CDS Admit Card 2026: Check CDS Hall Ticket Download Link Here
Combined Defence Services Exam 2026 ( CDS )
Exam On - 12 Apr '26
UPSC CDS Admit Card 2026: The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the CDS 1 exam on April 12, 2026. It will be announced few days before the examination date on the official portal at upsc.gov.in. It is important to carry the admit card to the examination centre. If an aspirant will not carry the hall ticket, then he or she will not be allowed to sit in the exam.
Candidates required the login credentials to download their hall ticket for the CDS exam. The authority will not send the hard copy of the call letter through post. The Combined Defence Services exam is a national-level exam which is conducted to select the candidates for Indian Armed Forces. Scroll down for more details about the CDS admit card 2026.
- CDS Admit Card 2026
- CDS Exam Dates & Schedule 2026
- How to Download CDS Admit Card?
- Details On UPSC CDS Hall Ticket
- Documents Required Along With CDS Admit Card 2026
- CDS Exam Pattern for IMA, INA, IFA
- CDS Exam Pattern for OTA
- CDS Admit Card 2026: Exam Centre
- CDS Exam Day Instructions 2026
- CDS Admit Card 2026 FAQs
CDS Admit Card 2026
The admit card for the CDS exam 2026 will be released at upsc.gov.in. The hall ticket is an important document without which candidates are not given entry to the exam hall. It comprises details such as the candidate's name, roll number, date of birth, scanned photograph, signature, details regarding the CDS exam centre, etc. The exam is conducted by UPSC for the recruitment of Commissioned Officers in the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force. Candidates can check below the CDS 1 2026 exam schedule and timings as per the previous one.
Also Read: CDS Syllabus
CDS 1 2026 Exam Schedule & Shift Timings
The examination schedule and shift-timings as per the previous one is mentioned below.
| Date | Time | Subject | Subject-Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12-Apr-2026 | 9:00 AM TO 11:00 AM | English | 11 |
| 12-Apr-2026 | 12:30 PM to 02:30 PM | General Knowledge | 12 |
| 12-Apr-2026 | 04:00 PM TO 06:00 PM | Elementary Mathematics | 13 |
CDS Exam Dates & Schedule 2026
Take a look at the table below for the complete schedule of CDS 2026 exam
| Dates | Upcoming Exam Dates |
|---|---|
| 12 Apr ' 26 | CDS 1 Exam 2026 |
| 20 May ' 26 | CDS 2 Notification 2026 |
| 20 May ' 26 - 09 Jun ' 26 | CDS 2 Application Process 2026 |
| 13 Sep ' 26 | CDS 2 Exam Date 2026 |
| Dates | Past Exam Dates |
|---|---|
| 10 Dec ' 25 | CDS 1 Notification 2026 |
| 10 Dec ' 25 - 30 Dec ' 25 | CDS 1 Application Process 2026 |
| 14 Sep ' 25 | CDS 2 Exam 2025 |
How to Download CDS Admit Card?
The CDS admit card is mandatory for the candidate to carry at the exam centre. It consists of the details about the exam centre, location, date of an exam, exam timing, reporting time, shift timing, etc. Check methods to download the CDS admit card:
- Visit at upsc.gov.in.
- Go to the 'What's New' Section and Click on the 'E-Admit Card CDS Exam 2025' link.
- A new page will open with the download link.
- Read all the instructions carefully before downloading the admit card.
- After reading the instructions, click on the 'Yes' button to proceed toward downloading the admit card.
- Enter the following details on the login page:
Registration Number and date of birth, Or
Roll Number and Date of Birth, Or
Name, Father’s Name, and Date of Birth
- After filling in the details, click on the ‘Submit’ tab.
- The CDS 2025 admit card appears on the screen.
- Download the admit card and take its printout.
Infograph showing the methods to download the CDS Hall Ticket
Snapshot of CDS Admit Card
Details On UPSC CDS Hall Ticket
The hall ticket for the UPSC CDS exam comprises the following details.
| Roll number |
Application number |
| Candidate’s name |
Father’s name |
| Scanned images of photograph |
Candidate’s signature |
| Test centre |
Category |
| Date and time of exam |
Reporting time |
| Exam day instructions |
- |
Documents Required Along With CDS Admit Card 2026
Candidates can check below the documents need to carry while appearing for the examination.
- Photo-identity proof (Passport, Driving License, Voter ID, Aadhar card, College/School ID card).
- Printout of CDS admit card.
- Three to four passport-sized photographs.
Also Read: CDS Selection Process
CDS Exam Pattern for IMA, INA, IFA
The candidates who are going to appear for the CDS exam for the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Indian Naval Academy (INA), and AFA (Air Force Academy) must know the exam pattern. The exam pattern is provided below.
- The exam for INA, IMA, and AFA is taken for three subjects - English, General Knowledge, and Elementary Maths.
- The duration for each paper is 2 hours (120 minutes).
- Each subject will have 100 MCQs.
- The maximum mark in each subject is 100 marks.
- The questions will be available in English and Hindi language.
CDS Exam Pattern for OTA
The OTA has a different exam pattern as compared to INA, IMA, and AFA. It has been mentioned below.
- The OTA exam is taken for two subjects- English and General Ability Test.
- The total time duration for the exam is 4 hours (2 hours for each paper).
- Total number of questions: 100 MCQs.
- Maximum marks in each subject are 100 marks.
- The questions will be available in English and Hindi.
CDS Admit Card 2026: Exam Centre
The candidates appearing for the CDS exam will be able to check their exam venue in the CDS admit card/hall ticket. However, the candidates can check the exam cities in which the CDS exam will be conducted below in the table:
| CDS Exam Centres 2026 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Agartala |
Ghaziabad |
Panaji (Goa) |
| Agra |
Gorakhpur |
Patna |
| Ajmer |
Gurgaon |
Port Blair |
| Ahmedabad |
Gwalior |
Prayagraj (Allahabad) |
| Aizawl |
Hyderabad |
Puducherry |
| Aligarh |
Imphal |
Pune |
| Almora (Uttarakhand) |
Indore |
Raipur |
| Anantapur (Andhra Pradesh) |
Itanagar |
Rajkot |
| Aurangabad |
Jabalpur |
Ranchi |
| Bengaluru |
Jaipur |
Sambalpur |
| Bareilly |
Jammu |
Shillong |
| Bhopal |
Jodhpur |
Shimla |
| Bilaspur |
Jorhat |
Siligudi |
| Chandigarh |
Kochi |
Srinagar |
| Chennai |
Kohima |
Srinagar (Uttarakhand) |
| Coimbatore |
Kolkata |
Thane |
| Cuttack |
Kozhikode (Calicut) |
Thiruvananthapuram |
| Dehradun |
Leh |
Tiruchirapalli |
| Delhi |
Lucknow |
Tirupati |
| Dharwad |
Ludhiana |
Udaipur |
| Dispur |
Madurai |
Varanasi |
| Faridabad |
Mumbai |
Vellore |
| Gangtok |
Mysore |
Vijayavada |
| Gaya |
Nagpur |
Vishakhapatnam |
| Gautam Buddh Nagar |
Navi Mumbai |
Warangal |
CDS Exam Day Instructions 2026
CDS Admit Card 2026 FAQs
The CDS exam is conducted in two stages, the written exam and the SSB interview. The CDS exam is an offline exam conducted in pen paper-based format. The CDS marking scheme, negative marking, total marks, exam timing, and the paper pattern for the IMA, INA, AFA, and OTA are available on this page for the CDS exam.
CDS full form is the Combined Defence Services Examination. While some people also refer CDS full form as Chief of Defence Staff, this rank is given to the head of the Indian Armed Forces. It is a national-level exam which is conducted twice a year in April and September.
Yes, the examination authority will release the CDS Question Papers 2026 officially at upsc.gov.in. The question papers will be released in the form of PDF. Candidates can download the CDS question papers 2026 from this page also for free. The question papers will help candidates to check the difficulty level of the exam, questions asked, pattern changed or not, etc.
Candidates can check below the methods to download the CDS question papers for free.
- Visit our website; Shiksha.com.
- Create your profile by mentioning certain details.
- Once a profile is generated, you will be able to download the question papers for free.
- Download and save it.
The duration of each subject paper in the CDS 2026 exam is mentioned below.
1. For Admission to Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy, and Air Force Academy: English, General Knowledge and Mathematics all have two hours duration.
2. For Officers' Training Academy (OTA)-English and GK for both separately 2 hours duration
In CDS, written exam comprises three papers namely English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics aiming for Indian Military Academy (IMA), Indian Naval Academy (INA) and Air Force Academy (AFA). There are two papers for candidates aiming for the Officers Training academy (OTA).
For IMA, INA, AFA: English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics
For OTA: English and General Knowledge
The CDS 2026 exam dates were released by the authority. In the last month of the preparation, candidates should focus more on revision of all the important topics. Give test regulary. Revise and update yourself with current affairs. Maintain physical and mental health. Take proper sleep. Revise and practice previous year question papers. Also, focus on time management, etc.
It is important for a candidate to clear basics and concepts. Questions asked in this section are of Class 10 standard. Candidates can check below CDS Maths books that will help in the preparation:
- Mathematics for CDS by RS Aggarwal
- Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations by RS Aggarwal
- Pathfinder for CDS by Arihant Publications
The syllabus of Mathematics consists of Arithmetic, Algebra, Trigonometry, Geometry, Mensuration, and Statistics.
The Commission released the CDS 1 notification at upsconline.nic.in. It was released on December 10, 2025. The CDS 1 2026 application dates are December 12 to December 30, 2025. The UPSC CDS 1 exam will be held on April 12, 2026. On the other hand, CDS 2 notification will be announced on May 20, 2026 and the last date to apply will be June 9. The CDS 2 2026 exam will be conducted on September 13, 2026.
Upcoming Sarkari Exam Dates
MAHA TET 2026 Application Form 27 Mar '26 - 16 Apr '26