IES Highlights

Notification

The IES 2026 Official notification was released 18 September 2025.IES 2026 Application Fee is INR 200/- which was to be paid at the time of the application process. The Mains exam is scheduled for 21 June 2026.

Dates

Eligibility Criteria 2026

UPSC has segregated various norms that a candidate needs to fulfill before applying for IES 2026. UPSC IES eligibility criteria are defined by the following standards:

Nationality

An IES 2026 Applicant must be either:

• a citizen of India, or
• a subject of Nepal, or
• a subject of Bhutan, or
• a Tibetan refugee who came to India before January 1, 1962, with the intention of permanently settling in India, or
• a person of Indian origin who migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, or East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, The United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, and Ethiopia or from Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India.
• Provided that the candidates belonging to categories (2), (3), (4), and (5) produce a certificate of eligibility issued by the Government of India at the time of final allotment.

IES Age Limit

• IES/ ESE aspirants must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained the age of 30 years on January 1, 2026.
• In other words, they must have been born not earlier than January 2, 1991, and not later than January 1, 2000.
• Government servants and reserved category candidates will be given relaxation in the upper age limit.

Age Relaxation

IES Educational Qualification Requirements

Candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree in the field of engineering or equivalent from a recognized University.

Physical Standards

Candidates must be physically fit as per the standards defined by exam authority for admission to Engineering Services Examination 2026

2026 Online Application

IES Application Form will be made available from 18 September 2025. Candidates filled the application form online only at upsc.gov.in. Candidates have to follow the given steps to register themselves for ESE 2026 exam:

Step 1: IES Registration 2026

• Visit the official website of UPSC – upsc.gov.in
• Enter your name, date of birth, email ID, mobile number, and other personal details.

Step 2: Pay IES Application Fee

• IES Registration Fee can be remitted via online as well as offline mode.
• Candidates can pay the fees in cash at any SBI Bank branch or via Debit/Credit Card or SBI Net Banking.
• The application fee is INR 200, however, women, SC, ST, and PWD candidates are exempted from fee payment.
• The last day to generate an e-challan will be April 27, 2026.

Step 3: Fill IES Application Form

• Indicate your preferred exam centers and your engineering core branch.
• Enter your category, communication details, work experience details, etc.

Step 4: Upload Photo, Sign & ID Proof

Candidates have to upload their scanned images of passport size photograph, signature, and photo ID proof in prescribed formats.

Step 5: Declaration & Submission

• Candidates are advised to fill the form very carefully and proofread it before submitting it.
• The last step is to read the declaration and click on “I agree”.
• Click on Final Submit and download the filled-in form for future reference.

Admit Card

• IES Admit cards for both the written papers and interview round are issued separately.
• IES Prelims Admit Card 2026 release date is yet to be notified.
• IES admit card 2026 can be obtained from the official website of UPSC by entering your registration number and password.

Steps to Download IES Admit Card

• Go to the official website of UPSC
• Click on the link “Download IES Admit Card”
• Choose the method of downloading i.e. through Registration ID or Roll Number or Name.
• Enter the Registration ID or Roll Number followed by the Date of Birth
• Enter the Captcha and click on ‘submit’,
• Print the displayed IES Admit Card

Exam Centers

Candidates have to indicate their preferred exam center while registering for IES 2026. IES Exam centers are different for Preliminary exam and Main exam:

IES Prelims Exam Centers

IES Main Exam Centers

Exam Pattern

• IES Exam Pattern 2026 is defined by the Union Public Service Commission.
• IES 2026 comprises three stages- Prelims, Main Exam, and Personal Interview.
• IES Preliminary exam is an objective paper whereas IES Main exam is a descriptive paper.
• Candidates will have to clear prelims to appear for the Main examination.
• Those who qualify for the main exam will proceed to the personality test also known as the Interview round.
• Both the sections of the written test cover the entire syllabus of relevant engineering subjects (Civil/ Mechanical/ Electrical/ Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering).

IES Exam Pattern 2026 (Prelims)

Note: Candidates who will qualify for IES Cutoff set by UPSC will proceed to IES 2026 Main exam.

IES Main Exam Pattern 2026

• The medium of the Mains exam paper will be English only.
• 5% marks will be deducted from the total marks scored by a candidate if the handwriting is not easily legible.

IES Interview Round

• Candidates shortlisted after the IES Main exam will be called for the personal interview session.
• It is officially known as the ‘Personality Test’ round.
• Candidates are required to fill the Detailed Application Form (DAF) online.
• In this stage, selected candidates will be judged on his/ her leadership skills, personality, and intellect.
• A maximum of 200 marks is allotted to the personality test (interview test).

Provision for PwD candidates

• UPSC has made provision of providing a compensatory time of 20 minutes per hour for candidates belonging to the PwD category.
• Also, candidates with (minimum of 40% impairment) will be allowed to write Engineering Services Examination (ESE) with the help of a scribe.

Selection Procedure

The two-staged IES Selection Procedure adopted by UPSC for IES 2026 exam is:

• Written Examination
• Personal Interview

The written exam comprises two exams- Preliminary and Main exam.

• Candidates are required to qualify for the IES cutoff set by the commission.
• Clearing the IES 2026 Prelims is essential to proceed to the IES 2026 Main Exam.
• The main exam is the qualifying criteria for the Personal Interview session.
• Shortlisted candidates will be called for the final stage i.e. Personality Test.
• The final results and merit list form the basis of an appointment letter in the name of the candidate.

Results

IES Result for Prelims exam 2026 will be declared in the 26 February 2026. IES Result will be published only on the official website of UPSC.

• Only those candidates who qualify for the prelims shall be able to proceed to the IES 2026 Main exam.
• Similarly, a list will be prepared for candidates who will be called for Personal Interviews. Furthermore, a final list of the selected candidates will be disclosed.
• The Result for each tier will be declared separately.

Steps to obtain IES Results are listed below:

• Go to the official website of UPSC and search for the result link.
• A PDF file will be uploaded declaring the results of candidates.
• Download and open it.
• Enter your roll number to search for your result.

Cutoff

IES 2026 Cutoff for Preliminary exam will be disclosed at the time of result declaration.

Candidates can check the cut-off of IES online by visiting the official website of UPSC.

• To qualify for the next stage i.e. IES Main, it is important to score equal or more marks than the set qualifying marks.
• The cut-off is different for all the exams. The following factors determine the cutoff:
• The total number of students who appeared for IES
• Number of vacancies
• The difficulty level of the engineering service examination
• Candidates’ performances

FAQ's