IBPS SO 2026 Exam Date Out, Notification Expected in June for Specialist Officer

The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) conducts the IBPS SO Exam for the Specialist Officer post in various Public Sector Banks (PSBs). This exam offers opportunities for candidates with professional qualifications in fields like IT, HR, Law, Marketing, and Agriculture to secure prestigious officer-level positions. Candidates who apply for the SO post will have to go through multiple stages, like Prelims, Mains, and Interview. So, if you are aspiring for a specialised banking career can find all essential details about eligibility, exam dates, syllabus, and selection process in this article. The IBPS Calendar 2026 has been published along with the Prelims and Mains Exam Schedule on 16th January 2026.

IBPS SO 2026 Exam

IBPS SO (CRP SPL) is a national-level exam conducted annually by IBPS. After PO and Clerk, it is one of the most sought-after exam options for candidates with a professional degree. Every year, thousands of candidates appear for this exam to secure posts that involve strategic, analytical, and technical responsibilities within public sector banks. The exam not only tests a candidate’s subject knowledge but also their ability to apply it in real banking operations. Check the highlights of the exam below. 

What are the posts offered under IBPS SO 2026?

The posts under IBPS SO 2026 recruitment include:

• IT Officer
• Agricultural Field Officer
• HR/Personnel Officer
• Marketing Officer
• Law Officer
• Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I).
  

IBPS SO 2026 Notification PDF

The IBPS SO Notification 2026 PDF will be released by the IBPS on its official website, www.ibps.in. This detailed notification will include all essential information about the exam, such as the number of vacancies, post-wise eligibility criteria, important dates, exam pattern, syllabus, selection process, and application procedure.

IBPS SO 2026 Exam Dates Out

The IBPS SO Exam 2026 will be conducted in two stages – Prelims and Mains. As per the annual calendar, the IBPS SO Prelims Exam 2026 is scheduled to be held on 29 August 2026, while the Mains exam will take place on 1st November 2026. Candidates are advised to regularly check the official IBPS website for confirmation of exam dates.

IBPS Calendar 2026 Out - Click to Check​​

IBPS SO 2026 Vacancy

IBPS notifies details of the IBPS SO Vacancy along with the official notification only. So, there is no confirmation regarding the latest vacancy. But it will be announced soon in June 2026. In the meantime, candidates can take reference from the previous year vacancy which is mentioned both category-wise and post-wise in the table below.

IBPS SO 2026 Eligibility Criteria

The candidates who are interested in applying for the posts of IBPS SO in various departments can go through the minimum IBPS SO Eligibility Criteria below in terms of Nationality, Educational Qualification, and age limit.

IBPS SO 2026 Nationality

The candidate who is going to apply for the IBPS SO exam should have a citizenship of India issued by the government of India. The following candidates can also apply for the IBPS SO exam:

• a subject of Nepal or
• a subject of Bhutan or
• a Tibetan Refugee, who came to India before 1st January 1962, to permanently settle in India or
• Persons migrated from India from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar), Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia, and Vietnam, intending to permanently settle in India, along with the certificate of eligibility issued by the Government of India.

IBPS SO 2026 Age Limit

Candidates applying for the IBPS SO Posts must be well-versed in the prescribed age limit under the recruitment drive. The age of the applicant must range from anywhere between 20 to 30 years. Age relaxation will be applicable as per category and is given in the table below:

IBPS SO 2026 Educational Qualification

IBPS SO 2026 Application Process

​The IBPS SO 2026 application process will be conducted online only through the official IBPS website. Eligible candidates will need to complete the registration by entering their basic details, uploading the required documents such as a photograph and signature, and selecting their preferred Specialist Officer post. After filling in the application form, candidates must pay the prescribed application fee and submit the form within the specified deadline.

IBPS SO 2026 Application Fee

Participating Banks in IBPS SO 2026

Here is the list of participating Public Sector Banks in the recruitment drive of IBPS SO 2026

1. Bank of Baroda
2. Canara Bank
3. Indian Overseas Bank
4. UCO Bank
5. Bank of India
6. Central Bank of India
7. Punjab National Bank
8. Union Bank of India
9. Bank of Maharashtra
10. Indian Bank
11. Punjab & Sind Bank

IBPS SO 2026 Selection Process

The IBPS SO Selection Process includes the following stages. The Preliminary exam will be conducted by IBPS, which will be followed by the main exam.

1. Preliminary exam
2. Mains exam
3. Interview

The IBPS SO Prelims exam is qualifying in nature. The marks obtained in the main exam and interview are added for the final selection. It is very important to perform well in the main exam as well as in an interview to get the final selection.

IBPS SO 2026 Exam Pattern

​The IBPS SO Exam Pattern consists of three stages: Prelims, Mains, and Interview. The exam tests candidates on professional knowledge along with reasoning, English, and quantitative aptitude, depending on the post applied for. Check the stage-wise exam pattern below and start preparing.

IBPS SO 2026 Prelims Exam Pattern

Below we have provided the IBPS SO Exam Pattern for various departments separately so that it could help the candidates boost up their preparation. For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate, 0.25 of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted.

IBPS SO IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer Exam Pattern

IBPS SO Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari Exam Pattern

IBPS SO 2026 Mains Exam Pattern

The main exam pattern for the IBPS SO is different for Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, Marketing Officer, and Rajbhasha Adhikari posts. Check the post-wise mains exam structure below.

For the Posts of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer:

For the Post of Rajbhasha Adhikari:

IBPS SO 2026 Syllabus

Candidates can check the IBPS SO Syllabus 2026 for both the Prelims and Mains Exam here. The IBPS SO Prelims Exam consists of English, General Awareness, Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude. Before starting your preparation, go through the syllabus to manage your time and strategy for the IBPS SO Exam.

IBPS SO 2026 Salary

The IBPS SO Salary structure is quite appealing, offering a combination of basic pay and multiple allowances. The starting basic salary is Rs. 48,480, with the pay scale structured as Rs. 48,480–2000/7–62,480–2340/2–67,160–2680/7–85,920.

This indicates regular increments at specific intervals as per banking industry standards. Alongside the basic pay, Specialist Officers also receive additional benefits like Dearness Allowance (DA), House Rent Allowance (HRA), Special Allowance, and more.

IBPS SO Previous Year Question Paper

While starting your preparation for the Specialist Officer post, candidates are required to go through the IBPS SO Previous Year Question Papers to understand the demands of the Exam. It will help in getting an idea about the questions to be asked in the exam.

IBPS SO 2026 Cut Off

The IBPS SO Cut Off for the Prelims and Mains examination will be released along with the scorecard. The cut-off is set by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection, where they consider several factors like the number of vacancies, difficulty level, and performance of the candidates. The candidates can click on the link mentioned below to check the cut-off marks.

IBPS SO Exam Centre

Candidates can check the list of all exam centres for IBPS SO Exam for Prelims and Mains:

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