The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has released the official notification for the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) 2026 September session. Eligible candidates can now submit their online applications through the CTET official website - ctet.nic.in. The registration process commenced on May 11 and will remain open till June 10, 2026.
Exam Schedule
According to the official schedule, the CTET 2026 examination will be conducted on September 6 in two shifts. Paper 2, meant for candidates aspiring to teach Classes 6 to 8, will be held in the morning shift from 9.30 AM to noon. Paper 1, intended for candidates seeking teaching positions for Classes 1 to 5, will take place in the afternoon shift from 2.30 PM to 5 PM. CBSE has also kept September 5 as a reserve examination date.
The board has clarified that examination cities will be allotted randomly to applicants. Requests for changes in the allotted examination city will not be entertained under any circumstances. The official information bulletin further stated that if the examination is conducted on September 5 in any city, candidates will be allotted either September 5 or September 6 randomly, and no request for a change in examination date will be accepted.
One of the key updates introduced this year is the expansion of language options for the CTET examination. From the September 2026 session onwards, the exam will be conducted in 27 languages. Maithili has been newly included among the available language choices. The examination will now be offered in languages including English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Marathi, Manipuri, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Dogri, Garo, Khasi, Maithili, Mizo, Santhali, Sindhi, and Tibetan.
As per the official schedule, the application correction facility will remain available from June 15 to June 18, 2026. Candidates are advised to carefully verify all information before final submission of the application form.
Eligibility Criteria
To qualify for the CTET 2026 examination, candidates must secure at least 60 per cent marks. CBSE has also reiterated that the validity of the CTET qualifying certificate for appointment purposes will continue to remain valid for a lifetime for all categories.
Application Process
To complete the application process, candidates need to visit the official CTET portal, complete the registration process, fill in personal and educational details, upload scanned copies of required documents, including photograph and signature, and pay the application fee online before submitting the form. Applicants are advised to keep printed copies of the confirmation page for future reference.
The CTET examination serves as a mandatory eligibility test for candidates aspiring to become teachers in central government schools and several state-run institutions across the country.
Find the direct registration link here.