Become An Income Tax Officer

Income Tax Department is the Central Government agency which is responsible for collecting direct taxes in India. IT Department offers various powerful posts for youngsters in India and they recruit key officers through two different examinations. They are the Civil Services Examination (CSE) conducted by UPSC and the Combined Graduate Level Examination conducted by SSC. For those who are looking for Group A post in the IT Department, they should opt IRS and for those who are looking for Inspector post, they should opt SSC CGL.

This article explains how to join the Income Tax Department as an Officer and explains how to prepare for the recruitment process.

Income Tax Officer Selection procedure and How to Apply

As I explained before, there are two methods to join the IT Department in India. They are:
  1. Join as an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) Officer though UPSC

  2. Join as Inspector of Income Tax or as Tax Assistant through SSC CGL

In order to become an IRS Officer, you should appear the Civil Service Examination conducted by UPSC every year and choose IRS once you have passed the examination.

For those selected for IRS will be posted as Asst.Commissioner of Income Tax. It is a glamorous post with great responsibilities.

To appear for the latest IRS Officer recruitment, you have to apply through the official UPSC website once they have announced the Civil Service Examination. Link to the official UPSC website is given below.
http://www.upsc.gov.in/

To apply for the posts of Inspector of Income Tax and Tax Assistant, you should check the official website of SSC (Staff Selection Commission) and check for the latest Combined Graduate Level (CGL) Examination Notification. To check the latest Income Tax Officer recruitment, you may click the link below.
http://ssc.nic.in/

Exam Pattern Of Income Tax Inspector & Tax Assistant

There are four stages in the Combined Graduate Level Examination (CGL ) conducted by Staff Selection Commission (SSC). Only after the successful completion of all 4 stages, you will be selected to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). Income Tax Inspector recruitment exam pattern is given below.
Exam Mode of Exam Score High
Tier -I Computer-Based Objective ExamTier 1 Exam Tutorial
Tier -II Computer-Based Objective Exam Tier 2 Exam Solved Question Papers
Tier -III Descriptive Written TestSSC CGL Tier 3 Solved Papers
Tier -IV Computer Proficiency Test(CPT)/ Document Verification


Eligibility Criteria To Apply For Income Tax Officer Vacancy

Now let us check the basic qualifications required to join as an officer in the IT department. We check the basic qualifications required for the posts of an IRS officer, Income Tax Inspector, and Tax Assistant.
  1. Age Limit to Apply for IT Officer

    The age limit of the general category to apply for IRS officers through Civil Service Examination conducted by UPSC is 21-32.

    It means the candidate should have crossed 21 years old and not attained 32 years on August 1 of the year of examination. Upper age limit for OBC candidates for Civil Service Examination is 35 and for SC/ST candidates is 37 years.

    Age Limit to Apply for IRS Officer Post
    • For General Category: 21- 32
    • For OBC:  21 - 35
    • For SC/ST: 21 -37
    Age Limit to Apply for Income Tax Inspector
    • General Category: Not exceeding 30 
    • For OBC:  Not exceeding 33 years
    • For SC/ST: Not exceeding 35 years
    Age Limit to Apply for Tax Assistant Post
    • For General Category: 18 -27
    • For OBC:  18 - 30
    • For SC/ST: 18 - 33

    To apply for the Income Tax Inspector post by a general category candidate, the upper age limit is 30 year. Upper age limit to apply for Tax Assistant by open category is 27 year. Persons with Disabilities will get an additional 10 years of upper age relaxation.

  2. Education Qualification Required

    Bachelor’s Degree from a recognized University or equivalent is required to apply for Indian Revenue Service, Income Tax Inspector, and Tax assistant posts.

Repeated Questions in Income Tax Officer Examination

As I have told you before, the first two stages of Inspector and Tax Assistant test are objective types. Syllabus based study is essential to win and it is also important to study the Tax Officer previous year question papers too.

Latest syllabus for income tax officer recruitment examination is also provided below. Here is a list of commonly asked questions seen in Tax Assistant and Inspector question papers.

Some readers asked me whether Physically Disabled candidates can apply for Income Tax Officer vacancies in India. The answer is yes and they will get upper age relaxation too.

Another question I faced is about the course someone should study to become an Income Tax Officer in India. All you need is a Bachelor's Degree from a recognized University.

Category Income Tax Officer Recruitment Notification 2019
Name of the Post Inspector, Assistant
Department Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)
Reported Tax Officer Vacancies
Income Tax Officer Salary
Income Tax Officer 2019 Examination Date
Income Tax Officer 2019 Exam Cut Off Marks
SSC CGL 2019 Interview Date
Income Tax Officer Recruitment 2019 Rank List

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