Upcoming EPSO competitions, 2026–2027
Which EPSO competitions are open, which open next and what EPSO plans for 2027, taken from EPSO's own published schedule. Dates marked "to be confirmed" are marked so by EPSO.
Open for application now
Two competitions for permanent staff are open. Deadlines are at 12:00 midday, Brussels time.
| Competition | Grade | Opened | Application deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data management: data processing, analytics and statistics; librarianship and information science; records and archives managementEPSO/AST/158/26Tests and preparation | AST 3 | 6 October 2026 | 11 November 2026 |
| ICT: artificial intelligence; cybersecurityEPSO/AD/430/26 | AD 8 | 8 September 2026 | 13 October 2026 |
Opening before the end of 2026
EPSO has announced three more competitions for 2026. The notice of each one, with its eligibility rules and tests, is published on the opening day.
| Competition | Grade | Opens | Application deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawyer-linguists, Court of Justice (Bulgarian, German, Greek, Spanish, Irish, Maltese, Dutch, Romanian)EPSO/AD/431/26 | AD 7 | 21 October 2026 | 25 November 2026 |
| Lawyer-linguists and legal revisers, European Parliament, Council and Commission (Spanish, Finnish, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Maltese, Portuguese, Swedish)EPSO/AD/432/26 | AD 7 | 4 November 2026to be confirmed | 8 December 2026to be confirmed |
| Lawyers: artificial intelligence law; criminal law; procurement law; litigationEPSO/AD/433/26 | AD 7 | 9 December 2026to be confirmed | 20 January 2027to be confirmed |
Tests under way
AD5 generalists (EPSO/AD/427/26)
Applications are closed. Part 1 (verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning) starts in November 2026; Part 2 (EU knowledge, digital skills and the essay) follows in 2027.
CAST Permanent
Contract staff selection, open all year. The next reasoning test session is on 19 November 2026.
Planned for 2027
EPSO plans to open the following competitions in 2027. EPSO states that the months, the fields and the grades are all still to be confirmed.
- February 2027Law, 4 fieldsAD
- March 2027Assistants in the field of parliamentary workAST
- April 2027Security, defence and international affairsAD
- May 2027Proofreaders and editors (Luxembourg), 8 languagesAST
- June 2027Translators: Bulgarian, German, Finnish, Irish, Croatian, Portuguese, Slovenian, SwedishAD
- July 2027Lawyer-linguists (European Parliament, Council and Commission)AD
- September 2027Financial managementAD
- November 2027ICTAST
Which tests to expect
The two competitions open today both include reasoning tests, a field-related test and a written essay on EU matters. For EPSO/AST/158/26 the notice sets verbal reasoning at 20 questions in 35 minutes, numerical at 10 in 20 and abstract at 10 in 10: the same format as the AD5 and CAST reasoning tests.
For a competition that is only announced, the tests are not known until its notice is published. Reasoning practice carries over from one competition to the next; a field-related test does not. EPSO Genius covers verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning, EU knowledge and digital skills.
Frequently asked questions
Which EPSO competitions are open now?▼
On 6 October 2026, two: EPSO/AST/158/26 (AST 3 assistants in data management, three fields), open until 11 November 2026, and EPSO/AD/430/26 (AD 8 administrators in ICT: artificial intelligence and cybersecurity), open until 13 October 2026. CAST Permanent, for contract staff, is open all year.
What is the next EPSO competition to open?▼
EPSO/AD/431/26, for lawyer-linguists at the Court of Justice (AD 7, eight languages), on 21 October 2026 with a deadline of 25 November 2026. Two more follow, with dates EPSO still has to confirm: lawyer-linguists for the Parliament, Council and Commission on 4 November, and lawyers in four fields on 9 December.
Will there be a generalist AD5 competition in 2027?▼
EPSO's plan for 2027, as published on 22 September 2026, lists eight specialist competitions and no generalist AD5 competition. The AD5 competition launched in 2026 (EPSO/AD/427/26) is still running: its reasoning tests start in November 2026 and its second part takes place in 2027. EPSO can change its plan.
Do all EPSO competitions have reasoning tests?▼
The two competitions open today do, and so do the AD5 competition and CAST. For the others, the tests are set by each notice of competition, published on the day applications open.
Source: EPSO, "Upcoming opportunities" (EPSO's last update: 22 September 2026) and "Open competitions for permanent staff", read on 6 October 2026. selection.eu-careers.europa.eu
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