SSC JHT Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility, Important Dates

The sectional timer means you can't move time between Hindi and English. Each part is effectively 100 questions in an hour, about 36 seconds a question.

Paper-I deducts 0.25 per wrong answer. Paper-II has no negative marking.

Final merit

There may be separate category-wise cut-offs for each paper.

Minimum qualifying marks, Paper-I

Multi-shift CBT marks are normalised by the procedure of 2 June 2025.

Paper-II answer book

You get zero if the cover lacks your correct roll number, signature or left-hand thumb impression. Writing your name, roll number, phone or address inside the book counts as unfair means and also scores zero, even after marking.

Ties go to Paper-II marks, then the older candidate, then alphabetical order. There's no re-evaluation of either paper.

Paper-I

The notice says the questions test understanding of the languages and literature, correct use of words, phrases and idioms and ability to write the languages correctly, precisely and effectively, at degree level.

• Language: comprehension, grammar and usage in both languages.
• Literature of both languages, which is easy to overlook.
• Vocabulary: idioms, phrases, one-word substitution, correct usage.
• Writing mechanics in objective form: error spotting, sentence improvement, fill in the blanks.

Paper-II

200 marks in two hours. The notice doesn't split the marks between the four, and says the level is consistent with the qualification, which is a master's degree plus translation training or experience.

Age on 1 August 2026

18 to 30: born between 2 August 1996 and 1 August 2008. (The date is fixed by DoP&T OM No. 14017/70/87-Estt.(RR) of 14 July 1988.)

Qualification on 1 August 2026: a master's degree and a translation credential

So an M.A. in History in Hindi medium, with English in your bachelor's, qualifies.

With a translation diploma you're eligible for all four codes.

Your result must be declared by 1 August 2026; a result still being processed doesn't count. Open and Distance Learning qualifications from universities set up by Act, deemed universities under Section 3 of the UGC Act 1956, and Institutions of National Importance are recognised (Ministry of Education notification of 10 June 2015) if approved by the UGC's Distance Education Bureau for the period you studied.

The user department verifies documents after the final result. Failing to produce originals then cancels your candidature.

Reservation applies for SC, ST, OBC, EWS and PwBD. The posts are identified as suitable for specified benchmark disabilities under DEPwD Notification No. 38-16/2020-DDIII of 4 January 2021, as amended.

1. Paper-I, computer based, 200 marks. Category-wise shortlist for Paper-II.
2. Paper-II, descriptive, 200 marks.
3. Final merit: half of Paper-I plus all of Paper-II, out of 300.
4. Allotment on merit and your post and department preferences, then document verification by the user department.

Once a post is allotted it isn't changed, even if you can't meet that post's physical, medical or educational requirement; you lose the candidature instead. There's no waiting list. SSC uses a sliding mechanism, explained in its notices of 3 March 2026 and 8 April 2026.

After the exam SSC runs log analysis, photo and biometric checks and CCTV review. Malpractice means cancellation and debarment.

These are starting basic pay under the 7th CPC, not take-home. DA, HRA by city, Transport Allowance and any departmental allowance are added; NPS and CGHS are deducted.

The senior post is a full pay level higher for one extra year of experience, and none if you hold a translation diploma. If you qualify for code D, consider ranking it first.

Codes A and B are Delhi-centred cadres. SSC doesn't collect state-wise or zone-wise vacancies for C and D, so ask the user department about location.

Apply online at ssc.gov.in. Helpline: 1800 309 3063.

The fee is ₹100, online by BHIM UPI, net banking or Visa, MasterCard, Maestro or RuPay debit card. Women, SC, ST, PwBD and eligible ex-servicemen pay nothing. If the fee doesn't reach SSC the form shows 'Incomplete' and is rejected, so check the Payment Status link. No refunds.

You can pick any three centres anywhere in India, in order. They can't be changed later, though SSC may move candidates itself.

Two employers are named: the Central Secretariat Official Language Service (CSOLS), the Secretariat's own official language cadre with its own seniority and promotion line, and Armed Forces Headquarters (AFHQ), also a separate civilian cadre. Codes C and D are departmental posts across central ministries, departments and organisations.

Allocation depends on your marks in both papers and the preferences you give (see the selection process). The 84 tentative vacancies are still being collected; post-wise and category-wise updates appear under For Candidates, Tentative Vacancy, on ssc.gov.in.

Paper-I is held at CBT centres under SSC's nine regional and sub-regional offices, listed in the notice with each office's website. You choose three centres from anywhere in the country. Paper-II is a separate written sitting with its own city intimation and admit card. See the exam pattern for timings.

The 2025 cycle, for timing

SSC lists the exam in its annual calendar, and any date change appears only on ssc.gov.in.

Admit cards come from ssc.gov.in and the regional office websites, separately for each paper, each preceded by a city intimation. In 2025 Paper-I's came on 5 August and Paper-II's on 4 December. Scribe users get 2 hours 40 minutes per paper and must claim it in the application. No admit card is issued for an 'Incomplete' application.

SSC publishes on ssc.gov.in: tentative Paper-I keys with your response sheet, the Paper-I result for Paper-II, then marks and final keys, and finally the result with vacancies. In 2025 the Paper-I result came about three months after the exam.

You can challenge the tentative key online only, at ₹50 per question, non-refundable, under the Challenge / Objection Management System guidelines of 10 April 2026. Experts review objections and SSC's decision is final.

SSC publishes category-wise cut-offs for Paper-I and for the final result with each result notice, under Results on ssc.gov.in, usually two to three months after each paper. They're on normalised marks, and the final cut-off depends on the final vacancy count, not the 84 in the notice. The minimum qualifying marks are in the exam pattern.

• Practise Paper-I as two one-hour papers, 100 questions in 60 minutes each, with a hard stop between.
• Treat Paper-I as scored. Half of it goes into your final total.
• Don't skip literature. It's named in the syllabus, at degree level, in both languages.
• Translate both ways against the clock. Four pieces in two hours is about 30 minutes each. Practise your weaker direction most.
• Use formal government prose for practice, not only literary or news extracts.
• Write legibly and finish all four pieces. A person marks it.
• Learn the answer book rules (roll number, signature, thumb impression, nothing personal inside).
• Use SSC's mock test to get used to the sectional timer, and download your response sheet while the key window is open.

SSC publishes Paper-I answer keys with your own response sheet after each exam (in 2025, on 4 September, with final keys and marks on 30 December), and keeps a Previous Year Question Papers section under For Candidates on ssc.gov.in. It also uploads marks for both papers, for example the Paper-II marks of the 2024 exam on 27 August 2025.

No Paper-II passages or model answers are released. Material filed under the old name (Junior Hindi Translator) is for the same posts.

• Staff Selection Commission: notice board, Results, and For Candidates (Tentative Vacancy, Scheme of Examination, Syllabus, Previous Year Question Papers, Examination Calendar)
• Combined Hindi Translators Examination 2026 notice (PDF), 23 April 2026. Key paragraphs: 7.5, 7.6 and 7.7 eligibility; 8.16 and 8.17 fee; 10.1 and 10.2 centres; Para 11 scheme, including 11.7 date changes, 11.8 no re-evaluation, 11.9 and 11.10 answer book rules; Para 12 syllabus (12.1, 12.2); Para 16 merit and allotment (16.3, 16.4, 16.6); 18.1 scrutiny
• SSC notices on the normalisation method (2 June 2025), the objection system (10 April 2026) and the sliding mechanism (3 March and 8 April 2026), on the notice board
• Application helpline: 1800 309 3063

Is Paper-I only qualifying?

No. Half its score counts in the final merit, so it's worth 100 of 300.

Is there negative marking?

0.25 per wrong answer in Paper-I. None in Paper-II.

Do I need a master's degree?

Yes, plus a translation diploma or certificate, or two years' government translation experience (three for the senior post).

What's the difference between junior and senior posts?

Level-6 against Level-7, for one more year of experience.

Is Paper-II on a computer?

No, it's handwritten in an answer book.

Who doesn't pay the fee?

Women, SC, ST, PwBD and eligible ex-servicemen. Everyone else pays ₹100.

Can my descriptive paper be re-checked?

No. There's no re-evaluation.

How many vacancies are there?

84 tentative in 2026, still being updated on ssc.gov.in.