SEBI Grade A Eligibility Criteria 2026: Age, Education, Nationality & Attempts
Before diving into your SEBI Grade A preparation, it's worth taking a step back to confirm you actually meet the exam's basic eligibility requirements. This helps you avoid unpleasant surprises down the line and lets you focus your time and energy in the right direction from day one.
The SEBI Grade A Eligibility Criteria covers four broad areas: educational qualification, age limit and relaxation, nationality, and number of attempts.
SEBI officially announces the eligibility criteria for each cycle through its notification, so the 2026 details will only be confirmed once that notification is released.
Until then, the requirements below are based on the most recent (2025) notification and are expected to remain largely unchanged.
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What is the SEBI Grade A Eligibility Criteria at a Glance?
| Criteria | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Educational Qualification | Stream-specific — Master's degree, or Bachelor's in Law/Engineering, or CA/CFA/CS/Cost Accountant, depending on stream |
| Age Limit | No minimum age; maximum 30 years for General category |
| Age Relaxation | Available for SC/ST, OBC, Ex-servicemen, and PwBD candidates, and is cumulative for candidates falling under multiple categories |
| Nationality | Must be an Indian citizen |
| Number of Attempts | No limit specified, as long as the candidate stays within the applicable age limit |
| Work Experience | Not required for most streams, except Legal (2 years as an advocate) and Engineering-Electrical (relevant field experience desirable) |
What is the Educational Qualification Required for SEBI Grade A?
Since SEBI Grade A recruitment covers multiple streams — General, Legal, Information Technology, Research, Official Language, and Engineering (Electrical) — the educational qualification required varies depending on which stream a candidate applies under.
| Stream | Educational Qualification |
|---|---|
| General | Master's Degree/Post Graduate Diploma (minimum 2 years) in any discipline, OR Bachelor's Degree in Law/Engineering from a recognized university, OR CA/CFA/CS/Cost Accountant |
| Legal | Mandatory: Bachelor's Degree in Law from a recognized university. Desirable: 2 years post-qualification experience as an Advocate |
| Information Technology | Bachelor's Degree in Engineering (any branch), OR Bachelor's Degree in any discipline with a Postgraduate qualification (minimum 2 years) in Computer Science/Computer Application/IT |
| Engineering (Electrical) | Mandatory: Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering. Desirable: Experience with electronic systems (CCTV, alarm systems, EPABX, UPS), maintenance of lifts/pumps/AC plants, or construction project administration |
| Research | Master's Degree/PG Diploma (minimum 2 years) in Economics/Finance/Statistics and related fields (including Commerce, Business Administration, Econometrics, Quantitative Finance, Data Science, AI/ML), OR Master's in Mathematics with a 1-year PG Diploma in Statistics or related subjects |
| Official Language | Master's Degree in Hindi/Hindi Translation with English at Bachelor's level, OR Master's in Sanskrit/English/Economics/Commerce with Hindi at Bachelor's level, OR Master's in both English and Hindi/Hindi Translation |
Important notes on educational qualification:
- For the General stream, a Post Graduate Diploma in any discipline is accepted as equivalent, provided it's recognized as equivalent to a Master's Degree by the Government of India.
- Candidates can apply for a maximum of 2 streams, provided they meet the qualification requirements for each — but this requires submitting a separate online application and paying a separate fee for each stream.
- If a candidate applies more than once within a single stream, or applies for more than 2 streams, only the most recent application will be treated as valid.
- Candidates awaiting final-year results are eligible to appear for Phase 1, Phase 2, and the Interview, but must submit proof of their qualification before joining. This has been a notable update in recent cycles, opening the exam up to final-year students who previously might not have qualified.
What is the Age Limit and Relaxation for SEBI Grade A?
Age is calculated as of the 1st of the month in which the SEBI Grade A notification is released. There's no minimum age requirement for any category, but the maximum age limit for the unreserved/General category stands at 30 years.
| Category | Age Relaxation | Maximum Age |
|---|---|---|
| General (UR) | None | 30 Years |
| OBC (Non-Creamy Layer) | 3 Years | 33 Years |
| SC/ST | 5 Years | 35 Years |
| Ex-Servicemen (including ECOs/SSCOs discharged after 5 years of service) | 5 Years | 35 Years |
| PwBD (General/EWS) | 10 Years | 40 Years |
| PwBD (OBC) | 13 Years | 43 Years |
| PwBD (SC/ST) | 15 Years | 45 Years |
Does SEBI Offer Cumulative Age Relaxation?
Yes — and this is a detail many aspirants overlook. Unlike some exams that cap relaxation at a single applicable category, SEBI allows candidates who fall under multiple categories to combine their relaxations.
For instance, an OBC candidate who is also an Ex-serviceman would be entitled to 3 years (OBC) plus 5 years (Ex-servicemen), amounting to a combined 8 years of relaxation, raising their upper age limit to 38 years.
Candidates should read the notification carefully to understand exactly how their specific combination of categories applies to them, rather than assuming only one relaxation counts.
Who Meets the SEBI Grade A Nationality Criteria?
Only Indian citizens are eligible to apply for the SEBI Grade A exam. Candidates from foreign countries, including neighbouring nations, are not eligible for this post, and applicants are required to hold a valid identity certificate issued by the Indian Government.
How Many Attempts Are Allowed for SEBI Grade A?
There is no official cap on the number of attempts a candidate can make at the SEBI Grade A exam.
As long as a candidate continues to meet the age limit and other eligibility conditions for a given cycle, they remain free to reapply year after year.
Is Work Experience Required for SEBI Grade A?
Work experience is not a requirement for most streams under SEBI Grade A, making it a strong option for fresh graduates. The General, Information Technology, Official Language, and Research streams do not mandate prior experience.
The Legal stream, however, asks for a minimum of 2 years of post-qualification experience as an advocate, and the Engineering (Electrical) stream lists specific relevant field experience as desirable, though not always mandatory.
What are the PwBD Eligibility Requirements for SEBI Grade A?
Candidates with Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) status are eligible for age relaxation regardless of which other category they belong to (General/SC/ST/OBC). To qualify, a candidate must have a Permanent Benchmark Disability of at least 40% under one of the following categories:
- Blindness and Low Vision
- Deaf and Hard of Hearing
- Locomotor Disability (including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims, and muscular dystrophy)
- Autism, Intellectual Disability, Specific Learning Disability, and Mental Illness
- Other disabilities as per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016
Reservation for PwBD candidates is horizontal meaning it applies within the overall vacancies of each post, cutting across the General/SC/ST/OBC/EWS categories, rather than existing as a separate standalone quota.
What are the Guidelines for Using a Scribe in the SEBI Grade A Exam?
Candidates who are visually impaired, or whose writing speed is permanently affected, are permitted to bring their own scribe to the exam. Key rules include:
- The scribe must be arranged by the candidate themselves.
- The scribe must belong to an academic stream different from the one the candidate is appearing in.
- A scribe cannot be a candidate for the same examination, and cannot serve as a scribe for more than one candidate.
- Candidates using a scribe are entitled to a compensatory 20 minutes for every hour of the exam.
- If a scribe is found answering independently or violating any of the above rules, the exam session will be terminated and the candidature cancelled.
- Candidates with affected writing ability must produce a certificate from a competent medical authority at a government healthcare institution, as per the prescribed format.
- The scribe's own qualification should be one level below that of the candidate they're assisting.
What is the SEBI Grade A Ex-Servicemen Eligibility?
Ex-servicemen eligible for relaxation include Emergency Commissioned Officers/Short Service Commissioned Officers who:
- Completed 5 years of service and were released on completion of assignment (other than by dismissal, discharge, misconduct, or inefficiency)
- Were released due to physical disability attributable to military service, or on invalidment
- Completed their initial 5-year assignment period
- Had their assignment extended beyond 5 years
- Have a Ministry of Defence certificate confirming release within 3 months of receiving an offer of appointment
What are the Guidelines for EWS, OBC, and SC/ST Candidates?
For OBC candidates:
- Only those under the "Non-Creamy Layer" are eligible for OBC reservation; candidates under the "Creamy Layer" must apply under the Unreserved/General category instead.
- The OBC (NCL) certificate must be issued within the window specified in the notification (typically between April 1 of the relevant year and the application closing date).
For SC/ST candidates:
- SC/ST candidates are exempt from the application fee but are still required to pay a small intimation charge.
For EWS candidates:
- EWS reservation follows government guidelines rather than SEBI-specific rules, and reserved vacancies for this category are tentative and subject to policy changes.
- The EWS benefit can only be claimed by submitting a valid Income and Asset Certificate for the applicable financial year, issued by a Competent Authority.
- No time extension is granted for submitting the EWS certificate — candidates who fail to produce it at the interview stage are disqualified and cannot fall back on the General category either.
Candidates from OBC/SC/ST/EWS categories can still apply even if no vacancy is specifically reserved for their category in a given cycle, but they won't be eligible for any relaxation benefits in that case.
Is a Distance Education Degree Holder Eligible for SEBI Grade A?
Yes, candidates with a distance education degree are eligible for the SEBI Grade A exam, provided they meet all the other eligibility conditions related to age, nationality, and stream-specific qualifications.
