If you are choosing between EPPGG and APO in the 2026 SEPLAG/RJ public-service exam, salary and academic eligibility are not the best starting point: the notice places the careers on equivalent terms in those respects. For all four application options, applicants need a completed higher-education degree in any field, the workweek is 40 hours, the application fee is BRL 125.00, and the stated initial compensation structure is the same, reaching up to BRL 14,387.75 depending on performance pay and qualification allowance.
The decision becomes clearer when you compare the duties assigned to each career, the specialty selected within it, the subject-specific exam content and the number of openings. The competition offers 60 positions: 30 for Public Policy and Government Management Specialist (EPPGG) and 30 for Planning and Budget Analyst (APO). Applications are open from 4:00 p.m. on September 10 through 4:00 p.m. on October 8, 2026.
The choice is between four career-and-specialty combinations
In practice, the application does not simply separate “EPPGG” from “APO.” Each career is tied to knowledge areas that change both the subject-specific objective exam and the written exam. That makes the specialty just as important as the career title.
| Option | Openings | Main emphasis of duties | Most distinctive subject-specific block |
|---|---|---|---|
| EPPGG — Public Management and Governance | 15 | Government management, governance, processes, coordination, evaluation and modernization of public management | Government Management and Public Governance |
| EPPGG — Public Policy | 15 | Design, implementation and evaluation of public policies, program coordination and results monitoring | Political Science and Public Policy |
| APO — Planning and Budget | 25 | State strategic planning, multi-year planning, budget guidelines, budgeting, public finance and fiscal management | Economics and Public Finance/Government Planning |
| APO — Information Technology | 5 | A planning-and-budget career with exam specialization in IT governance, data and analytics | IT Governance and Management plus Data/Analytics |
How EPPGG and APO duties differ
EPPGG: broad public policy and management work
Annex II assigns EPPGG duties such as designing, implementing and evaluating public policies; structuring management systems, processes and methods; coordinating programs, projects and partnerships; carrying out high-complexity planning, management and coordination work; and researching, monitoring and evaluating state programs and projects.
The scope is cross-cutting. The career can work across areas such as health, education, public security, employment and income, infrastructure, science and technology, public participation and regulation, as well as people management, procurement, information and organizational development.
APO: planning, budgeting, finance and fiscal management
For APO, the notice centers duties on state strategic planning and budget instruments: sectoral and regional plans, the multi-year plan, budget guidelines and annual budgets. It also includes the design and evaluation of planning, budgeting, public-finance and fiscal-management systems, monitoring budget execution, analyzing economic and fiscal legislation, and providing technical assistance to planning and budget systems.
There is overlap in planning, evaluation and support for public management, but the core described for APO is more directly tied to the state's planning and budget cycle. The Information Technology specialty does not remove that link to the APO career; it mainly changes the specialized content tested in the selection process.
The subject-specific exam is a practical decision criterion
All four options share 30 general-knowledge questions: 12 Portuguese Language, 6 English Language, 6 Logical-Mathematical Reasoning and 6 Current Affairs. The main difference lies in the 70 subject-specific questions.
- EPPGG — Public Management and Governance: Public Law (20), State, Government and Public Administration (10), Public Financial and Budget Administration (10), Government Management (15) and Public Governance (15).
- EPPGG — Public Policy: Public Law (20), State, Government and Public Administration (10), Public Financial and Budget Administration (10), Political Science (15) and Public Policy (15).
- APO — Planning and Budget: Public Law (20), State, Government and Public Administration (10), Public Financial and Budget Administration (10), Economics (15) and Public Finance and Government Planning (15).
- APO — Information Technology: Public Law (10), State, Government and Public Administration (10), Public Financial and Budget Administration (10), Information and Communication Technology Governance and Management (20) and Data and Analytics in Public Administration (20).
The written exam reinforces the same distinction. Every specialty completes a common case study worth 20 points on State, Government and Public Administration or Public Financial and Budget Administration. Two additional questions worth 10 points each change by specialty: Government Management and Public Governance; Political Science and Public Policy; Economics and Public Finance/Government Planning; or ICT Governance and Management and Data/Analytics.
Openings help frame the choice, but they do not reveal competition on their own
The distribution is 15 positions for EPPGG — Public Management and Governance, 15 for EPPGG — Public Policy, 25 for APO — Planning and Budget, and 5 for APO — Information Technology. These numbers matter because, as a rule, written exams are graded for candidates who pass the objective exam and rank within up to 10 times the number of openings for each career/specialty, including ties at the cutoff, plus the specific rule for candidates with disabilities established in the notice.
Still, more openings do not automatically mean an easier option. Until final applicant counts by specialty are officially released, there is no sound basis for turning opening counts into a competition estimate. Before applying, it is safer to combine the number of openings with genuine fit for the tested content and the duties.
What stays the same across the options
- A completed higher-education degree in any field.
- A 40-hour workweek.
- An application fee of BRL 125.00.
- Base salary of BRL 7,572.50, performance pay of up to BRL 3,786.25 and a qualification allowance, with the notice listing a total of up to BRL 14,387.75.
- Objective exam, written exam and credential evaluation; heteroidentification and biopsychosocial assessment apply when relevant to reserved-seat categories.
- Objective and written exams in the city of Rio de Janeiro on November 29, 2026.
Checklist before you submit the application
- Compare the work, not just the career title. EPPGG has broader public-policy and management duties; APO is centered on planning, budgeting, finance and fiscal management.
- Choose the specialty based on content you can sustain through exam day. The subject-specific block accounts for 70% of the objective questions and determines two of the three written components.
- Use the number of openings without assuming the competition level. APO — Planning and Budget has 25 openings, but that does not tell you how many applicants will select it.
- Pay attention to the written-exam grading cutoff. Objective-exam ranking matters because grading is limited to the quantity set for each career/specialty.
- Review your choice before confirmation. The notice requires applicants to indicate the career and specialty and states that, after confirmation, application data cannot be changed except in expressly listed situations.
Deadlines and current-notice points to watch
Applications close on October 8, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. The payment slip must be paid by October 9, subject to the rules in the notice. Applicants must indicate the career and specialty and upload a 3x4 portrait photo in JPEG or JPG format, up to 5 MB.
The exams take place on November 29, 2026: Subject-Specific Knowledge from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., followed in the afternoon by General Knowledge and the Written Exam from 2:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The credential evaluation is classificatory and is worth up to 10 points.
The third amendment, published on September 9, added a tie-break criterion related to service as a juror and specified how to provide proof. For eligibility, openings, compensation, subjects and duties, the main reference is the consolidated notice amended through September 9, 2026.
