How RBI Assistant selection works
RBI Assistant is the Reserve Bank of India’s own clerical-level recruitment, run office-wise: you apply to one of 17 recruiting offices and compete for that office’s vacancies. The Panel Year 2025 advertisement sets three stages — an online preliminary exam, an online main exam and a Language Proficiency Test (LPT) in the official/local language of the state. As of 12 October 2026, the mains result (the LPT shortlist) is out, except for the Kanpur/Lucknow office, and the LPT dates have not been notified.
Stage-by-stage flow
- Prelims — online shortlisting testThree tests (English, Numerical Ability, Reasoning Ability). You must qualify in each test separately; from those who do, about 10 times the vacancies are shortlisted for mains in descending order of aggregate marks.
- Mains — the scored stageFive objective tests for 200 marks. Again you must qualify in each test; about 2 times the vacancies, high in merit on the mains aggregate, are called for the LPT.
- Provisional shortlist & documentsRBI publishes the roll numbers of provisionally shortlisted candidates on its website. Shortlisted candidates send their attestation forms, biodata forms and certificates to their Regional Office within 10 days.
- Language Proficiency TestMandatory and qualifying, held at the Regional Office in the official/local language of the state. A candidate not found proficient is disqualified.
- Medical & verificationAppointment needs a declaration of medical fitness and verification of your certificates — age, qualification, category and, where relevant, a relieving letter. RBI checks eligibility only at this final stage.
Prelims — the gateway
A 60-minute online objective test for 100 marks: English Language (30 questions, 30 marks), Numerical Ability (35 questions, 35 marks) and Reasoning Ability (35 questions, 35 marks), each with 20 minutes. One-fourth of the marks is deducted for each wrong answer. You must qualify in each test separately — for Panel Year 2025 the sectional cut-offs for General/EWS were 12 (English), 14 (Numerical Ability) and 14 (Reasoning) — and about 10 times the vacancies are shortlisted for mains on aggregate marks. The 2026 prelims were held on 11 and 13 April (30 April for Imphal and Kakching centres); the result came on 25 May 2026, and marksheets and cut-offs followed on 27 August 2026.
Mains — the decider
Five separately timed objective tests — Reasoning (40 questions, 40 marks, 30 min), English Language (40, 40, 30 min), Numerical Ability (40, 40, 30 min), General Awareness (40, 40, 25 min) and Computer Knowledge (40, 40, 20 min): 200 questions and 200 marks in 135 minutes, with one-fourth of the marks deducted for each wrong answer. You must qualify in each test; only candidates high in merit on the mains aggregate — about 2 times the vacancies — are called for the LPT. Scores from different sessions are equated and normalised. The 2026 main exam was scheduled for 7 June 2026, as announced by RBI, and the result came on 24 September 2026. RBI has said the mains cut-offs and marksheets will be displayed “shortly”; they are not yet published.
Final selection
The advertisement makes final selection depend on four things together: your performance in the online examination, in order of merit; qualifying the Language Proficiency Test; being declared medically fit; and verification of your certificates. The LPT is purely qualifying — it doesn’t add marks — but failing it disqualifies you. The 24 September 2026 shortlist is provisional, and only those who qualify the LPT are considered for appointment.
Language Proficiency Test
You must be proficient — able to read, write, speak and understand — in the language of the state (or one of the states) under the recruiting office you applied to. Candidates provisionally shortlisted from the mains take the LPT in the official/local language listed for that office in Appendix I of the advertisement. It is mandatory, there is no exemption, and it is held at the respective Regional Office, which intimates the LPT centres after the mains result. A candidate not found proficient is disqualified. The languages by office:
| Recruiting office | LPT language(s) |
|---|---|
| Ahmedabad | Gujarati |
| Bengaluru | Kannada |
| Bhopal | Hindi |
| Bhubaneswar | Odia |
| Chandigarh | Punjabi / Hindi |
| Chennai | Tamil |
| Guwahati | Assamese / Bengali / Khasi / Manipuri / Bodo / Mizo / English (English only for candidates from Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh) |
| Hyderabad | Telugu |
| Jaipur | Hindi |
| Jammu | Urdu / Hindi / Kashmiri |
| Kanpur & Lucknow | Hindi |
| Kolkata | Bengali / Nepali |
| Mumbai | Marathi / Konkani |
| Nagpur | Marathi / Hindi |
| New Delhi | Hindi |
| Patna | Hindi / Maithili |
| Thiruvananthapuram | Malayalam |
RBI has not announced LPT dates or the final result date. For LPT and other pre-recruitment queries, RBI asks candidates to contact the Regional Office they applied to; watch the Results page on opportunities.rbi.org.in.
Documents & appointment
RBI admits every applicant to the exams and determines eligibility only at the final stage, document verification. The 24 September 2026 result notice asks every provisionally shortlisted candidate to send, by courier or speed post, 6 original copies of the attestation form and 2 biodata forms, plus whichever apply: the OBC declaration and certificate, SC/ST certificate, PwBD certificate (and the Appendix XI certificate for scribe users with under 40% disability), ex-servicemen release papers or NOC, EWS certificate, a letter for staff candidates, and any age-relaxation certificate. They go to the Regional Director, HRMD of the Regional Office applied for, to reach within ten days of the result, in an envelope marked “Recruitment for the Post of Assistant – Panel Year 2025”. Appointment is also subject to being declared medically fit.
Crack RBI Assistant with your own daily plan
Daily targets, PYQ practice sets & timed mocks — to the RBI Assistant pattern.
Peak for mains, the stage that ranks you
Since the mains aggregate decides who gets an LPT call, JobSafal weights your plan toward mains — while making sure no single test falls below its sectional cut-off.
Mains-weighted plan
Clear every prelims test, then peak for the five mains tests that rank you.
Full mock tests
Real-interface mocks with rank comparison.
Date alerts
Call letter, result and LPT reminders.
PYQ practice sets
Practice sets in the RBI Assistant pattern for prelims and mains.
