UPSC: Citizens of these countries, including Pakistan and Sri Lanka, can also become IAS officers in India, but they will have to fulfill this condition..

UPSC CSE Notification: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the notification for the Civil Services Examination 2026. The application process for approximately 933 vacancies this year began on February 4, 2026. Citizens from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and some other countries can also apply for the IAS or other civil services in India, but they must fulfill the eligibility criteria set by the UPSC.

Interested and eligible candidates can fill out the application form on the official UPSC website, upsconline.nic.in, until 6 PM on February 24, 2026.

Who can apply?
Candidates with a Bachelor's degree in any subject from a recognized university are eligible to apply for the UPSC examination. Eligible candidates must be at least 21 years old and not more than 32 years old as of August 1, 2026. This means the candidate must have been born after August 2, 1994, and before August 1, 2005. Some candidates will also be given age relaxation in the UPSC examination 2026.

Citizens of these countries can also become IAS officers in India.
Besides Indian citizens, citizens of some other countries can also apply for the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2026. This includes Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and East African countries such as Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia, and Vietnam. In total, eligible candidates from 14 countries can appear for the UPSC examination and get a chance to become officers in the Government of India.

However, for key services like IAS, IFS, and IPS, only Indian citizens are eligible. Foreign nationals applying for other services must also adhere to the conditions set by the UPSC.

Eligibility Certificate Requirement
These special category candidates must have an eligibility certificate issued in their favor by the Government of India. Candidates can appear for the examination without the certificate, but the appointment will only be made after the Government of India issues the necessary certificate. This means that one may be eligible to sit for the exam, but government approval is mandatory to become a government officer.

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