IRS Exam Syllabus 2021: What is IRS and How to Become an IRS Officer?

The recruitment to the post of IRS or Indian Revenue Service is carried out by UPSC to induct officers into the revenue department. The IRS officers work under the Department of Revenue that directly functions under the Union ministry of finance. To become an Indian Revenue Service Officer, the candidate has to clear the UPSC civil services and get the allotment to the Indian Revenue Service as per his/her rank.

What is IRS and Who is an Indian Revenue Officer?

IRS officers are the ones that serve as Assistant commissioners in any of these departments, namely customs unit, excise units, service tax establishments, or income tax services. They could also be posted as an assistant director in any of the tax departments. After several promotions, they would climb to higher posts like Deputy Commissioner and Joint commissioner. In higher cadres of authority, they will be posted as Additional Commissioner, commissioner, and principal commissioner.

IRS UPSC Exam Pattern and Syllabus

The candidates that wish to serve as an IRS officer have to sit for the same comprehensive UPSC Civil Service Examination and have to clear all three stages- Prelims, Mains, and the Interview. They have to secure a certain rank and according to that and their preferences, they are allotted their cadre. Preliminary Examination consists of 400 marks, two papers of 200 marks each Both the question papers are of the objective type (multiple choice questions) of two hours each.

Main Examination (2025 Marks) Candidates who qualify Preliminary exam are called for the Main exam and on the basis of marks secured in the Main exam, they will be called for Interview The total marks of the Main exam and Interview sum up to produce the final result. The syllabus is the same as the official syllabus of the UPSC CSE.

Also Read: How to Become an Indian Revenue Officer?

Duties of an IRS Officer

Law enforcement and intelligence organizations like the Central Bureau of Investigation, Research and Analysis Wing, Intelligence Bureau, etc.
Responsibilities in the Income Tax and Customs Departments – IRS officers are charged with profound responsibilities of identifying the tax evasions.
Statutory powers to search for and seize illegally accumulated wealth and arrest the culprits to prevent further evasions.
Play a significant role in probing and exposing of many scams in the country IRS officers perform all-important border postings and protect the country from smuggling and safeguard its economic borders.
Undertake patrolling missions on high seas and preventive operations against piracy and smuggling.

Salary of an IRS Officer

The IRS Salary pay scale is as follows:

Designation	Pay Scale
Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 80,000 (fixed)
Chief Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 75,500-80,000
Principal Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 67,000-79,000
Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 37,400-67,000 + grade pay of Rs. 10,000
Additional Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 37,400-67,000 + grade pay of Rs. 8,700
Joint Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 15,600-39,100 + grade pay of Rs. 7,600
Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 15,600-39,100 + grade pay of Rs. 6,600
Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax	Rs. 15,600-39,100 + grade pay of Rs.5,400

Also Read: How Much Salary Is an IAS Officer Paid Plus What Are The Incentives They Receive?

Probationary Training Period for IRS Officers

Candidates who successfully clear the final round of interviews and get shortlisted for the Indian Revenue Service will have to undergo the formal training for 15 weeks at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration at Mussoorie. This is the common training offered to candidates from all civil services and forms the foundation training for the candidate.

The next level of higher and specialized cum intensive training commences at the National Academy of Direct Taxes (NADT) at Nagpur. This is an in-depth training carried out for almost 16 months. This training level imparts extensive education about taxation in our country like tax laws, fiscal policies, accounting procedures, public financial management principles, and many more.

Conclusion

IRS officials are often considered as the guardians of the financial borders of the country. They are the ones responsible for guarding against scams of all kinds, be it from foreign forces or our own citizens who try to bend the law and take advantage of their own gains. It is a very honorable job and needs a lot of effort from you. So prepare well for your exams.