UPSC will mention the CDS 1 eligibility criteria 2025 in the official notification. The CDS 1 2025 notification will be available for download at upsc.gov.in by December 11, 2024. The UPSC CDS 1 2025 eligibility criteria are based on age, educational qualification, nationality and a few other important aspects. Aspirants wanting to appear for the CDS exam should be between the age group of 20 to 25 years.
CDS Eligibility Criteria 2025 – Age Limit, Qualification, Nationality Candidates must read the CDS 1 eligibility criteria 2025 carefully before proceeding to fill the CDS application form online. To know more about the eligibility criteria of CDS 2025, read the entire article.
CDS 1 Eligibility Criteria - Overview
Candidates can check the some basic details about the UPSC CDS exam from the below table.
Exam name | Combined Defence Services Examination |
Conducting Body | Union Public Service Commission |
Frequency of exam | Twice a year |
Nationality | Indian |
CDS age limit | Between 19 to 25 years |
Educational Qualification | Graduation in any discipline from a recognised university |
Mode of exam | Online |
CDS 1 Eligibility Criteria 2025- As Per UPSC Guidelines
Candidates applying for the Combined Defence Services examination should go through the UPSC CDS exam eligibility guidelines before proceeding to fill the CDS 1 2025 application form. Below mentioned are some of the CDS 1 eligibility 2025.
CDS 1 2025- Nationality
Candidates applying for the CDS examination must fall in one of the below-mentioned nationality categories to be eligible for CDS 1. Check the table below.
CDS nationality eligibility criteria
Particulars |
Citizen of India |
Subject of Bhutan |
Subject of Nepal |
Tibetan refugee who came to India before January 1962, with the intention to permanently settle in India |
Person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka & East African Countries with the intention to permanently settle in India. |
Note - For more detailed information on the CDS 2025 eligibility check the official notification.
CDS 1 Age Limit 2025
The CDS age limit eligibility criteria of all aspirants for various courses are mentioned in the table below. There is no CDS age limit relaxation for reserved category candidates in the CDS examination 2025.
CDS age limit criteria for candidates
CDS Courses | CDS Age Limit | Marital Status |
Indian Military Academy | 19 to 24 years | Unmarried |
Indian Naval Academy | 19 to 24 years | Unmarried |
Air Force Academy | 20 to 24 years | Unmarried |
Officers' Training Academy (Men) | 19 to 25 years | Unmarried & Married |
Officers Training Academy (Women, Non-Technical) | 19 to 25 years | Unmarried, Widow & Divorcee |
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CDS Educational Qualification 2025
CDS recruitment is done for various courses in the three Indian Defence Services - Army, Air Force and Navy, which have different minimum educational qualification requirements. Educational requirements for all the different CDS courses are mentioned in the table.
CDS educational qualification
Courses | CDS Educational Qualification |
Indian Military Academy | Bachelor's Degree (BA, B.Com, B.Sc, BBA, BCA, B.Tech etc.) from a recognised University or equivalent institute |
Indian Naval Academy | Bachelor's Degree in Engineering from a recognised University/ College |
Air Force Academy | Bachelor's Degree from a recognised University (with Physics and Mathematics at 10+2 level) or Bachelor degree in engineering |
OTA (Men) | Bachelor's Degree from a recognised University or equivalent institute |
OTA (Women - Non-Technical) | Bachelor's Degree from a recognised University or equivalent institute |
CDS 2025 - Physical Fitness
Candidates applying for CDS should be physically fit in all aspects as prescribed by the three defence departments i.e. Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. Below given are a few points for the physical standards required for the CDS exam.
Applicants must be physically fit as per the prescribed physical standard of UPSC and the relevant defence department.
Applicants must be in good physical and sound mental health and free from any disease/ disability that can interfere in the performance of their duties.
There should be no evidence of bodily defects or overweight.
The minimum height requirement for male applicants is 157.5 cm. for Army, 157 cm for Navy and 162.5 cm for Air Force.
The minimum height of female candidates should be 152 cm for OTA (non-technical).
For candidates belonging to Gorkhas and hills of the North-Eastern region of India, Garhwali and Kumaon, 5 cm height relaxation is provided in the minimum acceptable height. In the case of applicants from Lakshadweep, 2 cm relaxation is provided.
Applicants should have a sufficient number of natural teeth. A minimum of 14 dental points will be acceptable for CDS recruitment. If all 32 teeth are present, the total dental points are 22.
Check the vision standard for all the defence services in the tables below:
CDS visual standard for Air Force
Male | Female |
Vision (corrected) better eye 6/6 and worse eye 6/12 | Vision (corrected) better eye 6/6, worse eye 6/12 |
Myopia of not more than minus 3.5 D | Myopia of not more than minus 5.5 D |
Manifest hypermetropia of not more than plus 3.5 D including Astigmatism | Manifest hypermetropia of not more than plus 3.5 D including Astigmatism. |
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CDS visual standard for Navy
Uncorrected without glass - 6/12 |
Corrected with glass - 6/6 |
Limits of Myopia - 1.5 |
Limits of Hypermetropia +1.5 |
Note: For more detailed information on the CDS eligibility criteria 2025, check the CDS 2025 official notification.
Check the eligibility criteria for other exams conducted by UPSC
CDS Application Form 2025
The Union Public Service Commission will release the CDS 1 application form 2025 on the official website. Aspirants who meet the CDS 2025 eligibility criteria are eligible to fill the CDS application form. To apply for the CDS 1 2025 examination, candidates first need to complete the One Time Registration (OTR) themselves and then fill out the CDS exam form. To successfully complete the CDS application process, candidates must pay a fee of Rs 200 if belonging to the general category and NIL if they are from the reserved category and female.
