Exams for the CBSE 2026 Board : Important Changes, Exam Schedule and Instructions
Exams for the CBSE 2026 Board
Exams for the CBSE 2026 Board : The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has made available the preliminary date sheet for the Class 10 and 12 board exams, giving pupils a head start on their test preparations. Exams will be held between February 17 and July 15, 2026, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (till 12:30 p.m. for courses such as painting and automotive). This year’s biggest reform is the two-board test system for Class 10 pupils, which is intended to allow individuals who fail or miss topics salvage their academic year while also reducing stress.
This year, more than 45 lakh students are scheduled to take the CBSE Class 10 and 12 exams, a three lakh rise from previous year.
Exams for the CBSE 2026 Board : Schedule Sheet, Important Changes This Year, and Guidelines
Beginning with the 2026 academic year, two board examinations will be held for Class 10. Students who were unable to complete or failed the first examination will be entitled to participate in the second board examinations under the “Essential Repeat” or Compartment category and qualify for Class 10. Those wishing to enhance their results can also take the second board exams.
Class 10 and 12 Complete Programs
Class 10 and 12 will be regarded complete programs, which means that pupils must complete both Class 9 and 10 to be eligible for the Class 10 board exams. Class 11 must be completed before taking the Class 12 board test.
Internal Assessment.
A student who does not participate in the internal assessment of any of the program’s classes will be regarded ineligible for qualifying, and their results will not be announced.
Guidelines
- CBSE implemented a 75% attendance requirement for both classes to take the board exams.
- The results of the first board examination will be available on the student’s DigiLocker account, which may be used to apply for admission to Class 11.
- If a student enrolled in Sports is unable to take the first examination, they may take the second.
- The board will begin analyzing students’ answer copies 10 days following the examination of a certain topic and will complete the process in 12 days.
The second board exams for Class 10 will begin on May 15 and end on May 30, 2026. Compartment subject tests will be administered on June 1, 2026, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Schedule for the CBSE 10th exam in 2026
| Exam Date | Subject |
|---|
| February 17, 2026 | Mathematics Standard Mathematics Basic |
| February 18, 2026 | Retail Security Automotive Introduction to Fin. Markets Introduction to Tourism Agriculture Food Production Front Office Operations Banking and Insurance Healthcare Apparel Multimedia Data Science Electronics and Hardware Foundation Skill for Science Design Thinking and Innovation |
| February 20, 2026 | Beauty and Wellness Marketing and Sales Multi Skill Foundation Course Physical Activity Trainer |
| February 21, 2026 | English (Communicative) English (Language and Literature) |
| February 23, 2026 | French |
| February 24, 2026 | Urdu Course A Punjabi Bengali Tamil Marathi Gujarati Manipuri Telugu – Telangana |
| February 25, 2026 | Science |
| February 26, 2026 | Home Science |
| February 27, 2026 | Computer Application Information Technology Artificial Intelligence |
| February 28, 2026 | Sanskrit (Communicative) Sanskrit Rai Gurung Ramang Sherpa Urdu Course-B |
| March 2, 2026 | Hindi Course – A Hindi Course – B |
| March 3, 2026 | Tibetian German National Cadet Corps Boti Bodo Tangkhul Japanese Bhutia Spanish Kashmiri Mizo Bahasa Melayu Elements of Business Elements of Book Keeping and Accountancy |
| March 5, 2026 | Painting |
| March 6, 2026 | Sindhi Malayalam Odia Assamese Kannada Kokborok |
| March 7, 2026 | Social Science |
| March 9, 2026 | Telugu Arabic Russian Persian Nepali Limboo Lepcha Carnatic Music (Vocal) Carnatic Music Mel Ins Hindustani Music (Vocal) Hindustani Music Mel Ins Hindustani Music (Per Ins) Thai |
Schedule for the CBSE 12th exam in 2026
| Date | Subject |
|---|---|
| February 17, 2026 | Biotechnology Entrepreneurship Shorthand (English) Shorthand (Hindi) |
| February 18, 2026 | Physical Education |
| February 19, 2026 | Engineering Graphics Bharatnatyan (Dance) Kuchipudi Dance Odissi – Dance Manipuri – Dance Kathakali Dance Horticulture Cost Accounting |
| February 20, 2026 | Physics |
| February 21, 2026 | Business Studies Business Administration |
| February 23, 2026 | Psychology |
| February 24, 2026 | Fashion Studies |
| February 25, 2026 | Automotive Typography and Computer Application |
| February 26, 2026 | Geography |
| February 27, 2026 | Painting Graphics Sculpture Applied Art |
| February 28, 2026 | Chemistry |
| March 2, 2026 | Urdu Elective Sanskrit Elective Carnatic Music Vocal Carnatic Music Mel Ins Carnatic Music Per Ins Mridangam Kathak Dance Urdu Core Front Office Operations Insurance Geospatial Technology Electrical Technology |
| March 3, 2026 | Legal Studies |
| March 5, 2026 | Mass Media Studies Design Thinking and Innovation |
| March 6, 2026 | Hindustani Music Mel Ins Hindustani Music Per Ins Healthcare Design Electronics and Hardware |
| March 7, 2026 | Yoga |
| March 9, 2026 | Mathematics Applied Mathematics |
| March 10, 2026 | Food Production Office Procedures and Practices Library and Information Science Early Childhood Care and Education |
| March 11, 2026 | Hindustani Music Vocal |
| March 12, 2026 | English Elective English Core |
| March 13, 2026 | Tourism Air Conditioning and Refrigeration |
| March 14, 2026 | Home Science Hindi Elective |
| March 16, 2026 | Hindi Core |
| March 17, 2026 | Punjabi Bengali Tamil Telugu Sindhi Marathi Gujarati Manipuri Malayalam Odia Assamese Kannada Arabic Tibetian German Russian Persian Nepali Limboo Lepcha Telugu – Telangana Bodo Tangkhul Japanese Bhutia Spanish Kashmiri Mizo |
| March 18, 2026 | Economics Physical Activity Trainer |
| March 20, 2026 | Marketing |
| March 23, 2026 | Political Science |
| March 24, 2026 | Beauty and Wellness Artificial Intelligence |
| March 25, 2026 | Informatics Practices Computer Science Information Technology |
| March 27, 2026 | Biology |
| March 28, 2026 | Accountancy |
| March 30, 2026 | History |
| April 1, 2026 | Financial Market Management Agriculture Medical Diagnostics Salesmanship |
| April 2, 2026 | National Cadet Corps Food Nutrition and Dietetics |
| April 4, 2026 | Sociology |
| April 6, 2026 | Knowledge Tradition and Practices of India Boti Kokborok Banking Electronics Technology |
| April 7, 2026 | Web Application |
| April 8, 2026 | French Retail Taxation Textile Design |
| April 9, 2026 | Sanskrit Core Multimedia Data Science |
Schedule for the CBSE 10th exam in 2026 Phase 2
| Date (10:30 AM – 01:30 PM) | Subject Code | Subject Name |
|---|---|---|
| May 15, 2026 | 041 | Mathematics Standard |
| 241 | Mathematics Basic | |
| May 16, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 18, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 19, 2026 | 086 | Science |
| May 20, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 21, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 22, 2026 | 087 | Social Science |
| May 23, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 25, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 26, 2026 | – | Language |
| May 28, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 29, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
| May 30, 2026 | – | Language |
| June 1, 2026 | – | Compartment Subjects |
FAQs
CBSE Date Sheet Class 12 2026: Which subject will the exams begin with?
According to the CBSE 12th date sheet 2026, the CBSE Class 12 exams would start with biotechnology, entrepreneurship, and shorthand (English and Hindi).
CBSE Date Sheet 2026 IS OUT! Check the exam dates for Classes 10 and 12 here.
CBSE has published the CBSE date sheet 2026 on its official website. CBSE 10th phase 1 exams 2026 will be held from February 17 to March 9. CBSE Class 10 Phase 2 examinations 2026 will take place between May 15 and June 1, 2026. CBSE Class 12 board exams 2026 will take place only once, between February 17 and April 9, 2026.
CBSE Date Sheet Class 12 2026: Where Can I Get Sample Papers?
CBSE sample papers 2026 Class 12 are available for download from the official website, cbseacademic.nic.in, for all disciplines. Students must download and practice sample papers to become acquainted with the marking scheme, the types of questions asked on the exam, the difficulty level, and other aspects.
CBSE Date Sheet 2026 Class 10-12 Where do I locate the syllabus?
CBSE has published the CBSE syllabus 2026 Class 10, 12 on its official website, cbseacademic.nic.in. Students can get the subject-specific curriculum from the official website and begin preparing for the exams.
CBSE 12th Date Sheet 2026: When will the Mathematics exam be held?
The CBSE test 2026 for Mathematics and Applied Mathematics will be held on Monday, March 9, 2026, using pen and paper.
CBSE Date Sheet 2026: When will the final time table be released?
The Board will announce the final CBSE date sheet 2026 Class 10, 12 after it receives the final list of candidates from all institutions. It is expected to be released in November 2025.
CBSE 10th and 12th Board Exams 2026: When will the evaluation begin?
According to the Board’s standards, the review of CBSE answer scripts will commence approximately ten days following each subject’s exam and is expected to be completed within twelve days. For example, if the Class 12 Physics exam is held on February 20, 2026, evaluation will begin on March 3 and end on March 15, 2026.
