AIBE Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility, Important Dates

For AIBE XXI the pass mark was set at 45 (General) and 40 (SC, ST, PwD), then the Monitoring Committee cut both by three after seeing the paper and results. Treat the published figure as a starting point.

OMR rules that cost results

• Blue or black ball point pen only. Pencil means disqualification.
• Any error or omission in the Set Code, Roll Number or other entries gets the sheet rejected.
• You can't leave before the exam ends.

Extra time and scribes

More than 40% disability gets 20 minutes extra per hour, with a certified copy of the certificate. You bring your own scribe; the centre provides none. The scribe must be an undergraduate not studying law or any humanities course, with a college ID and age and address proof.

BCI publishes the syllabus each cycle with the number of questions per subject. From the AIBE XXI syllabus:

The top seven subjects make up 62 of the 100. The old and new criminal and evidence codes are listed together, so both are in scope; those three heads are 26 marks.

Since AIBE XX, following Supreme Court directions, these can apply:

1. Final-semester LL.B. students (three or five year) with no backlogs.
2. Graduates still waiting for their degree.
3. Graduates who never enrolled with a State Bar Council, or surrendered their enrolment.
4. Enrolled advocates.

The one thing that rules you out: a university or college not recognised or approved by BCI. Checking that is your job, not BCI's. An approved college must also be affiliated to a BCI-recognised university.

The first three groups register on an undertaking and must later upload an Enrolment Certificate. Until then the result shows Pass (Undertaking) or Withheld and no Certificate of Practice is issued. For AIBE XIX onwards the deadline is 6 January 2027; BCI has extended it before, so check the latest notice.

Attempts are unlimited. Under a BCI resolution of 31 January 2017, a provisionally enrolled advocate can practise for two years and sit AIBE as often as needed, with seniority from provisional enrolment. Candidature stays provisional, and ineligibility found at any stage means rejection. See About AIBE for the background.

There's no selection, only a pass mark. Everyone above it gets a Certificate of Practice.

1. Register and pay. If you failed a recent AIBE, log in with your old ID instead of registering again.
2. Correction window.
3. Admit card.
4. Exam.
5. Provisional answer key, with all question paper sets, and objection window.
6. Final answer key and result.
7. OMR rechecking, if you apply.

Objections

You get one submission. Put every objection in it, because nothing can be added or changed afterwards. The ₹500 fee is refunded if your objection is upheld.

Rechecking

For AIBE XXI the rechecking portal ran from 28 July to 4 August 2026, at ₹500, online only. Revised results go to your registered email.

The exam is supervised by a Monitoring Committee, headed for AIBE XXI by Justice Hima Kohli, former Supreme Court judge, with national law university heads as members. It decided the cut in pass marks.

AIBE is a certification, not a job, so there's no salary. It gives you the right to practise, and what you earn depends on your practice.

The application fee is shown on the portal at registration on allindiabarexamination.com. BCI's notices give two other fees: ₹500 per objection (refunded if valid) and ₹500 for OMR rechecking.

Apply through the portal linked from allindiabarexamination.com.

• New candidates register fresh.
• If you failed AIBE XX or XXI, don't register again. Log in with your existing user ID and password and fill the new form.

In AIBE XXI these couldn't be changed after payment: mobile number, email, PwD category, caste category and exam city.

Students and non-enrolled graduates upload an undertaking in BCI's format with self-attested documents.

After a Supreme Court order of 13 November 2025 (Yash Dodani v. Union of India), blind and low vision candidates with 40% disability or more are asked whether they want a screen reader on a computer or pen and paper. BCI contacts them by email and phone.

AIBE XXII opened on 19 August 2026 at 16:00, with 68 cities to choose from.

Helpdesk: aibe.helpdesk@gmail.com, 011-49225022, 011-49225023 or 8655701484, 10:00 to 18:30 Monday to Sunday, except national holidays.

There are none. AIBE is a professional certification, not an admission test.

BCI, at 21 Rouse Avenue Institutional Area, New Delhi, made the Bar Examination Rules under Section 49(1)(ah) of the Advocates Act, and runs the exam with the Bar Council of India Trust. Enrolment itself is with a State Bar Council, under Sections 16 to 28 of the Act. More at barcouncilofindia.org.

AIBE XXI was held at 292 centres in 60 cities. For AIBE XXII BCI listed 68 cities, from Itanagar and Aizawl to Rajkot and Trichy. You choose the city on the form and can't change it after paying.

For AIBE XXI you had to report by 11:30, with no entry after 13:15. BCI suggests visiting the centre a day before.

• Bring: admit card, government photo ID, clean bare Acts, blue or black ball point pen.
• Don't bring: phones, smart watches, bags, calculators, gadgets, loose paper, books or notes. Unauthorised material or copying gets you disqualified and usually debarred.

Full rules are in the examination guidelines.

AIBE XXI

AIBE XX

Schedule 26 September 2025, syllabus 27 September, registration for new eligibility groups from 29 September, corrections to 1 November, admit card 15 November, exam 30 November 2025, 13:00 to 16:00 (entry from 11:30), objections 3 to 10 December, final key 6 January 2026, rechecking 14 to 23 January, rechecking results 24 February 2026.

AIBE XXII

Registration opened 19 August 2026. The exam date will be notified on allindiabarexamination.com.

The Enrolment Certificate deadline for undertaking candidates is 6 January 2027, set by BCI's letter of 23 June 2026.

Download it from the AIBE portal with your user ID and password, usually about two weeks before the exam. AIBE XXI's came out on 22 May 2026 for 7 June; AIBE XX's on 15 November 2025 for 30 November.

No admit card, no entry. Bring it with a government photo ID. If anything on it is wrong, contact the helpdesk straight away: aibe.helpdesk@gmail.com, 011-49225022, 011-49225023 or 8655701484, 10:00 to 18:30 Monday to Sunday, except national holidays.

The card doesn't confirm you're eligible. Scribe candidates bring the scribe's details in BCI's proforma and their ID.

From BCI's result press release of 18 July 2026:

Overall pass rate 65.92%, including 791 PwD candidates. Twenty malpractice cases were still pending. Undertaking candidates see Pass (Undertaking) or Withheld until they upload their Enrolment Certificate.

The Monitoring Committee cut both by three after looking at the paper and results. So expect to need somewhere around 42 to 45 out of 100. You're not competing with anyone else.

1. Prepare your bare Acts. Buy clean copies with no notes. Bring the Constitution, CrPC and BNSS, CPC, IPC and BNS, Evidence Act and BSA, the family law statutes, and the Contract, Specific Relief, Transfer of Property and Negotiable Instruments Acts.
2. Practise finding sections fast. You get about 2 minutes and 6 seconds per question, which leaves no time to browse an index you don't know.
3. Study in proportion to the question counts. The seven big subjects are 62 marks and clear the pass mark on their own. The two-mark subjects need a read, not weeks.
4. Read the BCI Rules on professional conduct. Ethics is four questions, and it isn't in any bare Act you'll bring.
5. Know both old and new criminal codes.
6. Answer everything. No negative marking is prescribed.
7. Work through past papers with bare Acts and a clock. BCI publishes all four sets with each provisional key.
8. Fill the OMR header first, carefully, in pen.

BCI publishes the actual question papers, all four sets, with the provisional answer key during each objection window, plus the final key. Older papers are in the notifications archive on allindiabarexamination.com.

The AIBE XXI syllabus gives question counts per subject, and the examination guidelines cover the hall rules.

• All India Bar Examination: allindiabarexamination.com
• Bar Council of India: barcouncilofindia.org
• AIBE XXI syllabus
• AIBE XXI examination guidelines
• AIBE XXI result press release of 18 July 2026
• AIBE XXII exam cities: 68 cities
• About AIBE
• Helpdesk: aibe.helpdesk@gmail.com, 011-49225022, 011-49225023 or 8655701484, 10:00 to 18:30 Monday to Sunday, except national holidays

Who conducts AIBE?

The Bar Council of India, under a Monitoring Committee.

Is it really open book?

Yes, bare Acts without notes or comments. Nothing else.

Is there negative marking?

None is prescribed.

What is the pass mark?

For AIBE XXI, 42 for General and 37 for SC, ST and PwD, after a three-mark cut from 45 and 40.

How many pass?

65.92% in AIBE XXI.

Do I need to be enrolled to sit it?

No. Final-year students with no backlogs and non-enrolled graduates can apply on an undertaking.

How many attempts do I get?

Unlimited.

Can I bring my own scribe?

You have to. The centre doesn't provide one.

Can I use a pencil on the OMR?

No. Pencil means disqualification.

I failed last time. Do I register again?

No. Log in with your existing ID.

When is the next AIBE?

AIBE XXII registration opened on 19 August 2026. The date will be announced on allindiabarexamination.com.