Indian Bank Apprentice 2026: 1500 Seats Open

Indian Bank has released an updated notification dated 4 November 2026 for the engagement of 1,500 Apprentices under the Apprentices Act, 1961, for the financial year 2026-27. The updated advertisement runs to 44 pages and covers the complete state-wise and district-wise seat distribution, eligibility rules, stipend, fee, online examination pattern, local language requirement and application instructions. Online registration, editing of the form and fee payment will all remain open from 5 November to 25 November 2026, and candidates must complete their application through the NATS 2.0 apprenticeship portal.

It is important to understand what this engagement is. An apprenticeship is a fixed 12-month training arrangement at an Indian Bank branch. Apprentices are trainees, not regular bank employees, and they do not receive regular employee allowances or benefits. The bank has also stated clearly that completing the training does not create any right to regular or contractual employment afterwards. Candidates who are looking for a permanent bank job should treat this as a training opportunity with a monthly stipend, not as a regular appointment.

Indian Bank Apprentice 2026: Overview

Important Dates

Candidates should not wait until the last day. The bank’s own guidance in earlier apprentice cycles has been that portals slow down near deadlines, and here registration, modification and fee payment all close together on 25 November 2026.

Vacancy Details: 1,500 Seats Across 30 States and UTs

Indian Bank has announced 1,500 apprenticeship seats spread across 30 States and Union Territories. Uttar Pradesh has the largest share with 285 seats, followed by Tamil Nadu with 270 and West Bengal with 145. The seats are tentative and may change according to the bank’s actual requirements.

The district-wise distribution of training locations is given in Annexure III of the official notification. Candidates should check that annexure before choosing their preferred districts, because district preferences do not guarantee a posting in a particular branch or district.

Category-Wise Seats

Reservation for Persons with Benchmark Disabilities is horizontal and is included within the 1,500 seats, not added on top of them. The PwBD break-up is 12 seats for Visually Impaired, 12 for Hearing Impaired, 13 for Orthopedically Challenged and 11 for Intellectual Disability, totalling 48.

Eligibility: Who Can Apply

Candidates must hold a graduate degree in any discipline from a recognised university, or an equivalent qualification recognised by the Central Government. The crucial condition is the passing window: graduation must have been completed on or after 1 April 2022, and the final result must have been declared on or before 1 November 2026. Graduates who passed before 1 April 2022 are not eligible, and candidates whose final result came after 1 November 2026 are also not eligible. Final-year students still awaiting their result after that date cannot apply in this cycle.

Two more exclusions matter. Candidates who have already undergone apprenticeship training, are currently undergoing it, or had an apprenticeship terminated due to their own fault cannot apply. Candidates who have accumulated one year or more of work experience after completing their qualification are also ineligible. Ex-Servicemen and Disabled Ex-Servicemen are not eligible under this notification.

Age Limit and Relaxation

The age limit is 20 to 28 years as on 1 November 2026. For General and EWS candidates, this corresponds to a date-of-birth range of 2 November 1998 to 1 November 2006, both dates inclusive.

Relaxation is subject to the conditions and certificate requirements in the advertisement. Candidates should not assume that multiple relaxations can be combined unless the notification permits it.

Stipend and Training Conditions

Selected apprentices will receive a monthly stipend of Rs. 15,000 at Metro or Urban branches, or Rs. 12,300 at Rural or Semi-Urban branches, during the 12-month training period. At Metro/Urban branches the stipend is made up of up to Rs. 8,850 from the bank and up to Rs. 6,150 from the government; at Rural/Semi-Urban branches both components are up to Rs. 6,150 each. This stipend is not a regular bank salary, and apprentices are not eligible for additional allowances or regular employee benefits.

Apprentices are entitled to bank holidays and one casual leave after completing each month of training, with a maximum of four casual leaves at a time. Overtime is not permitted. To become eligible for the Certificate of Proficiency, the notification requires more than 338 paid days during the 12-month period, subject to the prescribed assessment and completion conditions. After successful training and assessment, the Board of Apprenticeship Training (Southern Region) issues a digital Certificate of Proficiency through NATS 2.0.

Candidates should also read the contract conditions before accepting. The apprenticeship contract is normally for 12 months and ends automatically after the prescribed period. A candidate who voluntarily leaves before completing the contract may be required to pay an amount equal to one month’s stipend under the notified conditions. Separate provisions apply to termination after securing gainful employment or on medical grounds.

Application Fee

The fee must be paid online through debit card, credit card or internet banking, between 5 and 25 November 2026. It is non-refundable, and bank transaction charges are additional.

Selection Process and Exam Pattern

Selection begins with a 100-mark online objective examination of 60 minutes duration. The paper carries 100 multiple-choice questions: Reasoning Aptitude 15, Computer Knowledge 10, English Language 25, Quantitative Aptitude 25, and General Awareness with special reference to the Banking Industry 25. The bank will decide the minimum qualifying marks on the aggregate score; there are no separate minimum qualifying marks for individual sections, and SC, ST, OBC and PwBD candidates receive a 5 percent relaxation in the prescribed aggregate qualifying percentage. Where the examination is held in multiple sessions, scores will be normalised using the equi-percentile method. Merit lists will be prepared State/UT-wise and category-wise in descending order of aggregate marks, with the older candidate preferred in case of a tie at the cut-off. A waiting list may also be prepared for unoccupied seats. One point candidates often ask about: negative marking is not specified in the advertisement, so candidates should check the official notification and the examination instructions rather than assuming a marking rule.

After the online test comes the Local Language Proficiency Test. Candidates must be able to read, write, speak and understand one of the specified local languages of their selected State or UT, and candidates who fail this test will not be engaged. Candidates who provide Class 8, Class 10 or Class 12 marksheets or certificates proving they studied the selected local language are exempt from the test. The accepted languages include Telugu and Urdu for Andhra Pradesh, Assamese, Bengali and Bodo for Assam, Hindi and Urdu for Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Marathi for Maharashtra, Tamil for Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, Malayalam for Kerala, Kannada for Karnataka, Odia for Odisha, Punjabi and Hindi for Punjab, Bengali and Nepali for West Bengal, and English for Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland, among others in the notification. The bank may also conduct an interview at its discretion, and engagement remains subject to document verification and medical fitness.

State, District and Language Choices

Applicants can apply for only one State or Union Territory. During registration they may choose three preferred districts within that State or UT. The bank gives the applicant’s resident district the first preference in the applicable merit arrangement, while candidates may select two additional neighbouring districts. District preferences do not guarantee posting in a particular branch or district, and the bank may allot candidates to any district within their selected State or UT according to availability and operational requirements.

How to Apply Step by Step

Step 1: Register on NATS 2.0. Visit nats.education.gov.in, open the Student Registration facility, and complete enrolment with accurate personal, contact and educational details, including graduation passing information. Complete all mandatory profile sections until the NATS profile shows 100 percent completion, and save the generated NATS Enrolment ID. Merely registering on NATS without completing the recruitment-specific application is not sufficient.

Step 2: Apply for the Indian Bank apprenticeship. Visit the Indian Bank careers section at indianbank.bank.in or the NATS portal, locate the recruitment titled Engagement of Apprentices in Indian Bank – 2026, and read the detailed advertisement carefully. Click New Registration if registering for the first time, note the provisional registration number and password, and use the Save and Next facility while completing the form. Enter personal, address, graduation and category details, select one eligible State or UT, choose preferred districts within it, and select one prescribed local language. Upload the photograph, signature, left thumb impression and handwritten declaration in the prescribed sizes, preview the complete form carefully, and complete registration only after verifying every entry, because changes are not permitted after final submission. Pay the applicable fee online and finish the application by 25 November 2026, then save the application printout and payment confirmation.

Documents and Upload Specifications

Candidates should keep ready their graduation degree certificate and marksheets, proof that the graduation result was declared on or before 1 November 2026, date-of-birth proof, valid identity proof, NATS 2.0 Enrolment ID, a recent passport-size colour photograph, scanned signature, left thumb impression, handwritten declaration, category certificate if applicable, PwBD disability certificate or UDID card where applicable, and Class 8, 10 or 12 certificates showing study of the selected local language if claiming exemption from the language test. The prescribed upload sizes are: photograph 200 x 230 pixels, 20 to 50 KB; signature 140 x 60 pixels, 10 to 20 KB; left thumb impression 240 x 240 pixels, 20 to 50 KB; handwritten declaration 800 x 400 pixels, 50 to 100 KB, all in JPG or JPEG format. The handwritten declaration must be written in English on white paper using black ink, in the candidate’s own handwriting, and must not be written entirely in capital letters. The prescribed text is: “I, _______ (Name of the candidate), hereby declare that all the information submitted by me in the application form is correct, true and valid. I will present the supporting documents as and when required.” Candidates must also capture a live photograph through a webcam or mobile phone using the portal’s facility.

Admit Card and Examination Centres

The online examination will be conducted at various centres across India, with the tentative centre list given in Annexure I of the advertisement. Candidates can indicate a preferred examination centre while applying, subject to the options in the form, but the bank may allot a different centre and requests for centre changes will not be entertained. Call letters will be issued through the official website or other recruitment-related portals identified in the notification, and they will not be sent by post. Candidates should regularly check their registered email and the bank’s recruitment website for updates.

Important Links

No deep notification PDF link is given here because only the official bank website has been verified as the source; candidates should open the advertisement from the bank’s careers section rather than trusting a forwarded file.

FAQs on Indian Bank Apprentice Recruitment 2026

How many apprentice seats are available? Indian Bank has notified 1,500 tentative apprenticeship training seats across 30 States and UTs, with the highest numbers in Uttar Pradesh (285) and Tamil Nadu (270).

When can I apply? Online registration, form editing and fee payment are open from 5 November to 25 November 2026, both days inclusive.

What qualification is needed? A graduate degree in any discipline from a recognised university, with the final result declared between 1 April 2022 and 1 November 2026.

What is the age limit? The minimum age is 20 years and the maximum is 28 years as on 1 November 2026, with relaxation for SC/ST (5 years), OBC Non-Creamy Layer (3 years) and PwBD (10 years).

Is this a permanent bank job? No. It is a 12-month apprenticeship training engagement under the Apprentices Act, 1961, and it does not guarantee regular or contractual employment afterwards.

What stipend will apprentices receive? The total stipend is Rs. 15,000 per month at Metro/Urban branches and Rs. 12,300 per month at Rural/Semi-Urban branches. Apprentices are not eligible for other allowances or benefits.

What is the application fee? The non-refundable fee is Rs. 800 plus GST for General, OBC and EWS candidates and Rs. 175 plus GST for SC, ST and PwBD candidates, paid online only.

What is the selection process? Selection includes a 100-mark online test and a Local Language Proficiency Test, with an interview at the bank’s discretion, followed by document verification and medical fitness.

Can I apply for more than one state? No. Applicants can apply for only one State or Union Territory, with up to three preferred districts within it.

Who cannot apply? Candidates who have already undergone or are undergoing apprenticeship training, candidates with one year or more of post-qualification work experience, and Ex-Servicemen and Disabled Ex-Servicemen are not eligible under this notification.

Also Read

LIC HFL Apprentice Recruitment 2026: 232 Posts

UCO Bank Apprentice Recruitment 2026: 530 Posts