Related FAQs

What is the starting salary for contract agents?

Please find below the basic monthly salary (in €) for a 40 hour working week (applicable from 1 July 2019), 1st step:Function Group IV (grade 13-18): 3 531,26 - 6 547,83Function Group III (grade 8-12): 2 758,47 - 4 520,54Function Group II (grade 4-7): 2 154,58 - 3 120,96Function Group I (grade 1-3): 2 074,40 - 2 654,27You can find more information about the employment conditions in the Staff Regulations, as well as the latest information on salaries for officials and contract staff (annual update 2019).

How will candidates be selected in the CAST Permanent selection procedure?

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 tests if and when a need arises.The selection process consists of the following steps: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.When a need arises, the recruiting services pre-select (shortlist) from the database of all validated and visible...

What do the different function groups mean?

Contract staff positions 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 tasksII. clerical or secretarial tasks, office management and other equivalent tasksIII. executive tasks, drafting, accountancy and other equivalent technical tasksIV. administrative, advisory, linguistic and equivalent technical tasks.Please consult the European Commission specific rules for employment of contract agents in English, French or German.

What are the duties of a Contract Agent in the EU Institutions?

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.

What type of contract will I be offered?

At the time of recruitment, you may be offered a so-called "3a" or "3b" contract, depending on the needs of the service and legal arrangements of the recruiting institution. Please refer to Annex III, point 5 of the Call of expression of interest for detailed information about the contractual arrangements.

When and where will I sit the selection tests organised by EPSO in form of computer-based multiple choice tests (CBT) - CAST Permanent?

The CAST Permanent (see more information) selection process is different from Competitions. Only shortlisted candidates will be invited to sit the selection tests.If shortlisted, you will receive an invitation to book a test 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 will take place in testing centres worldwide. A list of available test centres will be accessible in your booking invitation. Please note that no reimbursement for travel costs is provided by EPSO.

What types of tests will I have to sit, after being pre-selected (shortlisted)?

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...

Will a better test result increase my chances of recruitment?

No. The results of the selection tests are pass/fail only. Your score will only be visible to you (via your EPSO Account). The recruiting services will only see if a candidate has passed or failed the tests.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 available and accessible to them directly in the candidates' database.

What happens if I pass the selection tests, but not the recruitment tests?

If you pass the selection tests for a certain profile and function group, your results will remain valid and visible in the database according to the rules defined in the Call for Expression of Interest (10 years for reasoning tests and 5 years for competency test).Recruiting services can select and invite you directly to a recruitment tests. Please note that the recruiting services can invite several candidates for each vacant position.Success in the selection tests and invitation for a recruitment tests do not guarantee recruitment. You may only be offered a position if you are...

Can I modify the content of my application once it has been validated?

With the exception of the CAST Permanent (see more information about this selection procedure), once validated, you can no longer modify 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.

What happens after I submit my application?

The recruiting services will search the 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 order to remain visible and searchable in the database.Only shortlisted candidates will be invited, via their EPSO Account, to book and sit 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...

What happens if I don't pass the selection tests?

If you don't obtain the minimum pass mark in each test (as specified in the call), you will not be invited for the recruitment tests (interview and other optional tests) and you will be blocked for six months (from the day when the results were published in your EPSO Account) from being invited to sit any other tests for that same or higher function group. Competency tests will only be marked if you pass the reasoning tests.If you pass the reasoning tests but fail the competency test, you will only need to sit the competency test if invited after the 6 months period. Please note that there is...

When will I get the results of my selection tests in the form of computer-based tests (CBT)?

You will receive your selection tests results via your EPSO Account approximately 2 weeks after the end of the testing period during which you have tested.Given the on-going nature of this procedure (thus the name CAST Permanent), there will be a number of testing periods per year.

What happens if I pass the selection tests?

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 yearscompetency test for 5 yearsThe 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...

When will I know who is interested in my profile?

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 tests comprising 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.

Why haven't I been shortlisted to sit the selection tests (computer-based tests - CBT)?

CAST selections usually attract a high number of applications. However, the recruiting services only select and shortlist candidates whose profiles best fit their requirements and needs. Recruitment needs may vary across jobs and institutions.

Can I reuse my previous EPSO application/s?

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).

If I passed the reasoning test and failed the competency test in EPSO/CAST/P1-4/2015, can I be invited to sit only the competency test in the CAST Permanent?

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 the CAST Permanent (see more information about this selection procedure).

Can I be preselected for more than one profile and/or function group?

Yes, you can be preselected for more than one profile and/or function group, but in most cases a candidate can only be tested for one profile in one function group per testing period. Therefore you will be invited to sit the tests for these different profiles/function groups in the same order as the requests were sent to EPSO by the recruiting services.However, the same candidate can be invited to competency tests for different profiles during the same testing period. This can happen when the candidate has already passed previously the reasoning tests.Neither the recruiter nor the candidates...

What should I do if I'm invited, but no longer interested in sitting the tests?

If you are no longer interested in sitting the tests, you can simply choose not to book the tests. If you have already booked, you can 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, your application is not blocked, and you can be preselected to test again by other recruiting services in the future.

What should I do if I'm no longer interested in being recruited?

In order for an application to remain visible to recruiters, candidates must confirm their continued interest every six months. If you are no longer interested in being tested and/or recruited for a specific profile/function group, simply do not reconfirm your interest via your EPSO account. Six months after the last confirmation of interest or update to your application, the application will become invisible to recruiters, but you will be able to reactivate your application at any time in the future.

There was a problem with one of my Multiple-Choice-questions for the contract agents' selection procedure (CAST Permanent), what can I do?

Should you have a serious doubt about the content of a test question, please contact EPSO only via the EPSO website (Candidate Contact Service) within 3 calendar days of the date of your computer-based tests, by describing what the question was about (content) in order to identify the question(s) concerned and explain the nature of the alleged error as clearly as possible. Please also mention your candidate number (see the respective Annex in the Call for expression of interest).If an identified item does not comply with EPSO's strict quality criteria despite thorough quality controls in...

How do I reschedule my CAST Permanent computer-based 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 uploads in your EPSO account (normally within 24 hours 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 and from the appointments shown in...

How will my language knowledge for the "CAST Permanent" translators’ profile be tested?

EPSO tests will only assess your languages as follows:your language 1 (one of the 24 official EU-languages with minimum level C1) will be tested through the multiple-choice-questions verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning testsyour language 2 (English, French or German with minimum level B2) will be tested through a multiple-choice-questions language comprehension test.Further information on the above tests is published on our sample tests’ page.Any additional test such as translation tests will be organised by the recruiting services, if required.

How many languages must I have to apply for the "CAST Permanent" translators’ profile?

Contrary to some open competitions (in particular competitions for linguists), the CAST Permanent selection procedure for translators requires knowledge of only two instead of three official EU languages:your language 1 must be one of the 24 official EU-languages with minimum level C1 andyour language 2 must be different from your language 1 and must be English, French or German with minimum level B2