Tamil Nadu raises upper age limit for direct recruitment into government services by five years

Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay. File | Photo Credit: S. Siva Saravanan The Tamil Nadu government on Friday (October 30, 2026) enhanced the upper age limit for direct recruitment to various categories of government services by five years, following orders issued by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay.According to an official release, the relaxation has been introduced in response to demands from candidates appearing for competitive examinations. It will be in addition to the existing age concessions available to candidates belonging to the Backward Classes (BC), Backward Classes (Muslims) (BCM), Most Backward Classes and Denotified Communities (MBC/DNC), Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and destitute widows, the release said.For Group I posts, the upper age limit for candidates in the general category has been raised from 32 to 37 years. For candidates belonging to the BC, BCM, MBC/DNC, SC, and ST categories and destitute widows, it has been increased from 37 to 42 years.For persons with disabilities in the general category, the upper age limit for Group I posts has been raised from 42 to 47 years. For persons with disabilities belonging to the BC, BCM, MBC/DNC, SC, and ST categories and destitute widows, it has been increased from 47 to 52 years.For Group II and IIA posts, the upper age limit has been raised from 30 to 35 years for candidates in the general category and from 40 to 45 years for persons with disabilities belonging to the general category. There is no upper age limit for candidates belonging to the BC, BCM, MBC/DNC, SC, and ST categories and destitute widows.For Group IV posts, the upper age limit for candidates with higher qualification in the general category has been raised from 30 to 35 years and for persons with disabilities belonging to the general category, it has been raised from 40 to 45 years. There is no upper age limit for candidates with higher qualification belonging to the BC, BCM, MBC/DNC, SC, and ST categories and destitute widows appearing for Group IV posts.For candidates in the BC, BCM, MBC, and DNC categories without higher qualification, the age limit has been increased from 32 to 37 years, while for SC and ST candidates and destitute widows under this category, it has been raised from 35 to 40 years for Group IV posts.For persons with disabilities without higher qualification belonging to the BC, BCM, MBC, and DNC categories, the age limit has been raised from 42 to 47 years, while for SC and ST candidates with disabilities and destitute widows with disabilities, it has been increased from 45 to 50 years.The relaxation has come into effect on Friday (October 30) and would remain in force for five years. The government said the decision would benefit thousands of candidates in Tamil Nadu who were approaching the existing upper age limit for competitive examinations. Published - October 30, 2026 05:16 pm IST