The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has announced that it will discontinue issuing physical copies of migration certificates for Class 10 and 12 students beginning with the 2025 board examination cycle.
Instead, digitally signed migration certificates will be made available through the DigiLocker platform, which will serve as the official and legally valid document for all purposes, including higher education admissions. The digital version will be automatically uploaded by the board once the results are announced, eliminating the need for students to apply or pay any additional fee.
“Pursuant to UGC D.O. No.F1-46/2020(NAD/Digilocker) dated 3rd January, 2022 (https://nad.gov.in/doc/circular_order_notification/UGC%20Letter%20regarding%20Acceptance%20of%20Degree.pdf ) wherein all higher educational institutions are requested to accept degree, marksheets and other documents available in Digilocker account as valid documents, CBSE had decided that from 2025 examinations onwards, hard copy of Migration Certificate will not be issued to the students of Class XII and Class X,” the Board clarified through its official X (formerly Twitter) handle.
This move aligns with the University Grants Commission (UGC) directive issued on January 3, 2022, which instructed all universities and higher educational institutions (HEIs) to accept digital certificates uploaded on the National Academic Depository (NAD) and DigiLocker as legally valid records.
According to CBSE data, out of 17,04,367 students who appeared for the Class 12 exams in 2025, only 38,386 students—around 2.2%—requested a hard copy of the migration certificate, reflecting a growing shift towards digital documentation.
During this transition phase, students who still require a physical copy will have the option to apply through the Duplicate Academic Document System (DADS) portal at cbseit.in/cbse/web/dads/List.aspx. Such requests will be processed and dispatched by the board as per the student’s application.
With this step, CBSE aims to promote ease of access, paperless governance, and sustainability, while ensuring that students’ academic credentials remain secure and easily verifiable online.