Illustration: NewsPlainly. Not a photograph of the event.
Why it matters
The Class 10 morning change affects travel arrangements for candidates and their families. The overall exam window and the date of each chosen paper serve different planning needs.
CISCE exam dates for 2027 were announced on 10 November 2026, with Class 10 examinations beginning on 15 February and Class 12 examinations on 9 February. The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) also brought forward the Class 10 exam-day timetable, according to separate reports by The Hindu and The Times of India.
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), the Class 10 examination, will end on 31 March. The Indian School Certificate (ISC), the Class 12 examination, will finish on 8 April. Distribution of admission cards for both examinations is due to begin in mid-December 2026.
CISCE exam dates cover different windows for Classes 10 and 12
The Hindu’s report of the council’s announcement gives separate examination windows for the two qualifications. ISC exams begin six days before ICSE exams and continue beyond the Class 10 closing date. These are the overall board windows. Each student’s papers depend on the subjects for which that student is registered.
The schedules are available through the council’s official website, cisce.org, the reports said. Students need the subject-wise timetable for their own examination. The subject-wise schedule supplies the dates of individual science, language and elective papers.
NewsPlainly could not open the council website during this check because it returned an access refusal. The dates in this article are attributed to the two reporting accounts read in full. The council’s subject-wise document is the reference for the dates and timings of individual papers.
Class 10 candidates have three separate morning times
For ICSE exams, candidates must be seated in their examination halls by 9.45 am. Reading begins at 10 am, and writing at 10.15 am. All times here are Indian Standard Time. The distinction matters when arranging the morning journey, because the writing time comes after both seating and reading.
The previous reading and writing times were 10.45 am and 11 am, respectively, according to both reports. NewsPlainly’s comparison puts each of those activities 45 minutes earlier. The reading interval remains 15 minutes, calculated from the difference between 10 am and 10.15 am.
| ICSE activity | Earlier timing reported | 2027 timing announced |
|---|---|---|
| Be seated | Not compared in the reports | 9.45 am |
| Read question paper | 10.45 am | 10 am |
| Begin writing | 11 am | 10.15 am |
The revised morning clock concerns ICSE exams. Candidates taking ISC exams should use the timings printed against their own papers in the Class 12 timetable. Each qualification has its own subject-wise schedule and session details.
Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal account for large candidate groups
The council’s enrolment figures put Uttar Pradesh first in both examinations, the reports said. It has 51,168 ICSE candidates and 34,702 ISC candidates. West Bengal follows with 46,521 and 30,235, respectively. These figures describe participation in the coming examinations.
Adding the two levels gives 85,870 candidates in Uttar Pradesh and 76,756 in West Bengal. Those are NewsPlainly’s calculations, using the two reported state figures in each case. They help show the scale of the announcement for families in the two states as they prepare for the next examination cycle.
Across the board, ICSE exams cover 76 subjects or papers and ISC exams cover 60 subjects. The Times of India reported 3,106 affiliated schools for Class 10 and 1,651 for Class 12. A board-wide subject count describes the range on offer across schools, across both examination levels.
Admission cards are the next dated step
Mid-December is the announced start of admission-card distribution. The reports give the distribution window as the middle of that month. Families can distinguish that administrative window from the later February examination starts when checking information from their schools.
The immediate reference is the published subject-wise timetable, followed by the admission card when distributed. Candidates can find related regional education coverage in NewsPlainly’s West Bengal section. For the 2027 examinations, the schedule and the Class 10 morning clock are separate details that both need checking against the student’s own papers.
Frequently asked questions
When do ICSE examinations start in 2027?
They start on 15 February and end on 31 March 2027, according to the council announcement reported by The Hindu and The Times of India.
How much earlier are the Class 10 timings?
Reading moves from 10.45 am to 10 am and writing from 11 am to 10.15 am, a shift of 45 minutes for each.
When will admission cards be distributed?
Distribution is due to begin in mid-December 2026. The reports reviewed do not specify an exact day.