CHENNAI: In a major relief to govt job aspirants, the Tamil Nadu govt has raised the upper age limit for direct recruitment to govt services by five years across all recruitment boards, effective Oct 30, 2026.The decision, announced by chief minister C Joseph Vijay, will remain in force for five years and comes in response to long-pending demands from aspirants who faced disqualification due to age limits amid delays in recruitment, according to a statement from govt.The five-year enhancement will be over and above the existing age relaxations for BC, BC(M), MBC and DNC, SC, ST and destitute widow candidates.Under the revised limits, the upper age limit for general category candidates applying for Group-I posts has been increased from 32 to 37 years, while that for reserved category candidates has been raised to 42 years. Disabled abled candidates will be eligible up to 52 years.For Group-II and Group-IIA posts, the upper age limit for general category candidates has been raised to 35 years, while reserved category candidates will continue to have no maximum age limit.For Group-IV posts, the age limit for BC and MBC candidates without higher qualifications has been extended to 37 years and for SC/ST candidates to 40 years.The move is expected to benefit thousands of aspirants who were on the verge of crossing the existing age limits and seeking another opportunity to enter govt service.
