CBSE extends SARAS 7.0 affiliation application deadline to 10 October

The Central Board of Secondary Education has given schools until 10 October 2026 to file online affiliation applications for the 2027-28 session. Circular No. 11/2026, signed by the Director (Affiliation) and dated 30 September, extends the last date on the SARAS 7.0 portal for "all categories" of application, and the notification is addressed to heads and managers of schools.

The deadline had already moved once. Circular No. 10/2026, dated 24 July, pushed it to 30 September. The new notice refers back to that circular and to Circular No. 07/2026 of 26 February, which opened the 2027-28 window in the first place. It does not say why a second extension was needed, and it adds no new fee, document or inspection condition.

What the original schedule looked like

Under Circular No. 07/2026, applications for the main categories were to run from 26 February to 31 July 2026. That list covers approval for the Middle Class Syllabus, fresh affiliation up to Secondary or Senior Secondary level, switch-over from other boards, up-gradation, branch schools, extension of affiliation, restoration, two shifts, section increase, an additional science subject or NCC, and closure of a school.

A second group of requests, such as land correction, change of school or society name, change of managing entity, transfer to another society, trust or company, and site shifting, stays open on the portal through the year. So do all categories for foreign and international schools and for government and government-aided schools. The 10 October date therefore matters most to private Indian schools filing in the first group.

Inspections and compliance timelines

The July circular carried a few details that schools still working to the new date will want to keep in mind. The Board said timelines that had lapsed while the SARAS portal was not working were also extended. Schools got 30 days from 24 July to submit "compliance after grant" and 15 days for "compliance after deficiency at Part A level". Dates for inspection committee consent, fixing inspection dates, the inspection itself and the committee report were to shift correspondingly.

The February notification set out how each category will be examined. Fresh affiliation, Middle Class Syllabus approval, up-gradation to Senior Secondary, branch schools, site shifting, two shifts and restoration are to get physical inspection of every application. Section increase is to be checked virtually in at least 10 percent of cases. Extension of affiliation is to be inspected virtually in at least 3 percent of applications, selected on the basis of school report card scores, while the rest are handled in automated mode.

Conditions that have not changed

The same notification lays down rules that apply however late a school files. Existing schools must complete the SQAAF self-assessment before applying. A school whose affiliation is valid only up to 31 March 2027, or whose extension has long been pending, must apply for extension first. It will be allowed to apply under another category only after that. Schools affiliated under the Middle Class Syllabus category must seek up-gradation to Secondary or Senior Secondary level within five years of affiliation.

Data accuracy is a stated condition as well. Schools must keep their OASIS entries correct and must have the prescribed documents, along with teachers' details and qualifications, on their own websites under mandatory public disclosure. The February notification warns that wrong information in OASIS is not acceptable.

For parents, the practical point is narrow. A school that wants to add classes, open a branch or switch boards for 2027-28 now has until 10 October to submit its application. Whether affiliation is granted still depends on the Board's inspection and the school meeting its bye-laws. Schools should read the full text of the circulars posted on the SARAS 7.0 portal before filing.