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For years, a Class 10 board exam was a single shot. From 2026, CBSE gives students a second chance in the same year. That changes how students and parents can plan, but the rules have limits that catch people out. This post explains the scheme from CBSE's own notices, what happened in its first year, and how to decide whether the second exam is worth taking.
Why did CBSE introduce two board exams?
CBSE's press release of 25 June 2025 quotes paragraph 4.37 of the National Education Policy 2020, which says that to eliminate the "high stakes" aspect of board exams, all students will be allowed to take board exams on up to two occasions in a school year, "one main examination and one for improvement, if desired". After consultations, CBSE decided to implement two board exams for Class 10 from the 2026 examinations.
How does the scheme work?
The same press release sets out the general conditions:
The first exam is compulsory. Every student must appear in it. It starts in mid-February.
The second exam is optional and held in May. All passed and eligible students may improve their performance in up to three subjects out of Science, Mathematics, Social Science and languages.
Missing three or more subjects in the first exam rules you out of the second. Such students go into the "Essential Repeat" category and can only take the main exam the following February.
Compartment students can use the second exam to clear their compartment.
Both exams cover the full syllabus for the year, and internal assessment is done only once, before the main exam.
No new subjects. Additional or stand-alone subjects are not allowed after passing Class 10.
A CBSE notification of 14 February 2026 repeated these rules after students asked to skip the first exam and sit only the second. CBSE's answer was no: a student who misses three or more subjects in the main exam cannot appear in the second, and such requests would not be answered.
What happened in 2026, the first year?
CBSE's press release of 18 July 2026 gives the outcome. The main exam ran from 17 February to 11 March 2026 and the second exam from 15 to 21 May 2026. For regular students, "the better of the two performances is considered for preparing the final result".
The release reports, for the second exam:
6,63,777 candidates appeared.
5,13,955 appeared for improvement, and 3,08,095 of them improved on the main exam. That is 3,08,095 ÷ 5,13,955 = 59.95%.
1,49,822 appeared in the compartment category, and 78,503 passed, or 52.40%.
The overall pass percentage after combining both exams was 96.78%.
So a majority of improvement candidates did better, but about four in ten did not. The second attempt is a real chance, not a sure gain.
How are results and admissions handled?
Under the 2025 scheme, the first exam's performance is made available in DigiLocker and can be used for Class 11 admission if a student does not want to sit the second exam. Pass certificates and merit certificates are issued after the second exam. Students who do not pass the main exam may get provisional Class 11 admission, confirmed on the basis of the second exam. In 2026, CBSE declared the main result on 15 April and the second exam result on 18 July.
Post-result services such as scanned copies of answer books, verification and re-evaluation open only after the second exam's result, for both exams. Our guide to CBSE verification and re-evaluation explains those steps.
Should you take the second exam?
A simple way to decide, subject by subject (sample reasoning):
Was the main-exam mark clearly below your mock and pre-board level? If you scored 62 in Mathematics after averaging 75 in school tests, a bad day may have cost you marks, and a second attempt has a fair chance.
Can you prepare without hurting Class 11? The second exam falls in May, when Class 11 work is starting. Pick at most the subjects where the gap is largest.
Is the gap from knowledge or from exam technique? If you lost marks on method steps, practise with marking schemes first. If whole chapters were weak, plan proper revision.
Because the better performance counts, a lower score in the second exam does not replace a higher main-exam score.
How should you prepare for the first exam?
Plan as if there is only one exam. Use subject strategies such as our Class 10 Maths paper strategy and Class 10 Science revision plan. If you are not sure where your gaps are, Fermi's AI tutor can work out what you already know and build a plan for the session, so revision starts with the weakest chapter.
The rules can change from year to year. CBSE has already begun the list of candidates process for the 2027 board exams, according to its press release of 29 September 2026, and advises everyone to check www.cbse.gov.in for current information.
This week, list your three weakest subjects from your last school test and write one concrete revision goal for each.
