Karnataka SSP Scholarship 2026-27: Department Deadlines

Who gets what: the department structure

SSP does not have one eligibility rule; each department's scheme has its own income ceiling and academic condition, and the portal routes you to the department that matches your category. The established ceilings are:

• Social Welfare Department (SC): annual family income up to ₹2,50,000 for the post-matric scholarship, which combines full or partial fee reimbursement with a maintenance allowance. SC students admitted to engineering or medical seats through KCET, COMEDK or PGCET in the ₹2.5–10 lakh income band have a separate 50% fee-waiver scheme.
• Tribal Welfare Department (ST): income up to ₹2,50,000, post-matric from Class 11 upwards, with the same fee-plus-maintenance structure. Departmental deadline this cycle: 31 December 2026.
• Backward Classes Welfare: Category 1 up to ₹2,50,000; Categories 2A, 3A and 3B up to ₹1,00,000. This is the strictest of the big departments and the one where most income-related rejections land — a 2A student at ₹1.2 lakh is simply ineligible. Departmental deadline: 31 October 2026.
• Minority Welfare (Muslim, Christian, Jain, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi): post-matric merit-based schemes generally need 50% in the previous exam, income up to ₹2 lakh, plus merit-cum-means lines with higher ceilings. Departmental deadline: 30 November 2026.
• Disability Welfare: schemes for students with disabilities across classes. Departmental deadline: 30 November 2026.
• Pre-matric (Classes 1–10): SC/ST income up to ₹2.5 lakh, OBC/minority up to ₹1 lakh, routed through schools with SATS IDs.

One practical point: all caste and income certificates must carry a valid RD (Registration) number issued by Karnataka authorities; certificates without it are rejected automatically. Have your Kutumba family ID in order too — the portal cross-checks family and income data through it.

Deadlines for 2026–27

SSP does not have one common last date. The portal itself publishes department-wise deadlines, and on 2026-10-20 they read: Social Welfare 31 January 2027, Tribal Welfare 31 December 2026, Backward Classes Welfare 31 October 2026, Minority Welfare 30 November 2026, Technical Education 31 October 2026, Brahmin Development Board 31 December 2026, Disability Welfare 30 November 2026, Arya Vysya 30 November 2026. Treat these as the dates on the day they were read — departments extend, and the only date that governs your application is the one against your scheme in your login.

How to apply

• Open ssp.karnataka.gov.in and choose Create Account. The portal completes Aadhaar e-KYC and generates your SSP Scholarship ID — note it down; it is your key for every later status check.
• Verify your mobile number and email by OTP, create your password, and log in.
• Complete the application: SSLC registration number, college and course registration details, category and income details exactly as your RD-numbered certificates state, and your bank account, which must be NPCI-mapped (Aadhaar-seeded).
• Upload caste, income, marksheet, bonafide certificate and fee receipt scans. Detained or discontinued students are not eligible for post-matric — only promoted, continuing students.
• Submit, download the acknowledgement, and track verification. Your college verifies the application online; the district authority verifies documents; payment follows by DBT.

Documents you will need

Aadhaar of the student (and parents where asked); caste certificate with RD number; income certificate with RD number; SSLC registration number and previous exam marksheet; college registration number and bonafide certificate; fee receipt; hostel certificate if you claim hosteller maintenance; bank passbook of the Aadhaar-seeded account; and for pre-matric, the SATS ID issued by the school. SC/ST applicants also face the portal's OTR (One-Time Registration) entry requirement.

Renewal

Continuing students apply for renewal from the same account each year, not a fresh registration. Renewal needs promotion to the next year and an updated marksheet and fee receipt; a detained year ends the chain for that year.

Where applications fail

Income certificates without a valid RD number are the classic Karnataka failure. Next come Aadhaar–bank seeding left undone, SSLC registration numbers mistyped, category selected for the wrong department, and college verification left pending — the portal slows badly near deadlines, so applying in the last week is genuinely risky. For technical trouble the SSP helpline is 1902 (toll-free); Tribal Welfare also lists 9482300400 and 080-22261702.

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