SSC CGL Admit Card 2026: Quick Answer
The SSC CGL Tier 1 admit card has already served its purpose — Tier 1 is over. The examination ran from 30 September to 30 October 2026 (one SSC notice says the last shift was 28 October — see the honest conflict below), and about 28.5 lakh candidates appeared, according to Testbook. The provisional Tier 1 answer key was released on 4 November 2026, and the objection window runs from 4 November to 7 November 2026, 9:00 PM. The Tier 2 admit card has not been released yet: Tier 2 is tentatively scheduled for December 2026 and SSC has not announced a date, so no Tier 2 admit card, city slip or exam date exists as of 7 November 2026. Going by SSC's usual pattern — city and centre details about 10 days before the exam, the admit card 3 to 4 days before your shift — the Tier 2 city slip should appear in late November or early December and the admit card a few days before your Tier 2 date, once SSC announces it. Download both only from ssc.gov.in, through your candidate login. No admit card is ever sent by post.
Key takeaway: If you sat Tier 1, your next document is not an admit card — it is the answer key and then the result. Download your response sheet before the objection window closes on 7 November at 9:00 PM, challenge only the answers you can prove wrong, and then switch straight to Tier 2 preparation, because Tier 2 — not Tier 1 — decides your rank. If you are reading this before Tier 2, your admit card will arrive 3 to 4 days before your shift, and the city slip about a week before that.
Official source: SSC notice of 4 November 2026 (HQ-C11018/5/2026-C-1) uploading the tentative answer keys and response sheets; SSC CGL 2026 notice for the Tier 2 scheme (Para 13.9). Full pattern: SSC CGL exam pattern 2026; answer key detail: SSC CGL Tier 1 answer key and result 2026.
SSC CGL Admit Card 2026 at a Glance
| Document | Status as of 7 November 2026 | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 admit card | Released before the exam; no longer needed | Tier 1 ran 30 September to 30 October 2026 |
| Tier 1 provisional answer key + response sheet | Released 4 November 2026 | Download from ssc.gov.in via candidate login |
| Answer key objection window | 4 to 7 November 2026, 9:00 PM | Challenge wrong answers inside this window only |
| Tier 1 result + cut-off | Not announced | Expected in the first week of December 2026 (Testbook — single source, expected only) |
| Tier 2 date | Tentatively December 2026 | No date announced by SSC |
| Tier 2 city slip | Not released | Expected about 10 days before the exam, once the date is announced |
| Tier 2 admit card | Not released | Expected 3 to 4 days before your Tier 2 shift |
| Vacancies | 10,731 tentative (SSC list, 24 September 2026) | Notice spoke of about 12,256; final figures may change |
The Honest Conflict: When Did Tier 1 Actually End?
Two SSC-linked sources disagree on the last day of Tier 1, and this page does not hide it:
- 30 September to 30 October 2026, per the SSC schedule notice of 12 September 2026 — the date most coverage uses.
- 30 September to 28 October 2026, per the SSC answer-key notice of 4 November 2026, which states the examination was conducted in that window.
The difference is two days and does not change anything for candidates — your response sheet covers your own shift either way — but if another page states one date as certain without mentioning the other, it has not read both notices. The same applies to the number of candidates who appeared: 28,52,665 comes from Testbook alone, so treat it as reported, not official.
How to Download the SSC CGL Tier 2 Admit Card (When It Is Out)
The steps below are the standard SSC download route. They apply to Tier 2 exactly as they applied to Tier 1; only the link name changes.
- Go to ssc.gov.in and open your candidate login. Do not use any third-party site that asks for your registration number and password — SSC never authorises such sites, and handing over your login is how accounts get misused.
- On your dashboard, look for the link Admit Card — Combined Graduate Level Examination 2026, Tier 2. The city intimation slip link appears first, about 10 days before the exam; the admit card link appears later, 3 to 4 days before your shift.
- Download and print the admit card. Check every detail on it the same day: your name, roll number, photograph, examination date, shift, reporting time and venue address.
- If the link does not appear, check the date first. The admit card is released per candidate, a few days before that candidate's own shift — not for everyone on one day. An admit card that has not appeared a week before the exam window is normal; one that has not appeared two days before your shift is a reason to contact your Regional Office.
- If you have forgotten your registration number, use the "Forgot Registration Number" option with your registered mobile number and email. If you have forgotten your password, reset it the same way. Do both now, in early November, while there is no pressure — recovering credentials on admit-card day, when the site is slow, is avoidable stress.
City Slip vs Admit Card: What Each Document Is
- City intimation slip: released roughly a week to ten days before the exam. It tells you only your examination city — nothing else. Its purpose is travel planning: if your city is far from home, you can book travel early. It is not permission to enter the examination hall, and it does not carry your shift or venue.
- Admit card (hall ticket): released 3 to 4 days before your examination date. It carries your roll number, examination date, shift, reporting time, venue address, and the instructions for the day. This is the document you must print and carry — the city slip alone will not get you in.
Both documents come from the same place: your candidate login on ssc.gov.in. Neither is sent by post or email.
What Is on the Tier 2 Admit Card — and What to Check
Tier 2 Paper 1 runs in two sessions on one day, with locked sectional timers, so the admit card matters more than it did for Tier 1: it carries the reporting time for Session I and the re-registration instruction for Session II (the Data Entry Speed Test). Check these five things the day you download it:
- Your name and date of birth match your photo ID exactly. A mismatch can keep you out of the hall.
- Photograph is yours and recognisable. If it is wrong, contact the Regional Office immediately — do not wait for exam day.
- Examination date, shift and venue address — and the reporting time. Tier 2 Session I starts with Mathematical Abilities; the gate closes before the first module, and late entry is not allowed.
- Instructions printed on the admit card, including what is allowed inside and what is banned. The admit card's own instructions override any general guide, including this page.
- Whether you need photographs. Candidates who have not completed Aadhaar-based authentication should carry two recent passport-size colour photographs, as SSC's standard instructions require.
Exam Day Rules for SSC CGL Tier 2
These are the standard SSC rules printed on the admit card and in the notice. They applied to Tier 1 and they will apply to Tier 2.
- Carry a printout of the admit card and an original valid photo ID showing your date of birth — voter ID, driving licence, PAN card, passport, school or college ID, employer ID, or another photo ID issued by the Central or State Government. Without it, you are not allowed in.
- Report early. SSC's standard instruction is to reach the venue well before the reporting time on the admit card — identity checks and biometric capture take time, and the gate closes before the exam starts.
- Leave mobile phones, Bluetooth devices, calculators and every electronic gadget outside. Possessing one inside the hall counts as unfair means and can mean debarment from SSC examinations.
- Do not carry notes, books or bags into the hall unless the admit card expressly allows it. Most centres provide no safe storage.
- Follow the sectional timers. In Tier 2 Paper 1, each module closes automatically when its time ends — Mathematical Abilities 30 minutes, Reasoning 30 minutes, English 40 minutes, General Awareness 20 minutes, Computer Knowledge 15 minutes. You cannot carry spare minutes from one module to the next, so the admit card's reporting time is not the only clock that matters.
- For the DEST (Session II): you will be re-registered after a break. Keep your admit card and ID with you through the break — do not leave them in a bag outside.
What Happens After the Answer Key: Tier 1 Result and Tier 2
The sequence from here is fixed, even though the dates are not all announced:
- Provisional answer key + response sheet — released 4 November 2026. Download all three documents (question paper, response sheet, provisional key) before the window closes.
- Objections — 4 to 7 November 2026, 9:00 PM. SSC charges a fee per question challenged; the exact fee for this cycle is not stated consistently across sources (our earlier house note says ₹100 per question, while Testbook's answer-key page says ₹50), so check the fee in the 4 November notice itself before paying — do not rely on either figure from this page. Challenge only answers you can support with a source; a challenge without evidence is a lost fee.
- Final answer key — published with or just before the result. The final key is not open to further challenge, and the result is computed on it.
- Tier 1 result + cut-off — a list of candidates shortlisted for Tier 2, with category-wise cut-offs on normalised marks. No date has been announced; Testbook expects the first week of December 2026. For reference, the CGL 2025 Tier 1 result came about two months after its exam ended (18 December 2025), and the 2025 Tier 1 cut-off for UR (all other posts) was 136.40215 out of 200.
- Tier 2 — tentatively December 2026. Tier 1 marks do not count in final merit; Tier 2 Paper 1 (390 merit marks) plus Paper 2 or Paper 3 for specific posts decides your rank.
Common Mistakes with the SSC CGL Admit Card
- Waiting for one common release date. The admit card comes 3 to 4 days before your shift. Candidates in the first week of the window get theirs first; if your date is later, yours appears closer to your date. That staggered release is normal.
- Downloading from a third-party "admit card" site. Only ssc.gov.in issues it. Any other site asking for your password is a credential-harvesting trap.
- Not checking the photograph and date of birth. These two errors are the ones that actually keep people out on exam day, and both are fixable if caught the day you download the card.
- Treating the city slip as the admit card. The city slip has no shift, no venue and no reporting time. You cannot enter the hall with it.
- Stopping study after the answer key. The key tells you your Tier 1 score, but Tier 1 only shortlists. The candidates who treat the key as the finish line are the ones Tier 2 overtakes. Our SSC CGL Tier 2 preparation strategy 2026 is built for exactly this gap.
Memory Tricks: CGL Admit Card Dates
- "4-7-9" — answer key out on the 4th, objections close on the 7th, both at 9 PM. If you remember nothing else about November, remember that window.
- "10 and 3" — city slip about 10 days before the exam, admit card 3 to 4 days before your shift. The same pair works for CPO and JE, so learn it once.
- "Tier 1 screens, Tier 2 selects" — Tier 1 marks never enter the merit list. Every hour you spend after the key should go to Tier 2 modules, not to re-litigating Tier 1 questions.
Practice Questions: SSC CGL Tier 1 Revision (10 Questions)
These are Tier 1-style revision questions to keep your basics warm while Tier 2 preparation starts. Answers follow each question.
1. In the CGL Tier 1 paper, how many questions does each of the four sections carry? (a) 20 (b) 25 (c) 30 (d) 50 — Answer: (b) 25. Four sections of 25 questions make 100 questions for 200 marks.
2. What is the negative marking in SSC CGL Tier 1? (a) 0.25 (b) 0.50 (c) 1 (d) 2 — Answer: (b) 0.50. Each wrong answer costs half a mark; in Tier 2 Paper 1 it is 1 mark.
3. If you answer 80 questions in Tier 1, getting 64 right and 16 wrong, what is your raw score? (a) 120 (b) 124 (c) 128 (d) 112 — Answer: (a) 120. 64 × 2 = 128, minus 16 × 0.50 = 8, gives 120.
4. Which of these is the largest post group in the CGL 2026 tentative vacancy list? (a) Tax Assistant, CBDT (b) Auditor, CGDA (c) Inspector (Central Excise), CBIC (d) Tax Assistant, CBIC — Answer: (c) Inspector (Central Excise) in CBIC, with 2,366 posts.
5. How long is each sectional timer in CGL Tier 1? (a) 10 minutes (b) 15 minutes (c) 20 minutes (d) No sectional timer — Answer: (b) 15 minutes. Each 25-question section closes after 15 minutes.
6. A sum of ₹8,000 at 10% simple interest per annum amounts to how much in 3 years? (a) ₹10,200 (b) ₹10,400 (c) ₹10,000 (d) ₹9,600 — Answer: (b) ₹10,400. Interest = 8,000 × 10 × 3 / 100 = ₹2,400; amount = ₹10,400.
7. Choose the correctly spelt word. (a) Occurence (b) Occurrence (c) Ocurrence (d) Occurrance — Answer: (b) Occurrence.
8. Which Article of the Constitution deals with the Finance Commission? (a) Article 280 (b) Article 324 (c) Article 370 (d) Article 352 — Answer: (a) Article 280.
9. The average of 12, 18, 24 and 30 is: (a) 20 (b) 21 (c) 22 (d) 24 — Answer: (b) 21. (12 + 18 + 24 + 30) / 4 = 84 / 4 = 21.
10. Do Tier 1 marks count in the final CGL merit list? (a) Yes, fully (b) Yes, 50% weight (c) No (d) Only for some posts — Answer: (c) No. Tier 1 only shortlists candidates for Tier 2; final merit is decided by Tier 2.
SSC CGL Admit Card 2026 FAQs
Is the SSC CGL Tier 2 admit card 2026 released?
No. As of 7 November 2026, SSC has not announced a Tier 2 date — it is only tentatively scheduled for December 2026 — so the Tier 2 admit card and city slip are not out yet. Expect the city slip about 10 days before the exam and the admit card 3 to 4 days before your shift, once the date is announced.
When was the SSC CGL Tier 1 answer key 2026 released?
The provisional answer key and response sheets were released on 4 November 2026. The objection window runs from 4 November to 7 November 2026, 9:00 PM. Check the objection fee in the 4 November notice itself, because secondary sources disagree on the figure.
When will the SSC CGL Tier 1 result 2026 come?
No date has been announced. Testbook expects the first week of December 2026 — that is a single-source expectation, not an SSC announcement. The result will be a shortlist for Tier 2 with category-wise cut-offs on normalised marks.
How do I download the SSC CGL admit card?
Log in at ssc.gov.in with your registration number and password, open the Admit Card link for the CGL Examination 2026, and download and print it. Never download it from a third-party site that asks for your login.
What should I carry to the CGL Tier 2 exam?
A printout of the admit card, an original photo ID showing your date of birth, and two passport-size colour photographs if you have not completed Aadhaar authentication. Mobile phones, calculators and electronic gadgets are banned.
Do Tier 1 marks count for final selection?
No. Tier 1 only shortlists candidates for Tier 2. Final merit is decided by Tier 2 Paper 1 (390 marks) plus Paper 2 or Paper 3 for the posts that require them.
What is the last date of the CGL Tier 1 exam — 28 or 30 October?
Both dates appear in SSC-linked material: the schedule notice says 30 October, the answer-key notice says 28 October. The difference does not affect any candidate's response sheet or score.
Practice Next for SSC CGL
- Answer key and result: SSC CGL Tier 1 answer key and result 2026, SSC CGL cut-off, SSC CGL expected cut-off 2026
- Pattern and syllabus: SSC CGL exam pattern 2026, SSC CGL syllabus 2026, SSC CGL Tier 2 preparation strategy 2026
- Vacancy and pay: SSC CGL vacancy 2026, SSC CGL salary 2026
- Mocks: Tier 1 new-pattern mock 01, Tier 2 Paper 1 full mock 16 — 150-question combined sitting
- Tools: SSC CGL 2026 marks calculator, SSC CGL typing test (DEST)
- Also read: SSC CGL previous year question papers; hub: SSC CGL exam page and free SSC CGL mock tests. Browse all study notes.
Sources: SSC notice HQ-C11018/5/2026-C-1 dated 4 November 2026 (tentative answer keys and response sheets; objection window 4–7 November 2026, 9:00 PM), SSC CGL 2026 notice (Tier 2 scheme, Para 13.9); SSC schedule notice of 12 September 2026 (Tier 1 window); SSC post-wise vacancy list of 24 September 2026 (10,731 tentative vacancies); Testbook and JagranJosh answer-key coverage (28,52,665 appeared — single source; Tier 1 result expected first week of December 2026 — single source). The objection fee is held: house sources and Testbook disagree (₹100 vs ₹50 per question) — check the 4 November notice. Tier 2 date not announced. As of 7 November 2026.