CBSE issues 2027 Class 10, 12 board date sheet; exams start February 16

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has published the date sheet for the 2027 Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations. Students of both classes will sit their first papers on Tuesday, February 16, 2027. Every paper, across both classes, begins at 10:30 am.

The schedule was announced on November 6, roughly 101 days before the first paper. The board says this leaves students plenty of time to plan revision.

Class 10 examinations will run from February 16 to March 9, 2027. Class 12 papers will continue longer, from February 16 to April 9, 2027. Class 10 candidates will be tested in 83 subjects, and Class 12 candidates in 121.

The turnout will be large. By the board's figures, about 26.50 lakh students will appear for Class 10 and around 19.80 lakh for Class 12.

CBSE says the timetable was drawn up so that students face less pressure and lose as little study time as possible. It lists several considerations behind it.

First, the board checked more than 40,000 subject combinations that students have chosen, so that no student has two of their subjects on the same day. Second, it left a sensible gap between papers in subjects that are often taken together, giving students time to revise. Third, for Class 12, it kept in view the likely dates of major entrance examinations. Fourth, it worked out how many students would be at examination centres on a given day, and arranged the schedule so that teachers are not kept away from their schools for long periods during evaluation.

The board added that the final schedule was released only after schools had completed the Locality of Candidates (LOC) process.

To get the date sheet, students should go to the board's official website, cbse.gov.in, and open the Latest @ CBSE section. There they should find the notification titled CBSE Board Examination Date Sheet 2027, choose the timetable for Class 10 or Class 12, and download and save the PDF. Schools and students have been asked to check the full date sheet on the site.

Students are advised to make a subject-wise revision plan around the gaps between papers. Class 12 students should also allow for the likely dates of competitive entrance tests. They have been told not to depend on general examination schedules, and to check the date, timing and instructions for each paper in the official timetable.