My child has CBSE Class 10 or Class 12 marks (pre-board or final). For each subject, is it a pass under CBSE's 33% rules, can a 6th subject replace a fail, and is the overall result a pass, a compartment or a full repeat?
In Class 10, you pass a subject when your board marks and internal assessment together come to 33% or more, so 33 out of 100 is a pass even if the board paper alone is below 33%. CBSE has used this combined rule since the 2019 exams (notification of 11 October 2018). Class 12 is stricter: in a subject with practical work, you need 33% in theory, 33% in the practical and 33% overall. If you fail one or two subjects in Class 10, or one in Class 12, you get a compartment. CBSE now calls the follow-up exam the supplementary exam, and you take only the subjects you failed. Fail more than that and you write the whole exam again.
This page may be out of date. It was due for a re-check on 31 March 2027. Confirm every rule with the official source before acting on it.
From CBSE's Examination Bye-laws, the amendment of 28.02.2022 and the notifications listed below. We watch for a CBSE clarification of the Class 10 wording in the 2026-27 curriculum before the 2027 results.
Where does your child stand against CBSE's 33% rules?[1]
Do it now
Pre-boards done: run every subject through the checkerDecember to January, while there is time to work on a weak paper. Use the school's marks with each part's maximum.
Check first
Class 12 theory near 33%: that paper comes firstA full practical score won't carry a theory paper below 33% of its maximum.
Get help
Compartment result: get the LOC entry confirmed in writingOnly the school can put your child's name in the supplementary list. Ask the same week the result comes out and keep the reply.
Not for you
Every part well above 33%: nothing to do hereCheck the internal grades once, then move on.
From the marksheet or the pre-board report, copy each subject's board or theory marks and its internal, practical or project marks, with the maximum for each.[1]
Have ready
Class 10: add the two parts and check that the total reaches 33% of the subject's maximum. Class 12: in a subject with practical work, theory, practical and total must each reach 33%.[3]
Have ready
If a main subject failed and your child took a 6th (or 7th) subject, check whether that subject can replace it, and that Hindi or English is still in the main five afterwards.[4]
Have ready
Among the first five: up to 2 failed in Class 10, or 1 in Class 12, means compartment. More than that means the whole exam again next year.[1]
Have ready
An E grade in a subject the school grades A to E holds the result back, for not more than one year, even when every written paper is passed.[1]
Have ready
In Class 12 you rewrite only the part you failed; the other part's marks carry over. In Class 10, ask the school to confirm in writing that the internal marks carry over.[2]
Have ready
Ask the school in writing to confirm your child's name goes into the supplementary list of candidates. In 2026 the Class 12 circular came out on 30 June.[8]
Have ready
This checker runs in your browser and sends nothing anywhere. It never asks for a name or roll number. It applies CBSE's Examination Bye-laws and the notifications in the sources below, checked 10 October 2026. CBSE's own result is final.
| Rule | Class 10 | Class 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Pass in a subject | 33% of board + internal marks added together | 33% of the subject total |
| Subject with practical work | Same combined 33% test | 33% in theory, 33% in practical and 33% in aggregate, all three |
| Extra subject replaces a fail | Skill subject (6th) replaces a failed Science, Mathematics or Social Science; a 6th or 7th language replaces a failed language, if a passed Hindi or English stays in the five | A passed 6th subject replaces any one failed main subject, if Hindi or English stays in the main five |
| Compartment | 1 or 2 main subjects failed | 1 main subject failed |
| More fails than that | 3 or more: reappear in all subjects | 2 or more: reappear in all subjects |
| E grade in a school-graded subject | Result withheld, for not more than 1 year | Result withheld, for not more than 1 year |
From the Examination Bye-laws (40.1, 40.2, 41.1, 41.2, 42A), the 11.10.2018 notification and the 2025-26 and 2026-27 curricula. All percentages are of the subject's own maximum.[1]
| Chance | When | What you write | How you apply |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | The supplementary exam after the result | The failed subject only | Your school submits your name in the supplementary LOC |
| 2nd | The next year's main board exam | The failed subject only | Through the school or as a private candidate |
| 3rd | The supplementary exam after that | The failed subject only | Only as a private candidate |
Bye-law 42(i) and (iv); circular of 30.06.2026 (category D and paragraph 3). Class 10 compartment students now write the second board exam in the compartment category (notification No.31 of 14.02.2026).[8]
| Student | Marks | Result | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riya, Class 10 Mathematics | 24/80 board + 12/20 internal = 36/100 (36%) | Pass | Class 10 adds the two parts (2018 notification) |
| Kabir, Class 10 Science | 20/80 board + 8/20 internal = 28/100 (28%); skill subject passed | Pass after replacement | The 6th skill subject replaces Science (2025-26 curriculum, p.16) |
| Meera, Class 10 | Mathematics 25%, Social Science 30%, no 6th subject | Compartment in 2 subjects | Two fails are allowed (bye-law 41.2) |
| Arjun, Class 12 Physics | 21/70 theory (30.0%) + 30/30 practical = 51/100 (51%) | Compartment: rewrite theory only | Theory is under 33% (bye-law 40.1(ii)); practical carries forward |
| Sana, Class 12 Chemistry | 40/70 theory (57.1%) + 9/30 practical (30.0%) | Compartment: rewrite practical only | Practical under 33%; theory carries forward (28.02.2022 amendment) |
| Dev, Class 12 | Mathematics and Physics failed, no 6th subject | Reappear in all subjects | Class 12 allows a compartment in 1 subject (bye-law 40.2); passed practical marks carry forward (42A) |
Fictional students. Marks are shown as marks obtained / maximum; percentages are of that maximum.[1]
What happens: A board paper that is a pass gets read as a fail. 24 out of 80 plus 12 out of 20 is 36 out of 100, which is 36%.[3]
Fix: Add the board and internal marks, then compare with 33% of the total maximum.
What happens: 21 out of 70 in theory plus 30 out of 30 in the practical makes 51%, yet the subject is failed because theory is under 33%.[1]
Fix: Test theory, practical and total separately in every Class 12 practical subject.
What happens: Weeks go into a theory paper that was already passed.[2]
Fix: Since the amendment of 28.02.2022, a failed practical means the practical only, with theory marks carried forward.
What happens: A Class 10 student fails Science, not knowing that a passed skill subject replaces it.[4]
Fix: Check the registration slip for a 6th or 7th subject before reading the result as a compartment.
What happens: A passed French can't replace a failed English if that leaves no Hindi or English in the main five.[6]
Fix: After any replacement, check that Hindi or English is still one of the five.
What happens: The 2026 circular puts the duty on schools, but a name left out of the supplementary list still costs the student that chance.[8]
Fix: Ask the school in writing and keep the reply.
| If this is you | What changes |
|---|---|
| Class 10 in 2026-27 (board exam 2027) | Five main subjects plus a skill subject or other 6th and an optional 7th language; the combined 33% rule; compartment in up to two subjects, written in the second board exam under the compartment category.[9] |
| Class 10 in 2027-28 or later | The new scheme in the 2026-27 curriculum: a passed optional subject replaces a failed Science, Mathematics or Social Science only if it is the 11th optional subject and three languages are cleared, and no pass certificate without the third language (R3).[5] |
| Class 12 subject with a single paper | No separate practical test: one 33% test on the subject total.[1] |
| Private candidate | Some subjects have no internal assessment, so the split differs, and the third compartment chance in Class 12 is only as a private candidate.[8] |
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CBSE's notification of 11 October 2018 says Class 10 candidates from 2019 onwards "will have to secure overall 33% (both taken together)" of internal assessment and the board exam. The 2025-26 secondary curriculum still cites that notification as the rule in force.
The 2026-27 secondary curriculum (Part 1, p.24) words it differently: "a minimum of 33% marks separately in external and internal assessments, calculated on the combined total of Internal Assessment and External Examination marks". The only reading that fits "calculated on the combined total" is the 2018 one, so the checker adds the two parts. If CBSE issues a clarification, we will update this page.[5]
Bye-law 40.1(ii) makes three tests for a subject with practical work: 33% in theory, 33% in the practical, and 33% in the aggregate. Arjun's Physics marks show the effect. He scores 21 out of 70 in theory and the full 30 in the practical, 51 out of 100 in all, yet 21 of 70 is 30.0% and the subject is failed.
The rewrite covers only the failed part. Under the amendment of 28 February 2022, a student who failed only the practical takes the practical alone, and the theory marks carry forward. A student who failed only the theory takes the theory alone, and the practical marks carry forward. Older copies of the bye-laws on the CBSE site still print the earlier rule (theory and practical both).[2]
Grace marks and moderation: CBSE's bye-laws and the notifications we read publish no such policy, so the checker applies none.
Private candidates: some subjects have no internal assessment for them, so the marks split differs. See the private candidates page.
Children with special needs: subject choices and exemptions differ. Ask the school how they apply.
Which subjects count as practical subjects comes from CBSE's yearly list of subject components. The checker asks you to tick it per subject; check the marksheet or the school's scheme.[1]
Free printable
Result check sheet: one page per student: one A4 page, black and white, with the decision, every step with a date box, and blanks to fill in.
Result check sheet: one page per student
Parents and students of CBSE Classes 10 and 12, from the pre-boards to the supplementary exam
Decide
Where does your child stand against CBSE's 33% rules?
Checklist
| Done | Step | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Both parts copied with their maximums | ||
| 33% tests run for every subject | ||
| Extra-subject replacement checked, with Hindi or English still in the five | ||
| Internal grades checked for an E | ||
| Chances noted: supplementary, next main exam, supplementary after that | ||
| School's written reply on the LOC entry kept |
Class and batch
Subject 1 to 7: theory or board / practical or internal / total / %
Class 12 practical subjects: theory 33%? practical 33%? total 33%?
6th or 7th subject, and the subject it could replace
Failed main subjects after replacement
Part to rewrite for each compartment subject
Asked the school about the supplementary LOC on (date)
Source: CBSE Examination Bye-laws, pass criteria chapter. Check the official circular before you act. correctpath.in/cbse/pass-compartment-checker/
CBSE Examination Bye-laws, chapter "Scheme of Examinations and Pass Criteria" (clauses 38-44), Central Board of Secondary Education (pp. 3-6, clauses 40.1, 40.2, 41.1, 41.2, 42, 42A). Checked 30 October 2026.
Every step above cites a numbered source; the full list is at the end of the page. If the board issues a newer circular, it overrides this page.
There is no separate pass mark for the 80-mark paper. Since the 2019 exams, CBSE adds the board marks and the 20 internal marks, and you need 33 out of 100 in total (notification of 11.10.2018).[3]
Yes. Bye-law 40.1(ii) says a subject with practical work needs 33% in theory, 33% in the practical and 33% in the aggregate.[1]
Class 10: up to two of the five main subjects (bye-law 41.2). Class 12: one (bye-law 40.2). A passed 6th subject can replace a failed one first.[1]
Yes. CBSE renamed it from the 2023 exams. The notification of 10.03.2023 says only the name changed, not who is eligible.[7]
No. Since the amendment of 28.02.2022 you take the practical only, and your theory marks carry forward.[2]
Three: the supplementary exam after the result, the next main exam, and the supplementary exam after that. In Class 12 the third chance is taken as a private candidate (circular of 30.06.2026).[8]
No. Bye-laws 40.1(iii) and 41.1(iii) say no overall division, distinction or aggregate is awarded. The marksheet shows marks per subject, and colleges work out percentages by their own rules.[1]
Found an error or a newer rule? Tell us through the corrections page. Updated 30 October 2026.
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