IB ACIO Grade II Executive Guide: Pattern, Cut-Off, Salary, Plan

Every year, lakhs of graduates look at the Intelligence Bureau's Assistant Central Intelligence Officer (ACIO) Grade II/Executive recruitment and ask the same thing: is this a government job I can actually crack, and how should I prepare? The honest answer is that it is a competitive but very learnable exam. It has a short objective paper, a small descriptive paper, and an interview. There is no long syllabus to memorise, but the margins are thin, and the Tier-2 writing paper catches many people off guard. This guide puts everything in one place so you can plan calmly.

A note on dates before we start. The last full cycle we could verify was the 2025 recruitment (3,717 posts). When we checked coverage in mid-2026, reputable sites were still describing the next notification as "expected", with no official vacancy number or schedule. So wherever this guide gives a pattern or figure, it is based on the most recent notification and coverage. Always compare against the fresh notice on the Ministry of Home Affairs website the day it appears.

IB ACIO Grade II/Executive at a glance

Item	What we found
Conducting body	Intelligence Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs (applications through the MHA portal)
Post	Assistant Central Intelligence Officer Grade II/Executive
Qualification	Bachelor's degree from a recognised university
Age	18 to 27 years, with relaxation for reserved categories
Stages	Tier-1 (objective), Tier-2 (descriptive), Tier-3 (interview), then verification and medical
Tier-1	100 MCQs, 100 marks, 60 minutes, 0.25 negative marking
Tier-2	50 marks, 60 minutes, pen and paper, English only
Interview	100 marks
Pay	Level 7 of the pay matrix, Rs 44,900 to Rs 1,42,400, plus allowances
Latest vacancies we could verify	3,717 (2025 notification)

What does an ACIO Grade II/Executive actually do?

The Intelligence Bureau is India's internal intelligence agency. An ACIO Grade II/Executive is a field and desk officer in that system. The work is collecting, verifying and reporting information that supports internal security. Official job descriptions are deliberately general, and we will not pretend to know the day-to-day detail of postings. What you can expect from public information is a job that involves confidentiality, travel, transfers across states and irregular hours. If you want a regular nine-to-five, think carefully. If you want a role with a sense of mission and real career growth, read on.

Eligibility criteria

Nationality and education

You must be an Indian citizen and hold a bachelor's degree from a recognised university. Any stream is accepted, so BA, BCom, BSc, BTech and others are all fine. Final-year students should check the notification for the rule on result dates, because the cut-off date for having your degree is fixed in each notice. Some coverage lists basic computer knowledge as desirable rather than compulsory.

Age limit and relaxation

The base range is 18 to 27 years. Coverage of the 2025 notice reports these relaxations: OBC candidates get 3 years (upper limit 30), SC and ST candidates get 5 years (upper limit 32), and eligible departmental employees with at least three years of continuous service can apply up to 40. The reference date for counting your age is given in the notification, so read it rather than assuming. If you are near the edge, a few months can matter.

Application fee

Sources differ on how the fee is described, so read the notice. For 2025, one report listed Rs 650 for General, OBC and EWS applicants and Rs 550 for SC, ST, ex-servicemen and women. Other coverage describes it as a Rs 550 recruitment processing charge with an extra Rs 100 examination fee for unreserved male candidates. These amounts add up to the same thing, which is Rs 650 for that group. Fees can change, so check each year.

Selection process in three stages

The selection runs in sequence. You must clear each stage to reach the next, and final merit combines all three.

• Tier-1: a computer-based objective test of 100 marks.
• Tier-2: an offline descriptive paper of 50 marks.
• Tier-3: an interview of 100 marks.

Adding these gives 250 marks for the final merit list, according to coverage of the pattern. Character verification and a medical examination follow before joining. One report on the 2025 Tier-1 result said candidates would be shortlisted for Tier-2 at ten times the number of vacancies. That means the Tier-1 line is mainly about getting into a large pool, while the Tier-2 and interview marks decide the final order.

Tier-1 exam pattern

Tier-1 is a one-hour objective test. Most coverage of the recent pattern lists five blocks of 20 questions each.

Section	Questions	Marks
Current Affairs	20	20
General Studies	20	20
Numerical Aptitude	20	20
Reasoning/Logical Aptitude	20	20
English	20	20
Total	100	100

Every wrong answer costs 0.25 marks. There is one hour for the whole paper, which works out to 36 seconds per question on average. The 2025 Tier-1 was held in multiple shifts between 16 and 18 September 2025, and the result came on 21 November 2025, according to result coverage. Exams held in multiple shifts usually use score normalisation, so do not obsess over one shift being easier.

The official minimum qualifying marks reported for 2025 were 35 for UR and EWS, 34 for OBC, and 33 for SC and ST. These are not the same as the marks that actually get you into Tier-2. They are only the floor.

Tier-1 syllabus in plain words

• Current Affairs and General Studies: recent national and international events, government schemes, awards, sports, appointments, plus static topics such as Indian polity, history, geography, basic economy and general science. The official notice does not give a topic-by-topic syllabus, so preparation guides fill the gap with standard graduate-level topics.
• Numerical Aptitude: arithmetic first (percentage, ratio, profit and loss, time and work, speed and distance, interest, averages), then number system, simple algebra, geometry and mensuration, and data interpretation.
• Reasoning: analogies, series, coding-decoding, blood relations, directions, syllogisms, seating arrangements and puzzles, and non-verbal reasoning.
• English: grammar, error spotting, fill in the blanks, vocabulary, synonyms and antonyms, sentence rearrangement, and reading comprehension.

Some websites list the pattern with slightly different section names or groupings. If the new notification names the sections differently, follow it. The topic list above will still cover you.

Tier-2: the descriptive paper

This is the stage that separates serious candidates. It is a pen-and-paper test of 50 marks in 60 minutes, and it must be written in English. The commonly reported structure is:

Part	Marks
Essay writing (one topic)	30
English comprehension and precis writing	20
Total	50

The minimum qualifying mark is reported as 33 percent, or about 17 out of 50. One preparation site described the split differently (essay 20, comprehension 10, a long-answer current-affairs section of 20), so the internal division of marks is not fully consistent across sources. The 50-mark total and the 60-minute duration, though, appear in most coverage. Treat the official notice as final. On dates, one site gave 11 January 2026 for the 2025-cycle Tier-2, while an earlier article had expected November 2025. We could not confirm the exact date from an official source.

Plan for a 60-minute split of roughly 30 minutes for the essay and 30 for the comprehension and precis. Many candidates run out of time because they plan the essay for too long.

The interview

The interview carries 100 marks, which is twice the weight of the Tier-2 paper. Coverage describes it as a face-to-face personality test, with some mention of psychometric or aptitude elements. The exact format is not spelled out in the sources we checked, so we will not describe a fixed pattern. Based on how such boards generally work, expect questions on your background, your graduation subject, your home state, current events, and why you want this job. Be calm, honest and specific. Keep up with the news, because it is the easiest area to be tested on.

Cut-off trends: what the numbers really say

This is the part where many websites overpromise. The Intelligence Bureau does not publish a neat category-wise Tier-1 cut-off every year. What exists is a mix of official minimum qualifying marks and cut-offs reported by coaching sites, which are often estimates based on candidates' own scores.

Year	UR	OBC	SC	ST	Note
2015	75	70	65	65	Reported by a coaching site
2017	65	60	50	50	Reported by several sites, considered the most reliable
2023	65 to 70	60 to 65	55 to 60	55 to 60	Estimate only
2025	65 to 70 (expected)	50 to 60 (expected)	45 to 50 (expected)	40 to 45 (expected)	Projections, not official

What can we safely say? Unreserved candidates have usually needed marks in the mid-60s to low-70s out of 100 to feel comfortable. Reserved categories have generally been lower, but ranges differ by site. Do not trust any single number. And since the 2025 pool was shortlisted at ten times the vacancies, the real line depends on how many people appear and how hard the shift was.

The practical lesson is simple. Aim for 70 or more in Tier-1 with good accuracy. Then spend your extra energy on Tier-2, because it is in the final merit.

Vacancy trend

Vacancies have swung a lot from year to year. A 2023 notification (November 2023) carried 995 posts, with a category split of UR 377, OBC 222, SC 134, ST 133 and EWS 129. The 2025 notification, published on 14 July 2025 with a detailed notice following, carried 3,717 posts, reported as the highest to date. The category split was UR 1,537, EWS 442, OBC 946, SC 566 and ST 226, which adds up to 3,717. One site printed SC as 556, which is a typo, as the total only works with 566.

You may also see reports of a 2,000-post recruitment in 2020-21. A fact-check noted in coverage said that notice was fake and not approved by the Ministry, so ignore it. Information on posts for 2021, 2022 and 2024 was not consistent across the pages we checked, so we have not listed those years. For 2026, one article said that vacancies had not been announced and that a large recruitment was possible. Treat all predictions as predictions.

Salary, allowances and perks

The post is in Level 7 of the 7th Pay Commission matrix, with a basic pay band of Rs 44,900 to Rs 1,42,400. Admissible central government allowances come on top. These typically include dearness allowance and house rent allowance depending on the city. Coverage also mentions a Special Security Allowance, with one report putting it at 20 percent, and cash compensation for work on holidays. We could not verify the Special Security Allowance rate from an official notice, so check the current rule before you budget around it. Your in-hand salary will depend on the posting city and current DA, and we will not quote a single figure.

Other typical benefits of central government service include a pension arrangement under the rules that apply to your joining year, medical cover, leave and job stability. Check the current rules, as pension policy has changed over time.

Career growth

An ACIO Grade II/Executive is an entry-level officer. Promotion comes through departmental channels, and the next rungs are usually described as ACIO Grade I and then higher intelligence officer posts. The exact ladder, the years needed and the promotion quotas are set by service rules that we did not verify, so we do not quote timelines. Typically in such departments, growth depends on vacancies, seniority and performance reviews. Some employees also move on deputation to other central agencies. The one safe piece of advice is to see the job as a long career with slow, steady progress, not a quick climb.

Section-wise strategy for Tier-1

With 100 questions in 60 minutes and a quarter-mark penalty, the game is accuracy at speed. A simple target is to attempt around 85 to 90 questions with 80 percent accuracy or better. That is a personal planning figure, not an official benchmark. Below is how to approach each section.

Current affairs and general studies

These two blocks give you 40 marks, and they are the fastest to answer in the exam hall, since you either know the answer or you do not. That makes them a good place to bank marks in the first 15 minutes.

• Current affairs: cover the last 8 to 12 months. Focus on government schemes, new laws and bills, appointments, summits and international agreements, awards, sports events, science and defence news, and reports and indices. Keep one notebook, and write each item in one line.
• Polity: Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles, Parliament, President and Governor, judiciary, constitutional bodies and major amendments.
• History: modern India in more detail (1857 onward, the freedom struggle, reformers), with a light pass over ancient and medieval periods.
• Geography: Indian rivers, soils, climate, crops, minerals, national parks, and basic world geography.
• Economy and science: budget basics, banking terms, inflation, GDP, and class 8 to 10 level physics, chemistry and biology.

Internal security, the police system, border management and cyber safety are sensible extra topics for an intelligence post. We did not see them listed in the official syllabus, so treat them as a smart addition rather than a promise. Revise often. A fact read once and never revised is gone in two weeks.

Numerical aptitude

This section rewards a small set of well-practised topics. Learn tables to 20, squares to 30, cubes to 15, and common fractions and their percentage values. These save more time than any trick.

• Start with percentage, ratio and proportion, average, profit and loss, and simple and compound interest.
• Move to time and work, pipes, speed, time and distance, and mixtures.
• Then handle number series, simplification, approximation, and basic geometry and mensuration.
• Practise data interpretation sets (tables, bar and pie charts). They look scary but are mostly calculation speed.

In the exam, do not get trapped in one long question. If you cannot see a path in 40 seconds, mark it and move on. Easy questions give the same marks as hard ones.

Reasoning and logical aptitude

Reasoning is often the section where a prepared candidate scores highest. Begin with the quick scoring topics: analogy, odd one out, series, coding-decoding, direction sense, blood relations and ranking. Next, practise syllogisms and statement-conclusion questions, and then seating arrangement and puzzles, which take longer but come in sets. Use rough paper well. Draw a diagram for every arrangement question. Do not try to hold it in your head.

A good habit: after each practice set, note the question types where you lost time, not only where you were wrong. Speed problems hide in the types you answer correctly but slowly.

English

English counts twice in this exam. First, it is 20 marks in Tier-1. Second, Tier-2 is entirely in English, so the effort pays off a second time.

• Grammar: subject-verb agreement, tenses, articles, prepositions, conjunctions, and common error patterns.
• Vocabulary: learn 10 new words a day with a sentence for each, plus common idioms and one-word substitutions.
• Reading comprehension: read one editorial every day. Note the central idea of each paragraph in a few words.
• Sentence rearrangement and cloze tests: practise spotting links, such as pronouns and connectors.

If English is your weak area, daily reading matters more than any rulebook. Use a newspaper editorial, and write a three-line summary afterwards. That one habit also prepares you for the precis task in Tier-2.

Preparing for Tier-2: essay and comprehension

Since Tier-2 is a pen-and-paper test of 50 marks, treat it as a separate skill. Many candidates cannot write fluently for 30 minutes anymore because they type everything. You must practise by hand.

Essay writing (reported at 30 marks)

• Pick topics from current affairs, society, economy, technology, education, environment and security. Make a list of 40 possible topics and practise them.
• Use a simple structure: a short introduction, 3 or 4 body paragraphs each with one idea and one example, a balanced view of challenges and solutions, and a one-paragraph conclusion.
• Aim for roughly 300 to 400 words unless the paper states a limit. Clear and correct writing beats big words.
• Spend the first 3 to 4 minutes on a quick outline. It saves you from rambling.
• Keep your tone balanced. On sensitive topics, avoid extreme claims and stay factual.

Comprehension and precis (reported at 20 marks)

• For a precis, read the passage twice. Underline the main points, and write a summary at roughly one-third of the original length in your own words.
• Use simple sentences and the third person, and add no opinions of your own.
• For comprehension questions, answer from the passage and keep the answers short.

Practise with a timer. A 60-minute paper cannot be written well if you only learn it in theory. Ask a friend or mentor to check your answers for grammar, clarity and structure. Feedback on two or three essays is worth more than reading ten model essays.

A 60-day preparation plan

This plan assumes 3 to 4 hours of study a day. If you work or study full time, stretch it over a longer period instead of cutting the content. Keep one revision day in each week.

Days 1 to 15: build the base

• Take one full Tier-1 mock first, without preparation, just to see your starting level. Note your score by section.
• Maths: arithmetic basics and tables. Reasoning: series, coding-decoding, direction and blood relations.
• English: grammar rules and 10 words a day. Read one editorial daily.
• GS: start polity and modern history. Begin the daily current-affairs notebook.
• Write one short paragraph by hand every day.

Days 16 to 30: widen and practise

• Maths: profit and loss, time and work, speed and distance, interest, data interpretation.
• Reasoning: syllogism, seating arrangement, puzzles.
• English: error spotting, cloze, reading comprehension sets.
• GS: geography, economy, science, and the previous 6 months of current affairs.
• Write two essays a week by hand, each in 30 minutes. Begin precis writing twice a week.
• Take one sectional test every two days. At the end of day 30, give a full mock and compare it with your day 1 result.

Days 31 to 45: speed and accuracy

• Take a full mock every third day, and spend as much time reviewing it as taking it.
• Keep an error log. For each mistake, note the reason: lack of knowledge, careless slip, time pressure, or guess.
• Strengthen the two weakest sections with 90 minutes of focused practice per day.
• Cover remaining GS topics. Start the first full revision of the current-affairs notebook.
• Write three timed essays a week, and one full Tier-2 paper (essay plus precis plus comprehension in 60 minutes) each week.

Days 46 to 60: revise and simulate

• Take a full mock on alternate days, in the exam time slot you expect, and follow the 60-minute limit strictly.
• Revise formulas, shortcuts, vocabulary and the current-affairs notebook twice.
• Do two more full Tier-2 simulations, and ask someone to review them.
• Begin interview preparation: write a short note on your education, your state, your reasons for choosing this career, and your views on a few current issues. Practise answering aloud.
• In the last three days, do light revision only. Sleep well, and avoid new topics.

A sample daily schedule

Time block	Task
60 minutes	Maths practice
45 minutes	Reasoning practice
45 minutes	English (grammar, vocabulary, editorial)
45 minutes	GS and current affairs
30 minutes	Handwritten essay or precis practice
15 minutes	Revision of the error log

This sums to about 4 hours. Adjust the blocks to your weak areas. If you are strong in maths and weak in English, swap the time.

Mistakes to avoid

• Ignoring Tier-2 until Tier-1 results. The gap between the stages can be long, but you cannot build hand-writing speed in a week. Start writing early.
• Guessing wildly. With a 0.25 penalty, blind guessing wastes marks. Guess only when you can remove at least two options.
• Chasing leaked cut-off numbers. No official category-wise cut-off figure is published each year, as the section above explained. Prepare for a high score rather than a number.
• Collecting too many books. One good source per subject, revised three times, beats five sources read once.
• Skipping mocks review. A mock you do not analyse is just a score. The learning is in the review.
• Treating current affairs as a last-month task. Read a little every day.
• Not reading the notification. Age cut-off dates, degree-result rules and fee details can disqualify you if you miss them.
• Trusting rumours and fake notices. Check every announcement against the MHA website. The fake 2,000-post notice from 2020-21 is a lesson here.
• Weak interview preparation. With 100 marks at stake, do not treat the interview as a formality.

Frequently asked questions

Is the IB ACIO 2026 notification out? When we checked mid-2026 coverage, sources described it as expected, with no official vacancy count or dates. The 2025 notification came out on 14 July 2025. Check the Ministry of Home Affairs website for the latest status.

Who can apply for ACIO Grade II/Executive? Indian citizens aged 18 to 27, with a bachelor's degree from a recognised university, plus age relaxation as per rules for reserved categories.

What is the Tier-1 pattern? A computer-based test with 100 questions for 100 marks in 60 minutes. Reported sections are current affairs, general studies, numerical aptitude, reasoning and English, each with 20 questions. There is a 0.25 deduction for each wrong answer.

What is in the Tier-2 exam? A pen-and-paper descriptive test of 50 marks in 60 minutes, in English. Most sources report 30 marks for the essay and 20 for comprehension and precis. The reported qualifying mark is 33 percent. One site described a slightly different split, so confirm in the notice.

Are Tier-2 marks counted in the final merit? Coverage of the pattern lists the final merit as Tier-1 (100), Tier-2 (50) and interview (100), for a total of 250. Confirm against the notification, as details can change.

How much is the interview worth? The interview is reported to carry 100 marks.

What is the salary? Level 7, with basic pay ranging from Rs 44,900 to Rs 1,42,400, plus admissible allowances. Your exact in-hand amount depends on the city, DA and allowances.

What was the previous cut-off? There is no neat official category-wise figure each year. Reported Tier-1 numbers for UR have ranged from the mid-60s to 75 across years, but many are estimates. The official minimum qualifying marks for 2025 were reported as 35 (UR and EWS), 34 (OBC) and 33 (SC and ST).

How many vacancies were there recently? 995 in the November 2023 notification and 3,717 in the 2025 notification. Vacancies change a lot from year to year.

Is 60 days enough? For a graduate with decent basics, a focused 60 days can get you through Tier-1, since the syllabus is not huge. Tier-2 and interview preparation benefit from extra time, so do not stop after the objective paper.

Do I need a technical degree? No. Any recognised bachelor's degree is acceptable according to the notice we reviewed.

Final words

The IB ACIO exam is not a mystery. It is a clean, three-stage process that rewards steady preparation: a sharp Tier-1, a well-written Tier-2, and a calm interview. Start now, rather than waiting for the notification. Use this guide to set your plan, track your mistakes, and keep your sources limited. When you are ready to test yourself, take timed full-length mocks on Pareeksha, review every wrong answer, and repeat. Consistent practice, and honest review, is what turns a hopeful aspirant into a selected officer. Good luck.