काम CODE

About the National Classification of Occupations

The National Classification of Occupations (NCO-2015) is India's official system for classifying jobs. Published by the Directorate General of Employment under the Ministry of Labour & Employment, it organises every occupation into a five-level hierarchy — from broad Divisions down to specific occupational titles — so employment data can be gathered, compared and interpreted consistently.

Why NCO exists

A modern economy needs a shared vocabulary for work. NCO-2015 replaces NCO-2004 and aligns India with the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-2008), reflecting new roles in information technology, healthcare, media, digital services and skilled trades. Each occupation is assigned a unique code — for example 2512.0100 for a Software Developer — which follows the pattern Division → Sub-Division → Group → Family → Occupation.

Why occupational classification matters

Government Usage
Ministries and state agencies use NCO codes for labour statistics, schemes and policy design.
Employment Surveys
Enables consistent measurement of workforce composition across surveys such as PLFS.
Career Guidance
NCS uses NCO codes to match candidates with occupations and skilling pathways.
Skill Development
Aligns with QP/NOS frameworks under NSQF for training and certification.
International Compatibility
Mapped to ISCO-2008 for cross-country labour data comparisons.
Statistical Integrity
Provides a common language of occupation for research and public data.

How the code structure works

  • Division (1 digit) — broad occupational family such as “Professionals”.
  • Sub-Division (2 digits) — refines the division (e.g. Science & Engineering Professionals).
  • Group (3 digits) — occupations sharing similar tasks.
  • Family (4 digits) — a set of closely related occupations.
  • Occupation (8-digit code, e.g. 2512.0100) — the specific job title. The last digits also encode QP/NOS mapping when relevant.

Skill levels

NCO defines four ISCO-aligned skill levels reflecting education, training and complexity of tasks. Skill Level I covers elementary occupations; Skill Level IV covers highly-specialised professionals. Managers and legislators are treated as a distinct group.