EPSO AD5 2026 Timeline: Every Official Date for Competition EPSO/AD/427/26

TL;DR. The EPSO AD5 2026 competition (reference EPSO/AD/427/26, published in Official Journal C/2026/711 on 5 February 2026) has three officially dated milestones: the application window (5 February – 10 March 2026), the ID-document deadline (10 March 2026), and the supporting-documents deadline (7 October 2026). No test date has been published by EPSO. Any source quoting a specific exam month for this competition is speculating.

1. Officially dated milestones

5 February 2026 — Notice of Competition published

EPSO published the Notice of Competition EPSO/AD/427/26 in Official Journal series C, issue C/2026/711. This is the legal instrument that defines every aspect of the competition: eligibility, test structure, pass marks, weights, language regime, reserve list size. The applications portal opened the same day.

10 March 2026, 12:00 Brussels time — Application deadline

This is a hard deadline. Candidates had to submit the online application form and upload a valid identity document by this moment. Late applications are not considered under any circumstance. The window was open for 33 days.

7 October 2026 — Supporting documents deadline

Eligible candidates must upload supporting documents — university degree certificates and evidence for language levels — by this date. Missing this deadline removes the candidate from the procedure regardless of test performance. The diploma must have been obtained by 30 September 2026.

2. What EPSO has not yet dated

The following elements are part of the procedure but no official date has been published:

• Test invitation dates. The window during which eligible candidates will be invited to schedule their remote tests on the TAO platform.
• Test-session window. The actual remote test period (all five tests).
• Preliminary results publication. When the preliminary ranking — verbal, EU knowledge, digital skills — will be released.
• EUFTE marking window. When free-text essays of pre-ranked candidates will be scored.
• Final reserve list publication. When the 1,490-name reserve list will be published in the Official Journal.

EPSO communicates these dates directly to candidates via the EPSO account inbox, usually a few weeks in advance of each milestone. Speculative dates circulating on forums or guides are not reliable.

3. The procedure in order

1. Notice published (done, 5 Feb 2026).
2. Application window (done, 5 Feb – 10 Mar 2026).
3. Eligibility check — EPSO verifies applications against eligibility criteria.
4. Test invitation — eligible candidates receive an invitation to book a remote test slot via the TAO platform.
5. Remote testing — five tests (verbal reasoning, numerical + abstract reasoning, EU knowledge, digital skills, EUFTE essay) delivered online and proctored.
6. Preliminary ranking — computed from verbal (40 %), EU knowledge (30 %) and digital skills (30 %). Pre-ranked candidates proceed to EUFTE marking.
7. EUFTE scoring — free-text essays are marked for pre-ranked candidates only.
8. Supporting documents check — diplomas and language evidence reviewed (submitted by 7 Oct 2026).
9. Final ranking — re-weighted with EUFTE (verbal 35 % + EU knowledge 25 % + digital skills 25 % + EUFTE 15 %).
10. Reserve list — top 1,490 candidates published in the Official Journal.
11. Recruitment — EU institutions recruit from the reserve list over the following years, as vacancies arise. Being on the list is not a job guarantee.

4. How to plan preparation around the known dates

Because test timing is not yet published, build preparation around the supporting-documents deadline of 7 October 2026 as the administrative anchor, and assume the test window can open at any point between eligibility confirmation and that deadline. Operational rule: be test-ready by mid-2026 and maintain sharpness through September.

• High-leverage sections: EU knowledge (25 %) and digital skills (25 %) together weigh 50 % of the final score. They are also the sections most learnable from study.
• Highest individual weight: verbal reasoning (35 %). Rate-limited by practice under timed conditions.
• Strategic lever: EUFTE (15 %). Under-prepared by most candidates; strong differentiator late in the ranking.
• Pass gates: numerical + abstract reasoning is pass / fail — do not neglect it, but do not over-invest.

5. Sources

• Notice of Competition EPSO/AD/427/26, Official Journal of the European Union, series C, C/2026/711, 5 February 2026 — on EUR-Lex.
• European Union official jobs portal.