CBSE requires at least 75 percent attendance for students to be eligible for its Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations. A shortage needs formal consideration under the examination rules, supported by documents and a school recommendation. Medical leave or participation in a sporting event does not by itself make a student's attendance record acceptable. Parents should get the recorded attendance position from the school and resolve missing leave documents while the session is still under way.
| Question | What the official procedure says |
|---|---|
| Who forwards a shortage case? | The school, to its CBSE Regional Office |
| Attendance reference date | 1 January under the standing procedure |
| Receipt of shortage cases | By 7 January under that procedure |
| Is approval automatic? | No, the case needs scrutiny and supporting documents |
The board's standing shortage of attendance procedure and its compliance circular dated 4 August 2025 were checked on 28 October 2026. The circular specifically reiterated compliance for the 2025-26 session. This article explains the rules and published procedure; it does not announce a newly issued 2027 exemption window. Schools should check applicable session specific directions before forwarding a case.
Is 75 percent attendance compulsory for CBSE Class 12?
The board's published position is that the minimum is mandatory for both Classes 10 and 12. The circular links eligibility to Rules 13 and 14 of the Examination Bye-Laws. It also directs schools to tell students and parents about the requirement and the possible consequences of falling short. A school's informal reassurance should not replace a clear explanation of the recorded position and the official process.
Parents can ask for the number of teaching days counted and the number attended, rather than relying only on a rounded percentage. For illustration, 150 attended days out of 200 counted teaching days equals 75 percent. That arithmetic is an example, not an official school calendar or a way to decide which absences qualify for special consideration.
The 2025 circular requires attendance registers to be updated daily and available for inspection. It says leave must be supported by a written request, with valid medical documentation for medical emergencies. A later explanation is harder to assess if there was no contemporaneous leave record. Keep copies of the application, documents and any acknowledgement from the school.
What documents are needed for attendance shortage?
For prolonged illness, the standing procedure lists a parent's request, certificates from a government doctor covering the absence, medical reports and the school's recommendation in the prescribed form. For the death of a parent or a similarly serious incident, it specifies the parent's request, the relevant death certificate and the school recommendation. Other serious reasons need a certificate from the concerned authority supporting the explanation.
Authorised national sports participation organised by CBSE or SGFI requires the parent's request, a certificate from the concerned authority and the school recommendation. For the recognised national or international sports category described in the procedure, a Sports Authority of India recommendation is among the required documents. Schools must follow the applicable sports procedure and schedule, rather than treating every competition certificate as equivalent.
The practical point is to match the evidence to the actual reason for absence. A medical certificate, a death certificate and a sports authorisation establish different circumstances. The school must compile a proper case for the Regional Office. The published procedure says cases without mandatory documents are rejected.
When does the school send a CBSE condonation case?
The standing timetable calculates attendance as of 1 January and requires the Regional Office to receive the school's shortage cases by 7 January. It then provides for deficiencies to be communicated by 21 January, compliance by schools by 28 January and approvals by 7 February of the examination year. These are the published procedural milestones, not a fresh set of dates announced for a particular forthcoming examination.
The school compiles separate cases for Classes 10 and 12 with supporting documents. The 2025 circular also says attendance records cannot be changed after shortage cases have been submitted. Parents should therefore ask the school to reconcile genuine recording errors and missing leave records before a case is forwarded, without assuming that a later attendance claim can replace the submitted record.
For families managing other board paperwork, our guides explain CBSE's List of Candidates process, marksheet access through DigiLocker and duplicate marksheet applications. Attendance eligibility remains a separate matter that needs to be handled with the school before the board examination.
