The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) opened online forms for private candidates for its 2027 Class X and Class XII board examinations on Thursday, 8 October 2026. The normal window closes on Friday, 23 October. After that, a late fee of Rs 2,000 applies till Friday, 30 October, and no form is accepted after that date on any ground.
The rules are in two notices dated 7 October 2026, one for Class X private candidates and one for Class XII private candidates, issued by Controller of Examinations Dr Sanyam Bhardwaj. The exams for these candidates will be held in February, March and April 2027, along with the board's main examinations.
This guide covers who can apply, what it costs, and the points in the notices that trip up families most often.
Who can apply as a private candidate
Both notices list four groups: students of 2025-26 declared Essential Repeat in the 2026 result; students placed in Compartment in the 2026 main and supplementary exams, who now get a second chance; candidates declared Fail or Essential Repeat in any year from 2021 to 2026; and students who passed in 2026 and want to improve their performance in one or more subjects.
A candidate who had a roll number for 2026 but missed the exam for medical reasons can also appear in all subjects. Shortage of attendance does not count as a medical reason.
There is a choice for Compartment students too. In Class XII, a student with compartment in one subject may opt to appear in all subjects taken in 2026. In Class X, the same option applies to a student with compartment in two subjects. Either way, the student must pick the Essential Repeat category while applying.
Improvement is open only to those declared Pass in 2026, and only in subjects they took that year. A Compartment student who wants to take just the failed paper must pick the Compartment category, and can apply only in that subject.
Fees and dates
Normal fee window: 8 to 23 October 2026. Late fee window: 24 to 30 October 2026, with Rs 2,000 per candidate on top of the normal fee.
The fee tables in both notices list Rs 320 per subject for candidates in India, Rs 1,100 per subject for Nepal and Rs 2,200 per subject for other countries. Class XII candidates with practical subjects also pay a practical fee of Rs 160 per practical subject in India, Rs 175 in Nepal and Rs 375 elsewhere.
Payment is online only: net banking, UPI, debit card or credit card in India, and net banking or cards abroad, including Nepal. CBSE will not accept demand drafts, postal orders, cheques or cash. The form and the fee share the same last date, and a form without a fee is rejected without notice.
CBSE asks candidates to pay from their own account or a parent's or sibling's, so that any refund reaches the family and nobody else.
Five things to check before you submit
The exam city. CBSE allots the centre according to the city chosen in the form, and once allotted, the city will not be changed. Candidates sign an undertaking on this, so pick the city you will actually be living in next February.
Roll number details. For students who sat the 2026 exams, past details fill in automatically. Those from 2025 or earlier must type in their roll number and year of passing, and wrong information leads to rejection.
Photo and signature. Both go up as JPG files of no more than 40 KB each, following the steps in Annexure 3 of the notices.
Disability concessions. Students covered by the RPwD Act, 2016 must upload a medical or disability certificate to claim exemptions. Those who used facilities in earlier board exams will get them again after uploading the papers.
Who fills the form. CBSE says candidates should fill it themselves. A mistake made at a cyber cafe is not accepted as an excuse, and a false statement or document can lead to the fee being forfeited and the case being treated as unfair means.
After the form goes in
No hard copy is posted to CBSE. Candidates can download a copy of the submitted form, and they can correct details, including subjects and centre, up to the last date of submission.
Submitting a form and paying does not by itself confirm a seat in the exam. Eligibility is checked against the board's conditions. Admit cards will be available for download on the CBSE website. The Class XII notice adds that for centres outside Delhi, the regional office will send the original mark sheet and certificate by Speed Post to the address in the form.
The syllabus for these candidates is the 2027 curriculum on the CBSE academic website. Under the Class XII notice, improvement candidates get a fresh mark sheet showing only the subjects they retake, while second-chance compartment candidates who pass get a consolidated one.
Regular students go through their schools instead, under the List of Candidates process explained in our parents' guide to CBSE's 2027 board exam LOC. For a view from a principal on the new two-exam model, read Jhinuk Barman's interview, Two board exams: a second chance or double the stress.
Forms are filed through the private candidates link on the CBSE website. CBSE's helpline, 1800-11-8002, works from 9.30 am to 5.30 pm on working days.
