RBI Assistant Exam Pattern 2026 For Prelims and Mains

With the RBI Assistant 2026 Notification expected on 16 February 2026, aspirants must have a clear understanding of the RBI Assistant Exam Pattern 2026. The selection process comprises Prelims, Mains, and a Language Proficiency Test, which is qualifying in nature.  In this article, we will provide complete details on the exam pattern, including the pattern for Prelims and Mains, LPT, important instructions, and more.

RBI Assistant Exam Pattern 2026

The RBI Assistant Exam Pattern is going to help candidates prepare well for the upcoming RBI Assistant Examination. To ace the upcoming RBI Assistant Exam, it is necessary to remain acquainted with the revised RBI Assistant Exam Pattern. This article explains the RBI Assistant Exam Pattern for Prelims, Mains, and Language Proficiency elaborately. Read further to know the details of the type of questions, number of questions, and other important details of the exam.

RBI Assistant Exam Pattern Highlights

Candidates can check the overview of the exam pattern for the RBI Assistant 2026 Exam in the table below.

RBI Assistant Exam Pattern 2026

The RBI Assistant Exam is going to be conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection to select eligible candidates for the post of Assistant. A candidate must qualify for both the preliminary exam and the mains exam to proceed to the Language Proficiency round. The candidates selected after the language proficiency round are given the appointment letter. The recruitment process to select Assistants through the RBI Assistant Exam is done in three phases:

1. Online Preliminary Exam
2. Online Mains Exam
3. Language Proficiency Test

Attempt RBI Assistant Mock Test 2026 Now!

RBI Assistant Prelims Exam Pattern 2026

RBI Assistant Prelims Exam is a Screening exam. It is to weed out not-so-serious candidates from the competition. There is sectional timing for each section i.e., English, Reasoning, and Mathematics. Candidates need to clear sectional cutoff as well as an overall cutoff to qualify for the RBI Assistant Prelims. Candidates can check the RBI Assistant Prelims Exam Pattern in the table below.

1. The exam will consist of a total of 100 questions divided into three sections: English language, Numerical Ability, and Reasoning Ability.
2. There is a time limit of 60 minutes to complete the entire exam, with each section allocated 20 minutes.
3. For every incorrect answer, there will be a penalty of deducting 0.25 marks from the candidate’s total score.
4. All the questions in the Preliminary Exam will be of an Objective type, requiring candidates to choose the correct answers.
5. While the English Language section will be available only in English, the other two sections, Numerical Ability and Reasoning Ability, will be provided in both English and Hindi.
6. It’s important to note that the marks obtained in the Preliminary Exam will not be considered when determining the final merit list, as the Preliminary Exam serves as a qualifying stage.

Note:- Candidates have to qualify in each of the three tests by securing minimum cut-off marks to be decided by RBI. An adequate number of candidates in each category as decided by RBI depending upon requirements will be shortlisted for Online Main Examination.

RBI Assistant Mains Exam Pattern 2026

RBI Assistant Mains Exam is a Scoring as well as Merit deciding exam. There is sectional timing for each section i.e., English, Reasoning, General Awareness, Computer Knowledge, and Mathematics. Candidates need to clear sectional cutoff as well as an overall cutoff to qualify for the RBI Assistant Mains. Candidates can check the RBI Assistant Mains Exam Pattern in the table below.

1. The RBI Assistant Mains Exam will consist of 200 questions across five sections: English language, Quantitative Aptitude, Computer Knowledge, General Awareness, and Reasoning Ability.
2. The total time duration for the RBI Assistant Mains Exam is 135 minutes, with specific time limits allocated for each section, as indicated below.
3. There will be a penalty for incorrect answers, deducting 0.25 marks for each wrong response, while unanswered questions will not incur any deductions.
4. All questions in the Mains Exam are of the Objective type.
5. Apart from the English Language section, the other sections are available in both English and Hindi.
6. Unlike the Preliminary Exam, the marks obtained in the main exam are considered for the merit list. Candidates who qualify in the Mains will proceed to the Language Proficiency Test (LPT).

Note: Penalty for Wrong Answers (Applicable to both – Online Preliminary and Online Main examinations). There will be a penalty for wrong answers marked in the Objective Tests. For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate one fourth or 0.25 of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as a penalty to arrive at a corrected score. If a question is left blank, i.e. no answer is marked by the candidate, there will be no penalty for that question.

Those who qualify for the RBI Assistant Mains Exam will be called for Language Proficiency Test. The State Wise Language Proficiency Language is given below.

RBI Assistant Previous Year Question Paper PDF- Click to Check

RBI Assistant Exam Language Proficiency Test

The candidates provisionally shortlisted from the main online examination will have to undergo a language proficiency test (LPT). The language proficiency test will be conducted in the Official/Local Language of the State concerned as detailed below. Candidates not proficient in the Official/Local Language shall be disqualified.

RBI Assistant Exam Pattern 2026- Important Points

Candidates can check the important points of the RBI Assistant Exam Pattern of Prelims & Mains.

• There will be no Interview.
• Candidates will have to pass each of the objective tests of the online examinations.
• Both the Prelims and Mains exams will be conducted online.
• A candidate has to qualify in the Preliminary Examination to appear in the Main Examination.
• The Mains exam will be conducted in March.
• The question paper will be bilingual in nature, i.e., available in Hindi as well as English.
• The Cutoff for the RBI Assistant prelims and mains exam will be decided by the RBI.

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