The All India Bar Examination (AIBE), conducted by the Bar Council of India, is the qualifying exam a law graduate must clear to receive a Certificate of Practice after enrolment with a State Bar Council. Enrolment with a State Bar Council under the Advocates Act remains the first step; the AIBE is a post-enrolment requirement to continue practising.
The exam is open-book, objective-type, and covers professional ethics, constitutional law, the CPC and CrPC/BNSS, evidence, contract, and other core subjects examined at a level the BCI describes as testing "practical" rather than purely academic legal knowledge.
Candidates who do not clear the exam on their first attempt can continue practising while re-attempting it, since the AIBE does not gate the ability to appear in court in the way bar admission does in some other jurisdictions — the certificate of practice, not enrolment itself, is what is pending.
The Council periodically revises the syllabus weightage and question pattern; candidates should always confirm the current syllabus circular for their scheduled sitting rather than relying on a previous year's pattern.