ICSI Long-Term Practical Training

Under ICSI’s current published training guidelines, the standard route is for a student who has passed the CS Executive Programme and completed the full one-month EDP: 15 days of online e-EDP followed by 15 days of classroom EDP. The 21-month training can then be pursued under an eligible practising Company Secretary (PCS), company, or other entity recognised under Regulation 46BB and ICSI’s trainer criteria.

The regulations also permit ICSI to grant full, partial, conditional, or no exemption from EDP and practical training where a student claims equivalent practical knowledge and skills; this is an individual ICSI determination rather than an automatic alternative route.

• The normal prerequisite is: CS Executive pass + 30 days of EDP.
• Training is workplace-based and must be with an eligible/registered trainer or entity.
• Students seeking an exemption should use ICSI’s applicable exemption process and criteria rather than assume prior employment automatically qualifies.

The prescribed long-term practical-training period is 21 months. ICSI characterises the regulatory requirement as whole-time practical training during normal working hours. Its guidelines provide that working hours are set by trainee–trainer mutual consent, generally between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., with a minimum of eight hours a day, subject to applicable state or Union Territory law.

The trainer must file quarterly progress reports online, and the trainee must prepare and submit a project report based on the practical training through ICSI’s Stimulate portal. The first two months are a probation period; a transfer within that period requires 14 days’ notice and an NOC, while later transfers are ordinarily limited to specified exceptional cases.

• Required period: 21 months.
• Quarterly reports: filed by the trainer through ICSI’s online process.
• Project report: prepared under the trainer’s guidance and submitted through Stimulate.
• Registration timing: ICSI says training should preferably be registered before it begins; registration remains possible within 30 days of commencement, while a delay beyond 30 days is not treated as valid training.

This is not a classroom course with a single fixed paper syllabus. ICSI specifies indicative core workplace areas so that the training develops practical capability relevant to company-secretarial work. The actual work exposure will depend on the registered trainer or organisation, but ICSI’s list covers legal, governance, compliance, finance, regulatory, and technology-related responsibilities.

• Legal and management work.
• Corporate law, including insolvency; securities law; direct and indirect tax; economic and business laws; and labour laws.
• Governance, ESG and CSR; audit; financial management; corporate funding; arbitration and mediation.
• Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and appearances/proceedings before regulators such as MCA, NCLT, ED, and RBI.

There is no separate entrance examination for this training stage in the published process. After finding an eligible trainer, a trainee under a PCS executes ICSI’s prescribed long-term-training contract; a trainee joining a company or other entity obtains a letter of training. The application to register training must include evidence of passing the Executive Programme and the one-month EDP completion certificate.

ICSI provides the prescribed 21-month contract format, training forms, NOC format, project-report format, and training-completion certificate format on its training pages. Students should use the current versions in the ICSI portal and should register the arrangement before starting wherever possible.

• PCS route: execute the prescribed contract, in duplicate, on the required stamp paper/franking/e-stamp basis.
• Company or other-entity route: obtain a letter of training from the trainer.
• Attach Executive pass proof and the 30-day EDP completion certificate.
• Register before commencement where possible, or no later than 30 days after commencement under the published guideline.

ICSI’s published long-term-training guideline does not present a standalone trainee tuition fee for the 21-month placement in the relevant section. Instead, it requires a PCS or company engaging the trainee to pay a minimum monthly stipend of ₹5,000, with the amount subject to revision by the ICSI Council. This is a minimum stipend obligation, not a guarantee of a particular employer’s total compensation.

Students should separately budget for the prerequisite EDP. In the currently posted guidelines, the 15-day online EDP fee is ₹2,000 and the 15-day classroom EDP fee is ₹8,000 inclusive of listed refreshments, lunch, and ₹300 of study material; ICSI states these fees may be prescribed or changed from time to time. Confirm the fee shown in the current Stimulate registration flow before paying.

• Minimum published stipend for a PCS/company trainee: ₹5,000 per month, subject to future Council revision.
• Published prerequisite EDP fees: ₹2,000 online plus ₹8,000 classroom, subject to change.
• Potential personal expenses such as relocation, commuting, accommodation, stamp/e-stamp costs, and exam preparation depend on the trainee and training location.

The usual qualification pathway continues with the CS Professional Programme and ICSI’s Corporate Leadership Development Programme (CLDP). Under the published guidelines, a student who has passed the Professional Programme and completed the 30-day EDP plus 21 months of practical training becomes eligible for CLDP Phase I; completing Phase I is required before CLDP Phase II. The regulations provide for CLDP of not less than 30 days and not more than 60 days after passing the Professional Programme.

For Associate Company Secretary (ACS) membership, the student must apply to ICSI in the prescribed form and submit documentary proof satisfactory to the Institute that the required practical training was completed or exempted. ICSI’s forms page also provides a document list for Form-A for ACS and a training-completion certificate format.

• Pass the CS Professional Programme, if not already passed while completing training.
• Complete the applicable CLDP sequence after satisfying its eligibility requirements.
• Apply for ACS membership with ICSI and include the required training evidence.