Guide

NAPOLCOM exam requirements: eligibility, documents, and the waivers people ask about.

There are two sets of requirements, and confusing them is how applications fail. The first is eligibility: whether the law lets you be appointed a Patrolman or Patrolwoman at all, which is what the examination exists to certify. The second is the paperwork NAPOLCOM asks for when you appear at its regional office to complete your application. This guide covers both, cites where each rule comes from, and explains the waivers people ask about most, height and age, in the terms the memorandum circular actually uses.

Last reviewed: September 2026
Read: 3 min
Source: NAPOLCOM official

Exam guide

NAPOLCOM Exam Requirements: Who Can Take It and What to Bring

Short answer

To sit the PNP Entrance Examination you must be a Filipino citizen with a bachelor's degree, aged 21 to 30, and meet the height standard: 1.62 m for men and 1.57 m for women under RA 8551, waivable down to 1.57 m and 1.52 m. For on-site processing you bring your online registration notice, two passport photos, a valid ID, your PSA birth certificate, your transcript or diploma, and ₱400.

Quick facts

Citizenship: Filipino
Education: Bachelor's degree
Age: 21 to 30 (waivable 20 to 35, quota permitting)
Height: 1.62 m men / 1.57 m women, waivable to 1.57 m / 1.52 m
Fee: ₱400, paid at processing

Key takeaways

The qualifications come from RA 6975 as amended by RA 8551, not from the exam announcement. The announcement applies them.
A bachelor's degree from a recognised institution is required. There is no exception for criminology graduates or anyone else; the exemption that exists is from the exam, not the degree.
The statutory height is 1.62 m for men and 1.57 m for women. NAPOLCOM may waive down to 1.57 m and 1.52 m, and the exam announcement uses the waiver floor.
Age waivers exist only when qualified applicants fall short of the quota, and only between 20 and 35.
On-site processing needs five documents and the fee. Missing one means coming back on a day you may not have.

Eligibility: the qualifications the law sets

The minimum qualifications for initial appointment to the PNP are in Section 30 of RA 6975 as amended by Section 14 of RA 8551. NAPOLCOM's examination announcement applies them to the entrance exam, because there is no point examining somebody who could not be appointed.

Minimum qualifications for appointment to the PNP (RA 6975, Sec. 30, as amended by RA 8551, Sec. 14)
Requirement	Standard	Notes
Citizenship	Citizen of the Philippines	No exception.
Character	Good moral conduct	Not dishonourably discharged from military or civilian employment, not convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude.
Education	Formal baccalaureate degree from a recognised institution	Graduating students should confirm with their regional office whether a certificate of candidacy for graduation is accepted for the sitting.
Eligibility	PNP Entrance Examination passer, or another eligibility the law accepts	This is what the exam confers.
Age	Not less than 21 nor more than 30	Waivable between 20 and 35 in limited circumstances, below.
Height	At least 1.62 m (men) / 1.57 m (women)	Waivable to 1.57 m / 1.52 m, below.
Weight	Not more or less than 5 kg from the standard for height, age and sex	Assessed in PNP recruitment rather than at the exam.
Health	Physically and mentally healthy; no drug dependence	Assessed in PNP recruitment through the medical, neuro-psychiatric and drug tests.

Source: Republic Act No. 8551, the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998, Republic Act No. 6975, the DILG Act of 1990 that created the PNP

The height and age waivers, as the circular states them

NAPOLCOM Memorandum Circular No. 2013-004 sets the guidelines for waiving the minimum qualifications for initial appointment. Two waivers are commonly asked about, and both are narrower than the folklore around them.

Height. A waiver may be granted to a male applicant who is at least 1.57 m and to a female applicant who is at least 1.52 m. Below those floors there is no waiver. NAPOLCOM's entrance examination announcement states the waiver floors as the height requirement for sitting the exam, which is why you will see 1.57 m and 1.52 m quoted as the exam's minimum. Passing the exam at the waiver height does not itself grant the waiver; that is decided in recruitment.

Age. The age requirement may be waived only when the number of qualified applicants falls below the approved quota, and the applicant must be not less than 20 nor more than 35. In practice this means a 31-year-old cannot count on a waiver; it depends on whether the recruiting unit is short of qualified applicants that cycle.

The exam is not the waiver. NAPOLCOM confers eligibility on passers. Whether a waivable shortfall in height or age is actually waived is decided when you apply to the PNP, under the quota and the circular. Sit the exam if you are within the waiver range, and treat the waiver as a separate step.

Source: NAPOLCOM Memorandum Circular No. 2013-004 on waivers of the minimum qualifications, Republic Act No. 8551, the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998

Who else sits the entrance exam

The entrance examination is also required of Patrolmen and Patrolwomen who hold a temporary appointment because they lacked the appropriate eligibility when appointed. For them the exam is how the appointment becomes permanent. The same paper, the same passing score, a different reason for sitting it.

Serving officers going up a rank do not sit the entrance examination. They sit the promotional examination, which has four classes that follow the rank sought and a different scope.

Source: NAPOLCOM's examination information page (Regional Office CALABARZON)

Documents for on-site processing

Online registration books an appointment. The application is completed in person at your regional office during the processing period, and the documents below are what the offices ask for. Bring originals and photocopies; offices keep the copies.

The printed or electronic notice from your online registration, showing your appointment date.
Two recent passport-size coloured photos with a white background and a name tag.
One valid government-issued ID showing your date of birth: national ID, passport, driver's licence, postal ID or similar.
Your birth certificate on PSA security paper, or a Local Civil Registrar copy authenticated by the PSA.
Proof of your degree: a transcript of records with the CHED special order, or your diploma or certificate of graduation, from a CHED-recognised school.
The examination fee of ₱400 for the entrance examination.

Regional offices vary slightly. The list above is what NAPOLCOM's regional offices have published for the 2026 sittings. Some offices ask for the photocopies to be certified true copies. Check the notice your regional office posted for its sitting before your appointment day.

Source: the Philippine News Agency's report on the NAPOLCOM online scheduling system, the Philippine Information Agency's report of NAPOLCOM's 2026 examination schedule

What the exam does not check, and recruitment does

Weight, physical fitness, medical and dental health, psychological fitness, drug use and character are all qualifications for appointment, but none is assessed at the examination. They are assessed when you apply to the PNP after you have your eligibility: the physical agility test, the physical, medical and dental examination, the neuro-psychiatric examination, the drug test and the character and background investigation. Knowing that now lets you sit the exam without waiting to fix something the exam does not measure, and prepare for those stages in parallel.

Source: Republic Act No. 8551, the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998

Frequently asked questions

Can I take the NAPOLCOM exam without a degree?

No. RA 8551 requires a formal baccalaureate degree from a recognised institution for appointment, and the entrance examination applies the same requirement. Graduating students should ask their regional office whether a certificate of candidacy for graduation is accepted for that sitting.

I am 5'2" (1.57 m). Can I take it as a man?

Yes. The statutory height for men is 1.62 m, but NAPOLCOM may waive it down to 1.57 m under MC 2013-004, and the examination announcement uses the waiver floor. Whether the waiver is granted is decided in PNP recruitment, not by the exam.

I am 31. Is there an age waiver?

Only in limited circumstances. The age requirement can be waived between 20 and 35, but only when qualified applicants fall below the approved quota. It is not something an individual applicant can secure in advance.

Do criminology graduates have to take the NAPOLCOM exam?

Registered criminologists hold a board eligibility the law accepts for appointment, so many do not sit the entrance examination. The degree requirement still applies to everyone; what a criminology board passer is exempt from is the exam, not the qualification.

How much is the NAPOLCOM exam fee?

₱400 for the PNP Entrance Examination, paid at the regional office during on-site processing. Promotional examination fees are ₱400 to ₱600 depending on the class.

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