NDA Age Limit Calculator

How the NDA age rule works

UPSC holds the National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination twice a year. NDA (I) is usually in April and feeds a course that starts the following January. NDA (II) is usually in September and feeds a course that starts the following July. Each notice states the age rule as a birth-date window: “Only unmarried male/female candidates born not earlier than … and not later than … are eligible.”

Those windows always line up with the course start date. You must be at least 16 years 6 months and no more than 19 years 6 months old on the day training begins. For the April 2026 exam that day was 1 January 2027, giving the window 1 July 2007 to 1 July 2010. For the September 2026 exam it was 1 July 2027, giving 1 January 2008 to 1 January 2011.

This NDA age calculator uses the windows exactly as printed in the 2026 notices. For later sessions it projects the window with the same rule and labels it as projected until UPSC publishes the notice.

How to use the NDA age calculator

1. Enter your date of birth exactly as printed on your Class 10 certificate.
2. Choose NDA (I) or NDA (II) and type the exam year.
3. Read the verdict, the eligible birth dates for that session, and your exact age on the course start date.

The table underneath lists the session before yours and the next several, so you can see at a glance which exams fall inside your window and when it closes.

How to calculate your NDA age by hand

Take a candidate born on 14 February 2010 who wants to sit NDA (II) 2027.

1. Find the course start. NDA (II) 2027 feeds the course beginning 1 July 2028.
2. Build the window. Subtract 19 years 6 months and 16 years 6 months: 1 January 2009 to 1 January 2012.
3. Compare. 14 February 2010 falls between those dates, so the candidate is eligible.
4. Check the age. From 14 February 2010 to 14 June 2028 is 18 years 4 months; 14 June to 1 July adds 17 days. Age at course start: 18 years, 4 months, 17 days, inside the 16½–19½ range.

The window ends are inclusive. Someone born on 1 January 2012 is exactly 16 years 6 months old on 1 July 2028 and still qualifies; someone born a day later does not.

NDA birth-date windows by session

How many NDA attempts will I get?

NDA has no attempt limit, so your number of chances is simply the number of sessions whose window contains your date of birth. Because each window spans three years and there are two sessions a year, most candidates get six. Birthdays on a window boundary gain one more:

The first sessions in a window often come before you have finished Class 12. The notice allows candidates who are appearing in Class 12 to apply, but they must later prove they passed by the date it sets.

Common mistakes

• Counting age on the exam date. The windows follow the course start date, not the day of the written test.
• Using a different date of birth. UPSC accepts only the one on your matriculation or equivalent certificate and won’t change it after you apply.
• Assuming the old window still applies. Each notice shifts the dates. Check the notice for your session; this page will be updated when new notices appear.
• Forgetting the other conditions. Age is only one requirement. Marital status, education, physical standards and the SSB interview all apply.

Aiming for the civil services later? The UPSC age calculator checks Civil Services age limits, category relaxations and attempts. For any other date, the age calculator gives an exact age in years, months and days.

Glossary

• NDA (I) / NDA (II): the two National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examinations UPSC conducts each year.
• INAC: the Indian Naval Academy Course (10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme), admitted through the same exam.
• SSB: the Services Selection Board interview that follows the written exam.
• Matriculation certificate: the Class 10 (secondary school) certificate whose date of birth UPSC accepts.