CBSE Class 10 Board Exam TWICE from 2026: Starting from the 2026 academic year, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) will be conducting two board exams for the Class 10 students. Draft norms for Class-10 board papers to be conducted twice a year from 2026 have been approved by the board. The draft norms will now be put in the public domain for stakeholder feedback till March 9, 2025 and the policy will be finalised. This draft maintains the current examination scheme and enables the student to appear in the second board examinations in as many subjects as they want. The goal is that students have another chance to elevate their performance.

Highlights of the CBSE 10th Board Exam 2026 Draft Proposal

Here are some crucial highlights that students must go through once to understand the CBSE Class 10 Board Exam 2026 latest draft proposal.

• The Class 10 and Class 12 board exams for the 2026 academic year will be held from the first Tuesday after February 15, 2026, said the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). In particular, the Class 10 exams are scheduled to begin from February 17, 2026, whereas the Class 12 exams will span multiple phases.

• In 2026, an approximately 26.60 lakh students are likely to appear for the Class 10 exams and about 20 lakh for the Class 12 exams.

• The Class 10 and Class 12 exams will be based on the full current syllabus as per the prescribed textbooks.

• Starting from 2026, Class 10 exams will have two board exams to be held by CBSE. The main exam will be the 1st exam and if the students are at all interested in taking the exam again then will be the 2nd exam, known as an improvement exam because the students can retake the exam to try and improve their score. For the final mark sheet, the best of the two exams will be taken into consideration.

• Under the proposed draft policy students with special needs and sports students are also catered for within the existing exam structure.

• For both the exams, the examination centers will be fixed and the examination fee will be collected at the time of filling the LOCs of the first exam, which will be non refundable.

• After submission, no changes in subjects are allowed, except in the second examination. The LOC will be completed before the end of September in the previous year.

• Students will be assessed both practically and internally only once, and their performance in the first exam can be used for admission to Class 11 if they do not wish to take the second exam.

• Students will be issued passing documents only after the second exam results. No passing documents will be issued after 1st exam results.

• A merit certificate will be issued after the second examination.

• Those who fail in one to five subjects in the first exam will be assigned to the 'Improvement Category' and will be able to take the second exam.

CBSE 10th Board Exam 2026 Draft Proposal PDF Download

Students can download from below the pdf file to the CBSE 10th Board Exam 2026 Draft Proposal and read the complete highlights.

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