IRDAI recruits across six streams under one advertisement, and each has its own qualification. Picking the wrong one, or missing the 60% clause, is how most candidates lose a cycle before they write anything.
Age limit
21 to 30 years. The date on which age is measured is printed in each advertisement and moves with it — in the previous cycle it worked out to candidates born between roughly 21 September 1995 and 20 September 2004. Do not calculate from an older advertisement; take the reference date from the live PDF.
Upper-age relaxation follows the standard government norms for SC, ST, OBC (non-creamy layer), PwBD and ex-servicemen, as set out in the advertisement.
Qualification, stream by stream
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Note the common thread: 60% marks runs through almost every stream, not just the degree subject.
| Stream | Qualification |
|---|---|
| Generalist | Graduation in any discipline with a minimum of 60% marks |
| Actuarial | Graduation with a minimum of 60% marks and 7 papers passed of the Institute of Actuaries of India, as per the 2019 curriculum |
| Finance | Graduation with a minimum of 60% marks and ACA, AICWA, ACMA, ACS or CFA |
| Law | Bachelor’s degree in Law with a minimum of 60% marks |
| Information Technology | B.E. or B.Tech in Electrical, Electronics, Electronics & Communication, IT, Computer Science or Software Engineering with 60%; or MCA with 60%; or a Bachelor’s in any discipline with a postgraduate qualification of at least two years in Computers or IT, with 60% |
| Research | Master’s degree or a two-year postgraduate diploma in Economics, Econometrics, Quantitative Economics, Mathematical Economics, Integrated Economics, Statistics, Mathematical Statistics or Applied Statistics & Informatics, with a minimum of 60% marks |
Which stream should you choose?
In the last advertisement Generalist carried 24 of the 49 posts and the five specialist streams had five each. That looks like an argument for Generalist until you count who is eligible: anyone with any degree at 60%. The specialist streams are restricted to people holding an actuarial qualification, a CA or CFA, a law degree, an engineering or MCA degree, or a Master’s in economics or statistics.
So the practical rule is the same as at SEBI and FCI: if a specialist stream is open to you, it is usually the easier door, even with a fifth of the posts. The exception is if your specialist knowledge has gone cold and you would rather write the Mains on general ground anyway.
Whichever you pick is locked at submission and sets your papers. Decide before you open the form, not while filling it.
ARD notes, the monthly current affairs PDF and a descriptive English sample — all free, on WhatsApp.
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Indian citizen, or one of the other categories the advertisement lists. Candidates in those other categories need an eligibility certificate from the Government of India.
Number of attempts
IRDAI has not applied an attempt limit in recent advertisements — the age window is the real constraint, and 21 to 30 gives most candidates several cycles. Confirm the clause in the live advertisement before you rely on it.
Where applications fail
- The 60% clause. It applies to almost every stream, and 59.6% is not 60%. The aggregate the university awards is what counts.
- Actuarial and Finance candidates missing the second half of the requirement. A 60% degree alone is not enough — those streams need the professional papers as well.
- Age computed from the wrong date. Use the reference date in the current advertisement.
- Degree not complete by the date the advertisement specifies.
- OBC certificate without a current non-creamy-layer clause in the prescribed format.
- Documents in the wrong format — photograph, signature and handwritten declaration all have specified sizes.