On the evening of 26 october 2025, the state civil service agency informed the central authority and its immediate institutions of the online recruitment of civil servants for the 2026 examinations. The data show that a total of 3,718,000 people have passed the qualification test, an increase of 300,000 over last year, of which over 7,000 are in the most popular positions。
According to information from the website of the national civil service agency, the online registration and qualification of civil servants for admission to the 2026 examinations by the central authorities and their subordinates ended on 24 october 2025 at 18:00 and 26 october at 1800, respectively, with a total of 3,718,000 persons having passed the employer's eligibility review, with a ratio of 98 to 1 for the recruitment scheme。
The national civil service board solemnly reminds that candidates must be certified for the examination. Candidates who have passed the qualification process are allowed to register and pay fees from 1 november to 6 november on the “strategic website for admission of civil servants to the 2026 examinations of the central authorities and their immediate institutions”, after which they will print and take the examination at the required time。
According to the china news network, journalists have been combing data for almost three years and have found that the number of applicants and applicants for the national examination programme has increased from 2023 to 2025. The number of candidates enrolled in the national examination scheme for the last three years was 371, 396 and 397, respectively, and the number of those who passed the qualification process increased from nearly 2. 6 million in 2023 to over 3 million for the first time in 2024 and to 3. 41 million in 2025. At the same time, the ratio between the number of persons who have passed the qualification and the number of recruitment plans has increased over the past three years, at about 70:1, 77:1 and 86:1, respectively, and the level of heat and competition continues to rise。
According to statistics on education in china, cited in the newspaper, the number of applicants in guangdong province was 329587, the highest in the provinces by the end of the registration period at 1730 hours on 24 october. Beijing city and shandong province have over 200,000 applicants. The highest level of competition was in beijing, with a recruitment rate of 165. 53:1. The western provinces of ningxia, tibet, guizhou and chongqing followed closely and were also highly competitive. The highest number of applicants and the most highly competitive posts this year, according to the job registrations, are those of chief of police of the reilly repatriation centre of the national immigration administration and those below (thirteen) (3003,0001013), with only one candidate recruited and 7591 registered。
An important reason for the record increase in the number of applicants for this national examination is the relaxation of the age limit. The national civil service agency had previously indicated that the age conditions for recruitment to the civil service had been appropriately relaxed, in accordance with the policy on the implementation of a gradual delay in the legal retirement age。
According to the public service announcement issued by the national civil service office on 14 october on the admission of civil servants to the 2026 annual examinations of the central authorities and their subordinate bodies, the age requirement for applicants is generally 18 years of age and under 38 years of age (born between october 1986 and october 2007), and for masters and doctoral students in 2026, it is relaxed to 43 years of age (born after october 1981). The age limit for admission to the examination was lowered by three years in both categories, compared with the previous upper age limit of 35 and 40。
There has been a trend towards a further relaxation of the age of examination. In recent days, job announcements have been issued, in which the age of recruitment has been lowered to 38 years of age and below, and the age of postgraduate students to 43 years. On 15 august, the public selection proclamation of the provincial authorities of jiangsu province was issued in 2025, making it clear that the age requirement for selection was under 38 years of age (born after august 1986). According to the law enforcement public service proclamation for the 2025 examination in shanghai, the age requirement is also 18 years of age and under 38。
At the central party school (national school of administration), professor takeri, the new network, stated that people in their age group of 35 years, whose work experience and competence have been given a certain degree of exercise, were able to increase the level of public services. At the same time, “restricted age requirements are also conducive to the employment of persons who opt for further education after work”. Zhao zhong, director of the institute of labour and personnel of the people's university of china, said that, at the institutional level, the relaxation of age at the national competitive examination was a step in line with the reform of the system that delayed retirement. In that context, recruitment-related conditions should be adjusted accordingly, and it was recommended that the relevant laws and regulations should be made more specific with regard to combating age discrimination. In practice, labour inspections should play a greater role in building a fair and efficient labour market。
The national civil service agency previously announced that applicants who had passed the eligibility process could access the registration number on the thematic website after 8:00 on 28 october, and online registration and payment of fees on the thematic website from 1:00 to 2400 on 6 november. The time for the print test is from 0:00 to 15:00 on 24 november。
The written examination for public subjects in the national competitive examination will take place from 9 to 11 a. M. On 30 november and from 14:00 to 17:00 p. M. On 30 november. The examination of the foreign language level for eight non-general language posts, the written examination of the posts of the general financial supervisory authority and its sending agencies, the china securities commission and its sending agencies, and the people's police posts of the public security organs was held on 29 november at 14:00 to 18:00。
The national examination for 2026 is scheduled to continue with the recruitment of graduates of higher education institutions, with the central authorities at the municipal (local) level and below mainly recruiting graduates of higher education institutions, setting up approximately 26,000 programmes to serve and promote the employment of graduates of higher education institutions. To strengthen the civil service at the grass-roots level, more than 28,000 programmes have been completed at the district (district) level and below, and more than 3,000 targeted recruitment services for grass-roots project personnel and retired soldiers from higher education institutions who have served in the army for more than five years。
