Documents Required For UPSC Exam (Prelims & Mains) 2023

The UPSC conducts the Civil Services exam every year to recruit officers into the Indian civil service. The Civil Services exam offers youngsters in the country to be civil servants or diplomats in various services like the IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS and so on.

This exam is considered a tough exam as the success rate is rather abysmal. Nevertheless, lakhs of candidates apply to take the exam lured by the prospects of a career in the civil services which offers them the chance to serve our country by being part of the system. In this article, we have complied a list of documents required for UPSC exam application and the various stages of this exam.

Note: The UPSC CSE is held in three stages. Only an online application is permitted by the UPSC. Candidates are required to apply online on the official UPSC website as per the CSE notifications that it releases.

Let’s know What are the documents required for UPSC exam

Documents Required for UPSC Prelims Exam

Firstly, When you apply online for the IAS Prelims exam, you do not have to send any document to the UPSC. The only documents you need to upload online are:

A scanned photograph of yourself
A scanned signature of yourself
Government-issued Photo-id card
- Aadhaar Card/Voter Card/PAN Card/Passport/Driving Licence/Any other Photo ID Card issued by the State/Central Government.

Regarding the Photo-id card, this is as per the latest UPSC notification, “The details of this Photo ID Card will have to be provided by the candidate while filling up the online application form. The candidates will have to upload a scanned copy of the Photo ID whose details have been provided in the online application by him/her. This Photo ID Card will be used for all future referencing and the candidate is advised to carry this Photo ID Card while appearing for Examination/Personality Test.”

Documents Required for UPSC Mains Exam

Secondly, If you clear the UPSC prelims exam, you will be eligible to take the mains exam that will follow. Your name will figure in the list given out by the UPSC when they release the prelims result. After this, the commission will release the mains notification when you would have to apply online once again, this time for the mains exam. This form is called the Detailed Application Form or DAF in short. This time, you will have to upload scanned copies of certain documents on the UPSC official website, which are given below:

Proof of age: Only matriculation or secondary school leaving certificate.
Certificate of educational qualification: Your degree certificate awarded by the university or an equivalent qualification as recognized by the UPSC.
EWS Certificate: Proof is required to avail the EWS reservation.
Certificate supporting OBC/SC/ST status (if applicable): Certificate issued by the District Officer/Sub-divisional Officer/any other officer as authorized by the government to issue such certificates of the district in which your parents reside. If parents are deceased, then the district in which the applicant normally lives will apply.
Disability certificate (if applicable): Certificate issued by a Medical Board constituted by the Central or State government.
Documents supporting non-creamy layer OBC status (if applicable): Proof in support of service/landholding/status/income from different sources/property held by your parents in support of non-creamy layer OBC claim.
Certificate for proof of hailing from the north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya or Sikkim (if applicable): Issued by the same authority that issues caste certificate (OBC/SC/ST certificate).
Undertaking for government servants (if applicable): Undertaking stating that you have intimated in writing to your Head of the Office/Department about you taking the UPSC CSE.
J&K Domicile (if applicable): Issued by the District Magistrate under whose jurisdiction you had resided in J&K between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 1989. Please check latest data for exact year information.
Disabled while in defence service (if applicable): Issued by the Director-General Resettlement, Ministry of Defence stating that you were disabled while in service and were discharged from duty on account of it.
Certificate supporting age relaxation claim (if applicable): This includes the OBC/ST/SC status certificate and/or disability certificate and/or J&K domicile certificate and/or defence personnel certificate.

Documents Required for UPSC Personality Test

And in last, While attending the interview, candidates should carry with them the following certificates in

ORIGINAL:

Matriculation certificate: for proof of name and DOB. Also, carry a self-attested photocopy of the same.
Degree certificate: for proof of educational qualification. (In case, the degree certificate has not been issued by the university, then the candidate should carry the provisional certificate or the mark sheet). Also, carry a self-attested photocopy of the same.
Print-out of the e-Summon Letter.
Government-issued Photo-id card
2 recent passport size photographs, out of which one should be self-attested.
Certificates in support of age relaxation if applicable.

Additional documents to be carried for SC/ST candidates:

Caste certificate: original and photocopy.
PG Degree or higher education certificates and mark-sheets (Original and photocopy).
TA Form – two copies plus proof of journey (Traveling Allowance for non-Delhi candidates).
Affidavit in case of minor discrepancies in the name.

Additional documents to be carried by PH category candidates:

Physically Handicapped Certificate: original and photocopy. For PH-I category, the DWE Certificate also should be brought. DWE is the Dominant Writing Extremity certificate (for candidates who claimed the extra 20 minutes per hour in the mains written exam).
Age relaxation certificates.
PG Degree or higher education certificates and mark-sheets (Original and photocopy).
TA Form – two copies plus proof of journey (Traveling Allowance for non-Delhi candidates).
Affidavit in case of minor discrepancies in the name.

Documents required for medical examination: