NYC Correction Officer salary: the figures after the April amendment
New York City Department of Correction / DCAS · Exam No. 6303 · facts last checked August 15, 2026
Exam 6303's notice was amended on 29 April 2026, and the amendment was a pay revision rather than a rule change. It raised the minimum from $54,652 to $56,838, the basic maximum from $105,146 to $109,352, and each of the four longevity increments.
That is worth knowing for a reason beyond the numbers: candidates who had already applied did not need to apply again. An amendment that changes pay does not reopen the filing period, and it does not disturb an application already in.
What the amended notice states
The current minimum salary is $56,838 per annum, and incumbents receive salary increments reaching $109,352 at the completion of five and one half years of employment. The notice says the rate is subject to change, which is not boilerplate — this figure moved once already inside the life of one exam.
Longevity pay sits on top of the maximum. The amendment revised the four increments from $4,782, $5,782, $6,782 and $9,239 to $4,799, $5,799, $6,799 and $9,314 respectively.
Longevity is the part most comparisons miss
A pay comparison that stops at the basic maximum understates this title. The longevity increments are paid in addition to it, and the largest of them is worth $9,314 a year on its own.
They also arrive after the five-and-a-half-year ladder is climbed, which makes this a title whose earnings keep moving well past the point where most civil-service scales flatten.
How it compares with the other exams here
The basic maximum, $109,352, is identical to the NYPD Police Officer figure, and both are reached at five and one half years. The starting salary is higher here: $56,838 against $55,942.
Against the other two DCAS titles the gap is wide. School Safety Agent starts at $40,480 and reaches $58,345 — barely above this title's starting figure. Traffic Enforcement Agent starts at $48,719.
A New York State Court Officer-Trainee starts higher again at $58,100, but reaches $68,593 after the traineeship, so the two cross early and diverge sharply.
What the notice does not publish
Overtime rates, shift differentials and pension contributions are set by contract and by the retirement system rather than by the exam notice. A page that invented them would be guessing, and the notice itself is silent.
The probationary period is not tied to a pay step in the notice. The increments quoted assume continuous employment.
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Questions candidates ask
How much does a NYC Correction Officer make?
The amended notice for Exam 6303 states a current minimum salary of $56,838 per year, rising through increments to $109,352 at the completion of five and one half years of employment, with four longevity increments payable on top.
What did the April 2026 amendment change?
Pay only. It raised the minimum from $54,652 to $56,838, the basic maximum from $105,146 to $109,352, and the four longevity increments from $4,782, $5,782, $6,782 and $9,239 to $4,799, $5,799, $6,799 and $9,314. Candidates who had already applied did not need to reapply.
What is longevity pay worth?
Four increments, revised by the amendment to $4,799, $5,799, $6,799 and $9,314. They are paid in addition to the basic maximum rather than being steps toward it.
Does a Correction Officer earn more than an NYPD police officer?
At the start, slightly: $56,838 against $55,942. The basic maximum is identical at $109,352, and both titles reach it at five and one half years.
How long does it take to reach top pay?
Five and one half years of employment for the basic maximum, per the notice. Longevity increments follow after that.
Are these figures final?
No. The notice says the rate is subject to change, and this exam's own history shows why — the figures were revised mid-cycle by the April 2026 amendment.
Where these facts come from
Every figure on this page comes from the documents below, each with the date we last opened it. Where a notice is the authority, it wins over anything written here.
- DCAS Notice of Examination — Correction Officer, Exam No. 6303, amended 29 April 2026 (PDF)
Document dated April 29, 2026. Checked August 15, 2026.
- DCAS — Take an Exam (official filing schedule)
Checked August 2, 2026.
- New York Civil Service Law § 61 — selection from an eligible list
Checked August 2, 2026.
Keep reading
The full Correction Officer exam guide
Dates, the 11 ability areas, eligibility, scoring and pay in one place.
NYC Correction Officer Requirements (2026)
Exam 6303 offers more routes in than any other exam here: 39 college credits, or a high school diploma plus six months of military service, social services work or law enforcement.
NYC Correction Officer Test: Format and the 11 Abilities
Exam 6303 tests eleven ability areas — the widest set DCAS publishes — adding mathematical reasoning and number facility to the nine on the Police Officer notice.
NYC Correction Officer vs Police Officer: Which Exam to Take
Same pay ceiling, same five-and-a-half-year ladder, overlapping ability sets — but different entry routes, different calculator rules and very different filing calendars.
What Does a NYC Correction Officer Do?
Care, custody and control, as the notice puts it — and what that means day to day: counts, tool control, cell checks, escorts and the written record that has to survive scrutiny months later..