What the document is actually called

NIOS does not use the words “admit card” in its own notification. The document is the Intimation-cum-Hall Ticket, and Notification 63/2026 dated 8 October 2026 says in its notes that candidates can download it from the NIOS portal at sdmis.nios.ac.in.

It is issued for the October 2026 session public examinations for Secondary (Class X) and Senior Secondary (Class XII), which run from Thursday 22 October 2026 to Monday 7 December 2026. The full subject-wise schedule is in our October–November 2026 theory date sheet post.

How to download it

1. Open the NIOS hall ticket page: sdmis.nios.ac.in/search/hall-ticket. The page heading currently reads “Hall Ticket for Secondary and Senior Secondary courses for Oct-Nov 2026 Public Exams”.
2. Enter your 12-digit enrolment number. The page’s own instruction is to enter the 12-digit roll number.
3. Choose the Hall Ticket Type. The page offers a theory hall ticket and a separate “Hall Ticket for Practical Examination”. For the 22 October–7 December papers you need the theory one.
4. Click Submit and save the PDF.

If you do not know your enrolment number, it is on your NIOS admission records in the SDMIS student login, or your study centre (AI) can confirm it.

The two conditions NIOS applies

The hall ticket page carries a note to learners that the hall ticket will be downloaded only if:

• you have paid the examination fee for the October 2026 public examination, and
• your photograph is available with NIOS.

These are conditions on your record, not on the website. No amount of retrying the page fixes a missing exam fee payment or a missing photograph.

If your hall ticket does not generate

NIOS prints one instruction on that page for this situation: contact your Regional Centre immediately. Do that first, not last — the exams begin on 22 October 2026 and the Regional Centre is the office that can correct your record.

Regional Centre contact details are on the NIOS website, and we keep the official helpline and email list on our NIOS contacts page.

Practical exams: already over for this session

The practical hall ticket option on the page is not for a future date. The October 2026 session practical examinations were held from 14 September to 29 September 2026 under Notification 57/2026. If you missed a practical, that is a Regional Centre matter, not something the theory hall ticket covers. Our PCP and practicals post explains how the practical side works.

Exam-day timing, from the notification itself

• Every paper starts at 2:30 P.M. — there is no morning shift on this date sheet.
• The finishing time differs by paper: the date sheet prints 4:00, 4:30, 5:00 or 5:30 P.M. against individual subjects. Check your own subject rather than assuming a three-hour paper.
• Learners are given 15 minutes to read the question paper before the examination commences.
• Notification 63/2026 states: “There will be no change in the dates of the examination.”

Nothing extra is payable at the centre

Notification 63/2026 states that the examination fees paid by candidates entitle them to appear in the theory examination, if otherwise eligible, without having to pay anything extra at the examination centre. If anyone at a centre asks you for money to sit a paper, that is not an NIOS charge. Our full NIOS fee list sets out what NIOS actually charges.

Three Regional Centre date changes

The date sheet itself prints three exceptions. If you sit under one of these Regional Centres, your paper moves:

• Papers of 22 October 2026 — Regional Centre Gangtok: 27 October 2026.
• Papers of 23 October 2026 — Regional Centre Gangtok: 3 November 2026.
• Papers of 20 November 2026 — Regional Centres Dehradun and Prayagraj: 3 December 2026.

Your hall ticket and your exam centre are the final word on where and when you sit. Read them against the date sheet.

What NIOS does not publish on these pages

Being straight about this: neither Notification 63/2026 nor the hall ticket page publishes a list of items to carry into the examination hall. So we are not going to invent one. What applies to you is the set of instructions printed on your own Intimation-cum-Hall Ticket and anything your examination centre tells you.

NIOS also prints a disclaimer on the hall ticket page: the information published online is for immediate information to examinees and cannot be treated as original documents, which are issued separately by NIOS.

Two things worth doing anyway, as our own advice rather than an NIOS rule: download the hall ticket early instead of on the morning of your first paper, and keep a printout as well as the PDF.

After the last paper

Notification 63/2026 says the result is likely to be declared about 7 weeks after the last date of the examination, and that no enquiries about the actual date of declaration will be entertained. The last listed paper is 7 December 2026, so a result in late January 2027 is Expected, not official — NIOS has published no result date. The result appears on the SDMIS portal.

Mark-Sheet-cum-Certificate and Migration-cum-Transfer Certificate are issued to successful candidates through their respective AIs; where an AI has been cancelled, the Regional Centre posts them to the residential address on record.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I download the NIOS October 2026 hall ticket?
On the SDMIS portal hall ticket page. Enter your 12-digit enrolment number, choose the hall ticket type and submit. Notification 63/2026 names the same portal.

Why is my NIOS hall ticket not generating?
NIOS generates it only if your October 2026 examination fee is paid and your photograph is available with NIOS. If both are in order and it still fails, NIOS says to contact your Regional Centre immediately.

What time does each paper start?
Every paper starts at 2:30 P.M. The end time differs by subject and is printed on the date sheet. You get 15 minutes to read the question paper first.

Do I pay anything at the exam centre?
No. The examination fee already paid entitles you to appear, with nothing extra payable at the centre.

Want your case checked?

NIOSPATH Admission Guidance (₹6,970) and Admission + Study Support (₹13,990) are independent services; official NIOS fees are separate. Email niospathindia@gmail.com or call or WhatsApp +91 91303 20252.