminary Exam, Mains Exam, and Interview round. The detailed eligibility criteria for each phase is as follows:

UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern

• The UPSC Prelim examination is divided into two papers: Paper I & Paper II.
• Both Papers consist of Multiple-Choice Questions
• There is a negative marking in both Paper I and Paper II, where 0.33 marks are deducted for every wrong answer.
• Paper II, also known as CSAT, is qualifying in nature and candidates are required to score 33% marks to pass the exam. 
• Paper I consists of 100 questions majorly from History, Polity, Geography, Science & Technology, Ecology, Economics, and Current Affairs.
• Paper II consists of 80 questions related to Logical Reasoning, Basic Numeracy, Data Interpretation and English Comprehension.
• The total marks for both Paper I and Paper II is 200 each and the duration to attempt the exam is 2 hrs.

UPSC Mains Exam Pattern

• The UPSC Mains examination consists of a total of 9 papers including Indian Language Paper, English Paper, Essay Paper, 4 GS Papers, and 2 Optional Papers. The papers are descriptive in nature.
• The Indian Language Paper and English Paper are qualifying in nature, while Essay paper, GS Papers, and 2 Optional Papers will be considered for the merit.
• The total duration for each paper is 3 hrs.
• Students from the states of Meghalaya, Manipur, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Mizoram are not required to appear for the Indian Language Paper in the mains exam.
• A qualifying paper carries a maximum of 300 marks, while a merit paper carries a maximum of 250 marks.

Paper-wise Topics for UPSC Mains Examination

Optional Subjects

Candidates have to choose one optional paper for which two papers will be held of 250 marks each. The following are the optional papers from which candidates can choose:

UPSC Syllabus 2025

Before beginning their preparation for the CSE, candidates should peruse the UPSC CSE Syllabus 2025. The UPSC curriculum and previous year papers, which are published on the UPSC's official website, are required reading for all CSE aspirants. The information below provides an overview of the UPSC preliminary syllabus.

UPSC Syllabus for Prelims Paper I (GS)

• History of India and Indian National Movement.
• Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
• Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
• Current events of national and international importance.
• Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
• General issues on Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity, and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialisation.
• General Science

UPSC Syllabus for Prelims Paper II (CSAT)

• Comprehension;
• Interpersonal skills including communication skills;
• Logical reasoning and analytical ability;
• Decision making and problem solving;
• General mental ability;
• Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. — Class X level)

UPSC IAS Application Form 2025

UPSC IAS application forms will be released along with the release of the official notification. For the year 2025, the application form is set to release on January 22, 2025. Before filling up the IAS application 2025, the candidates must read the IAS eligibility criteria to confirm all the eligibility conditions. Candidates must carefully fill out the application form as wrong details can lead to cancellation of candidature.

How to Apply for the UPSC IAS Exam?

• Visit the official website of UPSC
• If new, register yourself through Exam Notification Tab
• Once registered, click on the Apply Online link
• Candidates are required to fill out the application form in two tabs.
• Part-I of the application form includes filling in candidates’ personal details like Name, Address, Email ID, Contact Number, and Parents’ names.
• The second part of the application process involves paying the application fee, uploading your scanned photograph and signature, among other documents, and selection of the examination centre.
• Submitting the application form after filling in the required details in the application form.

UPSC IAS Salary 2025

IAS (UPSC CSE) officials are among the highest-paid officials in the Indian government. According to the new pay structure, the basic salary for an officer joining the IAS or any other public service is INR 56,100/-. According to the 7th Pay Commission, the beginning salary of an IAS officer is roughly INR 70,000.

Basic pay, HRA, TA, DA, medical allowance, and other benefits are included in the IAS salary 2025. Other advantages available to IAS officials include the following: Resident, security, transportation, medical benefits, phone/internet bills, newspaper, and study leaves are all included. Read More: UPSC IAS Salary 2025

UPSC IAS Admit Card 2025

The commission releases the UPSC admit card following the closing of the registration process. It is necessary for candidates to bring their admit card to the exam center for verification. If they fail to do so, they will not be permitted to take the exam. The admit card can be downloaded by entering a registration number or roll number on the official website. UPSC admit cards are accessible until the exam date. 

UPSC Prelims Admit Card: The UPSC prelims admit card includes details like roll number, exam venue, date and time of the examination, and other personal information.

UPSC Mains Admit Card: UPSC Mains admit card is released after the qualified candidates are done with filling out the Detailed Application Form (DAF) meant for the mains examination.

UPSC Interview Admit Card/Call Letter: Candidates shortlisted in the mains examination will receive their admit card/call letter on the official website. The call letter can be downloaded through the roll number

UPSC Result 2025

The Union Public Service Commission releases UPSC IAS results as scheduled.

UPSC Prelims Result: After the successful conclusion of the preliminary examination, UPSC releases the list of shortlisted candidates. However, the commission does not declare the marks of the candidate.

UPSC Mains Result: UPSC Mains results are released in PDF format with shortlisted candidates' roll numbers. Candidates clearing the mains examination are then called 

UPSC Final Result: A final merit list is produced following the interview phase, which is based on the marks received by students in the main examination and interview.

Note: It should be noted that the preliminary examination scores are not factored into the final merit list. Last year, 761 students were selected including 263 from the General category, 229 from the OBC category, and 122 from the SC category. A total of 86 and 61 students were accepted from the EWS and ST categories, respectively.

Read More: UPSC CSE Result 2025

UPSC Cut off 2025

The Union Public Service Commission releases the UPSC IAS cutoff after the conclusion of all three phases of the examination. Candidates will receive the post in accordance with their final marks. The cutoff is based on several parameters, including the difficulty level of the exam, the number of candidates taking the exam, and the number of vacancies available for the exam.

UPSC Prelims Cutoff: For the General Category students, the UPSC Prelims 2021 cutoff was 87.54.

UPSC Mains Cutoff: The UPSC Mains 2021 cutoff was 745 for general category students.

UPSC Final Cutoff: The UPSC final cutoff in 2021 stood at 953 for the general category students.

Read More: UPSC CSE Cutoff 2025

UPSC Books 2025

Books are essential for IAS preparation since they instil the fundamentals of each topic in the candidate's consciousness. There are several textbooks on each topic, however, the majority of them are irrelevant to IAS prep. The UPSC CSE exam has a wide syllabus, and candidates are confused about which books to pick up for preparation.

Candidates are recommended to meticulously read NCERT books from classes 6 to 12 in order to have a better grasp of the subject. They can then progress to the specialised books. Since the UPSC prelims exam includes a large number of questions from NCERT books, they are critical for exam preparation. A few important books that candidates can refer to apart from NCERTs are tabulated below:

Read More: UPSC IAS Books

UPSC Preparation 2025

The precise methodology and study material are required for comprehensive IAS preparation. Candidates should devise a strategy based on their own abilities and shortcomings. Preparing for the IAS test will need more than a year of concentrated effort. The following are the key aspects that candidates should keep in mind while they prepare for the UPSC exams:

• Go over the study material thoroughly and keep to it when preparing for the exam.
• Choose books that are relevant and those you can readily understand.
• You should not prepare for the Prelims and Mains exams individually. The preparations are carried out concurrently.
• Once you have completed the subject you are studying, begin writing answers to long questions for mains examination preparation.
• To successfully clear the exam, you must read the newspaper and take notes on current events.
• Maintain consistency in your preparation.

Read More: UPSC IAS Preparation

UPSC Exam Centres 2025

UPSC is a national-level examination held in various regions of the country. The preliminary test is held in over 80 centres, while the main examination is held in 24 centres. A few of the examination centres are listed below

UPSC Selection Process 2025

The UPSC selection process starts with the release of the official notification for the preliminary examination by UPSC. The selection process for UPSC takes around a time of year, hence candidates must ensure they understand the process and qualifying criteria. There are three stages in the UPSC selection process: Preliminary Examination, Mains Examination, and Interview Round

• Candidates who complete the application form are invited to the preliminary exam. 
• Candidates who pass the preliminary test must next fill out a detailed application form (DAF) in order to sit for the Mains exam. 
• The commission publishes a list of students who were shortlisted in the mains examination and will be invited to the interview phase. 
• The UPSC selection process concludes with the release of the final merit list following the interview round. The final merit list is released on the basis of marks obtained by candidates in the mains and interview round.