CAST Permanent | EU Careers (2023)

Candidates to contract agent selection procedures (CAST/P) cannot link supporting documents to their CAST/P application(s). Candidates will be requested to provide their supporting documents to the recruiting services, in general at the interview stage.

You can request special adjustments of selection tests for the CAST Permanent procedure in your application form by ticking the box ‘special requirements’. You will also need to fill in a detailed information form on your special needs and send us relevant supporting documents.

Should you be granted reasonable accommodations for the computer-based tests, you will be informed on the details before your test date. In some cases, defining and putting in place the necessary adjustments may take some time, and therefore you might be invited to take the tests during the next testing period. Should this be the case we will inform you as soon as possible.

EPSO will make sure that all pre-selected (shortlisted) candidates are invited and tested in the best possible conditions.

Please note that other tests such as interviews are organised directly by the recruiting services. Should you need special adjustments at the stage of the recruitment tests, please inform the recruiter as soon as you have received an invitation for the recruitment tests. Please note that EPSO will not share any information regarding your condition or special needs with the recruiters.

No. Creating more than one application for the same profile, including with different target languages is not permitted.

You can declare all you languages under ‘Linguistic skills’ in the application form if you have a working knowledge of more than two official languages. This will allow the recruiting services to find your application according to their specific language needs.

EPSO tests will only assess your knowledge of languages as follows:

• Your language 1 (L1), which can be any of the 24 official EU languages, will be tested through the verbal, numerical, and abstract reasoning tests in a form of multiple-choice questions. Your knowledge of L1 needs to be at least at level C1 (proficient user).
• Your language 2 (L2), which can be chosen from amongst English, French and German, but must be different from L1, will be tested through a language comprehension test in a form of multiple-choice questions. Your knowledge of L2 needs to be at least at level B2 (independent user).

Further information on the above tests is published on our sample tests’ page.

Recruiting services may organise additional tests, such as translation tests.

During the booking and testing periods you can reschedule your multiple-choice question test appointment, subject to availability and under the following conditions:

• you should first wait until the original booking confirmation uploadsin your EPSO account (normally within 24hours of booking) as it contains the link, the confirmation number and the code you will need in order to reschedule the appointment;
• you can reschedule your original appointment up to the day before;
• you can only choose a new appointment within the same testing period andfromthe appointments shown in the system;
• you have the possibility to change test centre location (subject to availability);
• you must complete the rescheduling procedure to the very last screen, failing whichyour original appointment will remain valid;
• you have to print and bring the updated booking confirmation to the test centre.

Please consult the following link for step-by-step screenshots of the rescheduling procedure.

Exceptional circumstances

In exceptional circumstances, such as a serious illness, birth of a child, death of a spouse, child, parent, or sibling, EPSO may authorise rescheduling, subject to availability.

You should contact EPSO without delay, with your candidate number and all relevant documentary evidence, for example a medical certificate,which has to obligatorily cover the appointment date.

You cannot request rescheduling (including for exceptional circumstances)from one testing period to another.You may only be re-invited to book a test in another testing period if you are pre-selected again by any recruiting service.

You will be informed as soon as a decision has been taken; please note however that only duly substantiated exceptional circumstances as detailed above will be taken into account.

Should you have a serious doubt about the content of a test question please contact EPSO's Candidate Contact Service within threecalendar days of your tests clearly stating the circumstances and your candidate number (see the procedure in the Call for Expression of Interest).

If an identified item does not comply with the EPSO's quality criteria, the following corrective measures will be applied:
- The item will be corrected or taken out of the database;
- Corrective measures may be taken in instances where EPSO finds that a candidate was negatively impacted.

If you are no longer interested in being tested and/or recruited for a specific profile/function group, you can simply stop confirming your interest via your EPSO account. Six months after the last confirmation of interest or update to your application for that profile/function group, the application will become invisible to recruiters.

You will be able to reactivate your application at any time in the future.

If you are no longer interested in sitting the tests, you can simply choose not to book a test.

If you have already booked a test, you should cancel the appointment online up to 48 hours before the date of the test, via the link in the booking confirmation in your EPSO account.

If you decide not to sit the tests, this will not affect your eligibility and your application is not blocked.

You can be preselected to test again by other recruiting services in the future.

Yes, you can be pre-selected (shortlisted) for more than one profile and/or function group.

If pre-selected more than once (by more than one recruiter) for the same profile in the same function group, you will only take the tests once.

If pre-selected for different profiles/function groups, you will be invited to sit the tests for these profiles/function groups in the order in which the requests were sent to EPSO by the recruiting services.

Neither the recruiter nor the candidates or EPSO can influence the order of test requests being processed.

In case you have already passed the reasoning tests, you could be invited to sit competency* tests for different profiles during the same testing period.

*Candidates for linguistic profiles (proofreaders and translators) sit a language comprehension test instead of a competency test.

No, if you passed only reasoning tests in EPSO/CAST/P1-4/2015, you will be invited (if preselected again) to sit the complete set of selections tests(the reasoning and competency tests) in theCAST Permanent (seemore informationabout this selection procedure).

Only candidates pre-selected (shortlisted) by the recruiting services will be invited to sit the selection tests.

If shortlisted, you will receive in your EPSO account an invitation to booka test. This invitation is usually published on the first day of the booking period in your EPSO account. Please check your EPSO account at least twice a week.You must book and sit your test within the given timeframes.

The tests are computer-based multiple-choice tests. They will take place in testing centres worldwide.

A list of available test centres will be accessible in your booking invitation and on Prometric website.

Please note that no reimbursement for travel costs is provided by EPSO.

Please find below the basic monthly salary (in €) for a 40 hour working week (applicable from 1 July 2020), 1^st step:

Function Group IV (grade 13-18): 3555,98 - 6593,66
Function Group III (grade 8-12): 2777,78 - 4552,18
Function Group II (grade 4-7): 2169,66 - 3142,81
Function Group I (grade 1-3): 2 088,92- 2672,85

You can find more information about the employment conditions in theStaff Regulations, as well as the latest information onsalaries for officials and contract staff(annual update applicable from July 2020).

If pre-selected and successful in the tests, the recruiting services interested in your profile will contact you (via the e-mail address in your EPSO Account) and invite you for a recruitment testcomprising interview and other optional tests.

EPSO does not provide information to candidates on which recruiting service is interested in them at any stage of the selection procedure.

The recruiting services may invite several candidates for an interview (and possibly other tests) for each vacant position. It is up to the recruiting services to provide the feedback on the outcome of the interview (and other tests if applicable).

However, should you not be successful on that occasion, your selection test results will remain valid(*), counting from the date when they are published in your EPSO Account, for:

• 10 years (reasoning tests)
• 5 years (competency tests)
• 5 years (language comprehension tests)

Recruiting services may again pre-select (shortlist) and invite you for an interview (and for other tests).

Don’t forget to update your application(s) at least every six months if you wish to remain visible to the recruiting services.

(*) This only applies to CAST/P procedures. Note that your tests results in the CAST/P selection procedure are not valid for other selection procedures.

If you fail the reasoning tests, the competency* test that you took at the same time will not be marked.

If you pass the reasoning tests, but fail the competency* test, your reasoning tests results will nevertheless remain valid.

Moreover, once you fail a test, the following rules apply:

• If you fail the reasoning test, you cannot be invited to take another reasoning test for the same or higher function group for the next 6 months. However, you can still be invited to take reasoning tests for lower function groups.
• If you fail the competency* test, you cannot be invited to take another competency* test for the next 6 months in the same profile at the same or higher function group. However, you may still take competency* tests for the same profile for a lower function group or for a different profile.

The 6-month period is counted from the day when the results are published in your EPSO Account.

Please note that the recruiting services are not obliged to invite you for re-testing, after the 6-month period is over.

*Candidates for linguistic profiles (proofreaders and translators) sit a language comprehension test instead of a competency test.

If you pass the selection tests (you must obtain the minimum pass mark in each test as specified in the call), you will be invited for an interview by the recruiting service.

The validity of the results (from the date when the results have been published in your EPSO Account) is following:

• reasoning tests for 10 years
• competency test for 5 years

The results are always valid for the profile and competency area in which you were tested and also to any lower function group.

Example: You pass both the reasoning and the competency tests for the Profile Law FGIV.

These results will be valid for Profile Law FGIV and also for any lower function group within the Law profile, in this case FGIII.

That means you might receive invitations for interview for vacancies in both Function groups, III and IV.

However, should you pass the tests for Profile Law FGIII, these will not be valid for any higher FG, in this case for FGIV.

No. The recruiting services can only see if a candidate have passed or failed the tests.

Your score will only be visible to you, via your EPSO Account.

The recruiting services should not require you to hand over any proof of succeeding in EPSO tests since all the necessary information on your status is accessible to them in the candidates' database.

CAST Permanent selection procedure attracts a high number of applications. However, the recruiting services only pre-select and shortlist candidates whose profiles best fit their needs.

You will receiveyour selection tests resultsvia your EPSO Accountapproximately2 weeks after the end ofthe testing period during which you have been tested.

Testing periods are organised regularly throughout the year. Please refer to the timeline available on each dedicated page of the profile.

If pre-selected (shortlisted) by a recruiting service, you will be invited to sit two types of selection tests.

First, you will undergo a series of multiple-choice tests to assess your general aptitudes in verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning (in your Language 1).

Then, you will sit a specific competency test* for a profile and function group you have applied for (in your Language 2).

If you already passed the reasoning tests for the same or higher function group, but not the competency test*, you will only be invited to sit the competency test*.

EPSO does not organise competency tests for profiles in function group I. If you passed reasoning tests for function group I, you may be invited to a competency test organised by the recruiting service.

For all function groups, the recruiting service may ask you to sit tests that it considers relevant for the job, such as a drafting test, a driving test, etc. All the information about these tests will be provided by the recruiting services.

Please check our sample tests (‘Contract Agents’ – ‘Competency-based test’) for further information.

*Candidates for linguistic profiles (proofreaders and translators) sit a language comprehension test instead of a competency test.

The recruiting serviceswill searchthe database of all registered candidates and shortlist those who best fit the specific needs of the service. Make sure to update your application every six months in orderto remain visible and searchable in the database.

Only shortlistedcandidates will be invited,via their EPSO Account, to book andsit a selection test organised by EPSO.

Check your EPSO Account regularly. If shortlisted, on the day of the opening of the booking period,you will receive an invitation to book a test date. In general, the link to the booking page will only be active for several days. You will be able to select a test date from a range of suggested dates immediatlyfollowing the period of booking.

The indicative dates of the booking and testing periods are published on the profiles’ pages on our web site.

If you fail to book the test appointment, if you cancel the booking, or if you are absent at the test centre, you will not be automatically invited again to sit the same test. You might be preselected at a later stage for another opportunity.

The recruiting servicesare in charge of searchingand preselecting candidates.EPSO is only responsible for inviting candidates to book the tests and for the organisation of the selection tests.

Submitting an application in CAST Permanent selection procedure does not in itself mean that you will be invited to sit the tests. Only those candidates shortlisted by the recruiting services will be invited to sit the selection testsif and when a need arises.

The selection process consists of the following steps:

1. Candidates complete and validate their application(s) and update them at least every six months to confirm their interest and to remain visible in the database.
2. When a need arises, the recruiting services pre-select (shortlist) from the database of all validated and visible applications a number of candidates whose profiles best fit the requirements of the services.
3. Pre-selected (shortlisted) candidates are invited to the selection tests organised by EPSO. These are computer-based multiple-choice question tests, organised in test centres worldwide.
4. Candidates who pass the selection tests, will be invitedto recruitment tests organised by the recruiting services. Such tests may comprise an interview and other forms of evaluation.
5. Candidates who are successful at the recruitment tests, may receive an offer of employment.

With the exception of the CAST Permanent (see more information about this selection procedure), oncevalidated, you can no longermodify the content of your application, as EPSO will immediately process the data.

For CAST Permanent:

You can modify the content of your application(s) for the CAST Permanent selection procedure and upload or update your CV within your EPSO Account at any time.

Don’t forget to update your application(s) at least every six months if you wish to remain visible to the recruiting services. This applies regardless of whether you passed or failed the tests.

All application/s for EPSO/CAST/P/1-4/2015 (CAST for Executive Agencies) validated by 25.11.2016 (noon Brussels time) were automatically migrated to the CAST Permanent (EPSO/CAST/P/1-4/2017).

If you have already successfully passed the selection tests organised by EPSO for the EPSO/CAST/P/1-4/2015, your results remain valid (10 years for reasoning tests, 5 years for the competency test).

The specific duties will depend on the profile you are interested in. See Annex I to the Call for Expressions of Interest for detailed examples of duties per profile.

Contract staff are employed for a limited period, with an initial contract of 6-12 months.

In some EU bodies, it may be possible for the contract to be renewed for an indefinite duration.

Contractstaffpositions are available for a wide range of jobs, requiring different levels of qualifications. They are divided into four function groups:

• I. manual and administrative support-service tasks
• II. clerical or secretarial tasks, office management and other equivalent tasks
• III. executive tasks, drafting, accountancy and other equivalent technical tasks
• IV. administrative, advisory, linguistic and equivalent technical tasks.

Please consult theEuropean Commission specific rules for employment of contract agents inEnglish, FrenchorGerman.