What Eligibility NRIs Should Have for IAS Exam in India?

The latest notification of UPSC explains the IAS exam eligibility, which clears all doubts regarding the number of attempts, age, educational qualification, etc. of NRIs and natives.

Now that we know that all Indian natives are eligible for this challenging examination for the position in the government sector, remember that all non-residents who still have Indian passports are eligible.

Besides, those whose ancestral link is with India can also attain the nationality of India by surrendering their foreign citizenship. Then, they have to apply for a passport to be eligible for appearing in these prestigious exams in India. These can be non-residents or NRIs. Simply put, NRIs should have Indian nationality for the IAS exam in India.

Herein this post, you will discover all eligibility criteria that aspirants must meet. Here is an extract of this notification in this post.

Table of Contents

Minimum Educational Qualifications

These points highlight the minimum educational qualification the aspirant should have to appear for UPSC civil services exam.

For an IAS Exam, any graduation degree is acceptable if it’s from these:

Any of the Universities that are incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India
Educational institutions that are set up by an Act of Parliament
Any deemed University recognised under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956
Any equivalent qualification

Note: Those who are in the final year of their graduation may also apply.

Minimum Age Requirement

Lower Age Limit

Here are the age criteria for the UPSC IAS exam.

The aspirant should be 21 years of age. This validity should be on to or before the date of examination. Let’s say, the date of the examination is 21st August 2022. The candidate should be 21 by that date.

Upper Age Limit

The upper age of the candidate is calculated on the date of examination. It means that the aspirant should be up to the following ages till the date of examination of prelims in that year. This age limit varies and is fixed for different categories of candidates.

Categories	Upper-Age Limit
General category	32 years
OBC	35 years
SC/ST	37 Years
Defense Services Disabled Personnel (in operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area and released as a consequence thereof)	37 years
Blind, deaf-mute and Orthopaedically handicapped persons (general category)	42 years
OBC/ SC/ ST Category Ex-Servicemen	3+5=8 Years relaxation

Number of Attempts to Appear in the UPSC Civil Services Exam

If you’re confused over how many attempts are there to give this examination, this information can prove really helpful.

Remember that the age limit is defined. But, it does not give out the message that you may attempt as many times as you want till that age. You have to follow the rules (as given below) regarding these attempts.

Categories	Number of Attempts
General category	6 attempts till 32 years of age
OBC	9 attempts till 35 years of age
SC/ST	Unlimited attempts till turn 37 years of age
Physically Handicapped /disabled candidates (general category)	9 attempts till the age prescribed by UPSC, i.e. 42 years

How does the UPSC calculate attempts for the civil service examination?

Typically, the candidate who applies and appears in the civil services preliminary examination attempts by being counted. On the flip side, if the application form is filled, but he didn’t appear in the Preliminary Examination will not be counted as an attempt.

There is a case of age relaxation in 2014. It was when this examination governing body relaxed the age and number of attempts for the candidates.

Since then, there is no such update recorded. However, having no such update for years cannot be a certain condition. It may happen at any time. So, you need to keep your eyes on the latest notification about the IAS examination eligibility criteria. UPSC website notifies it, which you may use or integrate on your website.

When can you apply for the UPSC Civil Services Exam in 2023?

According to the notification of the UPSC Civil Services Examination for 2023, the updated date will be out on February 01, 2023. The interested candidates would have a golden opportunity to try their luck and utilise what they have prepared for the UPSC CSE 2023. It can happen between February 01, 2023, and February 21, 2023.

Updated Date for All UPSC Examination in 2023

Examination Type	Date of Examination
UPSC CSE 2023 Prelims	May 28 2023 (Sunday)
UPSC CSE 2023 Mains	September 15 2023 (5 days)
UPSC CSE 2023 Interview	January-March 2024 (expected)
UPSC CSE 2023 Final Result	April 2024 (expected)

Hopefully, all NRIs would have read the fact about their eligibility for the IAS exam in India.

Summary

NRIs are eligible to appear in the IAS exam in India, given that they still are citizens of India. Even if they are not but their ancestors had to shift during the partition of India, they can show up their proof, surrender their foreign citizenship, and apply for a passport of India.