IBPS PO Recruitment 2026: 6,715 Posts, Revised Exam Pattern, and a Rising Vacancy Count

IBPS has kicked off its 16th Probationary Officer recruitment cycle with a bigger number than last year. The CRP PO/MT-XVI notification for 2026 lists 6,715 indicative vacancies for Probationary Officer and Management Trainee posts across 11 public sector banks, up roughly 1,500 from the previous round.

Three banks — Indian Bank, UCO Bank, and Union Bank of India — haven’t reported their seat numbers yet, marked ‘Not Reported’ in the current notification, meaning the final vacancy count is still likely to rise. Reserved PwBD seats are already fixed at 73 for hearing impairment, 70 for orthopedic disability, 67 for visual impairment, and 77 for intellectual disability.

Any graduate aged 20 to 30 years as on 1 July 2026 can apply online at ibps.in, with applications open from 1 July to 21 July 2026. The fee is ₹850 for General/OBC/EWS candidates and ₹175 for SC/ST/PwBD candidates, with age relaxation available for reserved categories.

The selection journey has four stages: a qualifying Preliminary Examination, a Main Examination combining objective and descriptive components, a mandatory Personality Test, and a Common Interview worth 100 marks, with the final merit list built from an 80:20 split of Main Exam and Interview scores.

IBPS has revised the Main Exam pattern this year, raising the objective section to 170 questions for 200 marks, up from 145 previously, spanning Reasoning Ability, General/Banking/Digital Awareness, English Language, and Data Analysis & Interpretation within an unchanged 160-minute window — and has dropped the Credit History/CIBIL Score clause used in earlier notifications.

Successful candidates start on a basic pay of around ₹48,480 a month, with gross monthly pay including DA, HRA and other allowances estimated between ₹88,000 and ₹92,000 depending on posting. The Preliminary Examination is tentatively scheduled for 22-23 August 2026.