Bank Promotion Chart: Clerk to Scale VIII — Years, Pay Scales and How Promotions Work in PSBs (2026)
Last updated: October 6, 2026
A public sector bank has two award-staff cadres (sub-staff and clerical) and eight officer scales, from Scale I (JMG) to Scale VIII (TEG). Every step up is a promotion with its own minimum service, selection method and pay scale. This page sets out the whole ladder: how many years each step needs, how the selection is made, and what each scale pays. It uses the banks’ own documents rather than coaching-site summaries.
Ladder: Sub-staff → Clerk → Scale I → II → III → IV → V → VI → VII → VIII · Clerk to officer: an internal test, open to graduate clerks after 3 years (Bank of India, 2026) · Officer steps: usually 3 years minimum in each scale, or 5 years through the seniority channel at Scale I→II and II→III, and 2 years for VII→VIII (PNB policy) · Fastest path for a direct-recruit officer: Scale IV after 9 years, Scale VII after 18 · Basic pay: ₹24,050 (clerk start) to ₹1,73,860 (Scale VII maximum), effective 1 November 2022.
- Officer pay scales: SBI eCircular CDO/P&HRD-IR/22/2024-25 (18 June 2024), Salary revision of officers under the 9th Joint Note dated 08.03.2024.
- Clerical and sub-staff pay scales: 12th Bipartite Settlement (8 March 2024).
- Officer promotion rules: Punjab National Bank, HRMD Circular 787/2024, Promotion Policy for Officers, Board-approved on 27.09.2024 for FY 2025-26, and HRMD Circular 855/2025 (14.10.2025) for the 2026-27 round. See our PNB promotion policy guide for the full detail and source notes. Banks revise these policies every year, so check your own bank’s current circular.
- Clerk-to-officer rules: Bank of India Circular 2026-27/029 (13 August 2026). See our full breakdown.
How many scales are there in a bank?
Officers are grouped into four grades: Junior Management (JMG, Scale I), Middle Management (MMG, Scales II–III), Senior Management (SMG, Scales IV–V) and Top Executive (TEG, Scales VI–VIII). Designations vary a little between banks; the ones below are the most common.
| Cadre / Scale | Typical designation | Basic pay (₹/month) |
|---|---|---|
| Sub-staff | Peon, daftary, record keeper | 19,500 – 37,815 |
| Clerical | Clerk / Single Window Operator / Customer Service Associate | 24,050 – 64,480 |
| Scale I (JMGS-I) | Officer / Assistant Manager | 48,480 – 85,920 |
| Scale II (MMGS-II) | Manager | 64,820 – 93,960 |
| Scale III (MMGS-III) | Senior Manager | 85,920 – 1,05,280 |
| Scale IV (SMGS-IV) | Chief Manager | 1,02,300 – 1,20,940 |
| Scale V (SMGS-V) | Assistant General Manager | 1,20,940 – 1,35,020 |
| Scale VI (TEGS-VI) | Deputy General Manager | 1,40,500 – 1,56,500 |
| Scale VII (TEGS-VII) | General Manager | 1,56,500 – 1,73,860 |
| Scale VIII | Chief General Manager | Not covered by the Joint Note |
These are the scales effective 1 November 2022 under the 12th Bipartite Settlement (award staff) and the 9th Joint Note (officers, Scales I–VII). Dearness allowance, HRA and other allowances come on top: the BPS salary calculator works out the full monthly pay for any scale and stage. The Chief General Manager level (Scale VIII) is one banks may create under a 2019 Finance Ministry letter. It sits outside the Joint Note pay scales. The next wage revision is being negotiated as the 13th Bipartite Settlement, so these figures will change.
Bank promotion chart with years
Each bank’s Board sets its own promotion policy under its Officers’ Service Regulations, guided by Government of India guidelines. The minimum years below are from PNB’s policy, which follows the common pattern. They are minimum eligibility, counted as on 1 April of the year the vacancies arise. Actual promotion depends on vacancies and on how you score, and many officers take longer.
| Promotion | Minimum service | How selected |
|---|---|---|
| Clerk → Scale I | 3 years for a graduate (1–10 years depending on qualification)* | Online test + marks for service and qualifications* |
| Scale I → II | 3 years (merit fast track) or 5 years (normal seniority) | APAR + interview + written test + branch experience + qualifications |
| Scale II → III | 3 years (merit fast track) or 5 years (normal seniority) | As above |
| Scale III → IV | 3 years in Scale III | Merit only: APAR, interview, written test, branch experience, qualifications |
| Scale IV → V | 3 years in Scale IV, 12 years total | APAR, interview, written test, group discussion; 3 years as branch incumbent |
| Scale V → VI | 3 years in Scale V, 15 years total | APAR, written test, interview |
| Scale VI → VII | 3 years in Scale VI, 18 years total, 2 years’ residual service | APAR + interview |
| Scale VII → VIII | 2 years in Scale VII (Board can relax up to 1 year), 20 years total, 2 years’ residual service | APAR + interview |
* Clerk → Scale I from Bank of India’s 2026 circular. All other rows from PNB’s Promotion Policy for Officers for FY 2025-26 (HRMD 787/2024). The “total” service is counted in the officer cadre.
The fastest possible path, adding up those minimums for an officer recruited directly into Scale I, gives Scale II after 3 years, III after 6, IV after 9 and V after 12. Scale VI follows after 15, VII after 18 and VIII after 20. A graduate who joins as a clerk adds at least 3 years before reaching Scale I. Treat this as the floor, not the norm: each step also needs a vacancy and a high enough rank in the merit list.
Three conditions in PNB’s policy commonly trip people up:
- Rural service: a mainstream Scale I officer needs two years of rural service to be eligible for Scale II. A Scale II officer needs three years of rural or semi-urban service in total to be eligible for Scale III. An officer short of this can still be promoted but is posted to a rural or semi-urban branch to complete it.
- Branch incumbency: two years as a branch incumbent are required before Scale IV, and three before Scale V. Again, an officer without them is posted to a branch on promotion.
- Relaxation and exclusions: the minimum years can be relaxed by up to one year and three months (by the MD & CEO up to Scale IV, by the Board above). Suspension, loss-of-pay periods and sabbatical leave don’t count as service, and officers on probation can’t apply.
How each promotion is decided
Up to Scale III, PNB runs two channels and the officer chooses one. The merit fast-track channel takes 60% of vacancies after 3 years. The normal seniority channel takes 40% after 5 years and treats the written test as qualifying only. From Scale IV onwards there is only the merit channel. Marks out of 100, from the FY 2025-26 policy:
| Promotion | APAR | Interview | Written test | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I→II, II→III (fast track) | 30 | 25 | 30 | Branch 10, qualifications 5 |
| I→II, II→III (seniority) | 35 | 50 | Qualifying | Branch 10, qualifications 5 |
| III→IV | 40 | 30 | 20 | Branch 5, qualifications 5 |
| IV→V | 40 | 30 | 20 | Branch 5, group discussion 5 |
| V→VI | 40 | 40 | 20 | — |
| VI→VII, VII→VIII | 50 | 50 | — | — |
- Written test: for Scale I→II and II→III, a 100-question General Banking Knowledge Test that counts for merit, plus a 50-question CBS Awareness Test that is qualifying only, in two hours. For Scale III→IV up to V→VI, a 50-question General Banking Knowledge Test plus a 50-question case-study test. Both count. Coverage: CBS, the bank’s products and manuals, credit, risk, forex, banking law and practice, Government schemes and RBI guidelines.
- Pass marks: at Scales I→II and II→III, 50% in both the test and the interview (40% for SC/ST). From Scale III→IV upwards, 50% in each, plus an aggregate of at least 70%.
- APAR: averaged over three years, leaving out the year just before the vacancy year. For PNB’s 2026-27 round, an average of at least 60% was mandatory.
- Shortlist: up to three times the number of vacancies go from the written test to the interview, ranked on test plus APAR marks.
- Branch experience and qualifications: marks for years in branches (more for branch incumbents and rural branches) and up to 5 for post-graduation, CAIIB, CA/CS/CMA/CFA/FRM and listed IIBF or NIBM certificates.
Other banks use the same building blocks (APAR, interview, written test, seniority and qualifications) with different weights and cut-offs. Our bank promotion exam guide compares the main public sector banks, and the PNB promotion policy guide sets out one bank’s rules in full.
Clerk to officer: a different route
Promotion from the clerical cadre is governed by each bank’s settlement with its award-staff unions, not by the officers’ policy. Bank of India’s 2026 round is typical. Eligibility runs from 1 year of clerical service for a CA/CS/ICWA/CFA, through 3 years for a graduate, to 10 years with no qualification. Ranking is on 100 marks: 20 for service, 15 for qualifications and 65 for a 130-question online test, with no interview. The new officer serves a one-year probation and keeps a lien on the clerical post for a year. The Bank of India 2026 breakdown covers the full rules.
How much does pay rise on promotion?
On promotion, basic pay is re-fixed in the higher scale under a fitment formula rather than simply moving to the new scale’s starting point. For clerks, IBA’s model formula of August 2024 removes the JAIIB/CAIIB increments, fits the remaining basic into the officer scale and then adds those increments back. The promotion fitment calculator does this for every step from sub-staff to Scale V and shows the new basic and DA. The CTC calculator shows total cost-to-company in each scale.
The rules behind bank promotion policies
Promotion policies are made by each bank’s Board under its Officers’ Service Regulations, 1979, within guidelines from the Finance Ministry’s Department of Financial Services. PNB’s policy lists the ones it follows:
- The 14 March 2012 guidelines (F.No.4/11/1/2011-IR)
- The 7 January 2016 letter (F.No.4/11/3/2013-IR) letting Boards decide their own promotion policy
- The 16 April 2019 letter on the selection committee for Scale VI→VII
- The 30 August 2019 governance-reform letter allowing banks to introduce the Chief General Manager level
That 2016 letter is why minimum years and marks now differ from bank to bank.
बैंक में प्रमोशन कैसे होता है? (हिंदी में सारांश)
सरकारी बैंकों में अधीनस्थ कर्मचारी (सब-स्टाफ) और लिपिक (क्लर्क) के बाद अधिकारियों के आठ स्केल होते हैं: स्केल I (असिस्टेंट मैनेजर/ऑफिसर), स्केल II (मैनेजर), स्केल III (सीनियर मैनेजर), स्केल IV (चीफ मैनेजर), स्केल V (एजीएम), स्केल VI (डीजीएम), स्केल VII (जीएम) और स्केल VIII (सीजीएम)।
क्लर्क से ऑफिसर: बैंक की आंतरिक ऑनलाइन परीक्षा होती है। बैंक ऑफ इंडिया (2026) में स्नातक क्लर्क 3 वर्ष की सेवा के बाद आवेदन कर सकता था। कुल 100 अंक थे: सेवा 20, शैक्षणिक योग्यता 15 (JAIIB के 5, CAIIB के 10) और ऑनलाइन टेस्ट 65। इंटरव्यू नहीं होता।
PO/ऑफिसर का प्रमोशन: पीएनबी की नीति के अनुसार स्केल I से II और II से III के लिए न्यूनतम 3 वर्ष (मेरिट फास्ट ट्रैक) या 5 वर्ष (सामान्य वरिष्ठता चैनल) चाहिए। स्केल III से आगे हर स्केल में न्यूनतम 3 वर्ष चाहिए। चयन APAR (वार्षिक मूल्यांकन), लिखित परीक्षा, इंटरव्यू, शाखा अनुभव और योग्यता अंकों से होता है। स्केल VI से ऊपर केवल APAR और इंटरव्यू होते हैं। सबसे तेज़ रास्ते में सीधे भर्ती हुआ ऑफिसर 9 वर्ष में स्केल IV और 18 वर्ष में स्केल VII तक पहुँच सकता है, लेकिन यह न्यूनतम अवधि है और रिक्तियों पर निर्भर करती है।
वेतन (1 नवंबर 2022 से, मूल वेतन): क्लर्क ₹24,050–64,480; स्केल I ₹48,480–85,920; स्केल II ₹64,820–93,960; स्केल III ₹85,920–1,05,280; स्केल IV ₹1,02,300–1,20,940; स्केल V ₹1,20,940–1,35,020; स्केल VI ₹1,40,500–1,56,500; स्केल VII ₹1,56,500–1,73,860। इसके ऊपर महंगाई भत्ता (DA) और अन्य भत्ते मिलते हैं।
The written test is the part of the selection you can prepare for. Our scale-wise courses cover Clerk → Scale I, Scale I → II and Scale II → III, with chapter-wise MCQs and full-length mock tests.
Read Free Sample Chapters →Frequently asked questions
How many scales are there in a public sector bank?
Eight officer scales: Scale I (JMG), Scales II and III (MMG), Scales IV and V (SMG) and Scales VI to VIII (TEG). Below them are the clerical and sub-staff cadres. Scale VIII (Chief General Manager) is a level banks may introduce under a 2019 Finance Ministry letter.
How many years does it take for a bank clerk to become an officer?
It depends on the bank and your qualification. In Bank of India’s 2026 round, a graduate clerk could apply after 3 years of clerical service; a CA/CS/ICWA/CFA after 1 year, an MBA/MCA after 2, a 12th-pass clerk after 8 and a clerk with no qualification after 10. Selection is by an internal online test plus marks for service and qualifications.
What is the minimum service for promotion from Scale I to Scale II?
Under Punjab National Bank’s officer promotion policy, 3 years in Scale I through the merit fast-track channel (60% of vacancies) or 5 years through the normal seniority channel (40%). A mainstream officer also needs two years of rural service. Other banks set their own minimums.
What is the basic pay of a Scale I, Scale II and Scale III bank officer?
Under the 9th Joint Note, effective 1 November 2022: Scale I ₹48,480–85,920, Scale II ₹64,820–93,960 and Scale III ₹85,920–1,05,280 a month, plus DA and other allowances.
Is there a written exam for promotion to DGM (Scale VI)?
Yes, at PNB. Under its FY 2025-26 policy, promotion from Scale V to Scale VI is on APAR (40 marks), a written test (20) and an interview (40), with at least 50% in the test and the interview and 70% overall. From Scale VI upwards it is APAR (50) and interview (50) only.
How fast can a bank PO reach the General Manager level?
Adding up the minimum service in PNB’s policy, an officer recruited in Scale I could at the earliest reach Scale IV after 9 years and Scale VII (General Manager) after 18 years. In practice it takes longer, because every step also depends on vacancies and merit-list rank.
Related
- Bank Promotion Exam 2026 — eligibility, pattern and marks by scale
- Promotion Fitment Calculator — your basic pay after promotion
- BPS Salary Calculator — monthly pay in any scale
- Bank of India clerk to officer promotion 2026
- Clerk to Scale I promotion exam — 50 MCQs
- Scale II to Scale III promotion exam — 50 MCQs
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