Government jobs for 28, 29 and 30 year olds — what is still open in 2026

37 exams in our catalogue have an upper age limit of 28 or above, carrying 26,169 vacancies. That is more than most candidates in this age band expect, and considerably more once category relaxation is applied.

The reason people at 28 believe they have run out of options is that the widely-quoted limits are the General limits, and almost nobody quotes what they become after relaxation. An OBC-NCL candidate at 29 is inside SSC CGL's window, not outside it.

All 37 exams, with last dates

Sorted by closing date. Ages shown are the General limits; relaxations for other categories are applied in the free check.

Your age is not what you think it is

Every notification fixes a cutoff date and computes your age on that date — not on the day you apply, and not today. The cutoff is frequently a year or more before the exam itself.

The practical effect is that candidates rule themselves out while still eligible. If an exam reckons age on 1 August 2026 and you turn 31 in September 2026, you are 30 for that exam and you can sit it. Every result on this site shows the exact cutoff date it used, because this single detail is where most eligibility advice on the internet goes wrong.

Relaxation stacks — and that is where the room is

Relaxations from different dimensions add together. A social category relaxation and a disability relaxation are separate dimensions, so they sum rather than replace each other:

• OBC-NCL: +3 years
• SC / ST: +5 years
• Persons with disability: +10 years, on top of the above
• Ex-servicemen: service years deducted, subject to the notification's rules

So a 30-year post reaches 33 for OBC-NCL, 35 for SC/ST, and 43 for an OBC-NCL candidate with a disability. Most listing sites apply only the largest single relaxation and understate the limit by years.

What to prioritise at this age

Deadlines, not preferences. At 22 you can afford to target one exam and prepare for eighteen months. At 29 the calculation inverts: apply to everything you are eligible for this cycle, because several of those windows will not exist next year.

Look first at exams with limits of 33 and above — RRB NTPC, RRB Group D, RRB JE and SSC JE. Those give you two or three more cycles rather than one. Bank clerical posts with a 28 limit are closing now for General candidates and should be applied to immediately if you are still inside.

If you are already over the General limit for something you want, check whether you hold anything that relaxes it before you write it off. Candidates forget an ex-serviceman entitlement or an unused disability certificate surprisingly often.

28–30 की उम्र में सरकारी नौकरी

Frequently asked questions

Is 28 too late to start preparing for government exams?

No, but it changes the strategy. Apply to everything you are currently eligible for rather than targeting one exam over a long preparation, because several windows close within a cycle or two at this age.

Which government exams have the highest age limit?

In this catalogue, India Post GDS at 40, followed by the railway exams at 33 and SSC JE at 32. With SC/ST relaxation India Post GDS extends to 45.

How is my age calculated for a government exam?

On the cutoff date named in that notification, which is often a year before the exam. Someone who turns 31 the day after the cutoff is still 30 for that exam. Every verdict on this site shows which date it used.

Do OBC and PwD relaxations add together?

Yes. They are separate dimensions, so they sum: an OBC-NCL candidate with a disability gets +3 and +10 for a total of +13 years. Two relaxations within the same dimension take the larger one instead of adding.