Law Jobs update by Akinchan Aggarwal, Advocate — B.A. (Hons.), LL.B. (Gold Medalist), LL.M. (Disputes Resolution), UGC–NET, Ph.D. (Pursuing)
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is engaging two Young Professionals for its new Regional Authority at Raipur, and Legal is one of the four qualifying disciplines. The consolidated fee is ₹56,000 a month. The last date is 7 September 2026.
Three things need saying before anything else, because each of them will cost somebody this job.
1. You must apply through three separate channels. A Google Form, an email, and a hard copy by post — all three, all carrying identical information. This is not a choice of methods. Miss one and the application is incomplete.
2. This is not a fresher's post. The circular requires a minimum of one year's post-qualification experience. Several recruitment sites are reporting that freshers may apply for a DGFT Young Professional vacancy — that is a different circular. It is not this one.
3. An LL.B. alone will not do. The legal qualification reads "LLM/LLB and PG Diploma in any legal subject". The conjunction is "and". If you hold only an LL.B. or only an LL.M., with no postgraduate diploma in a legal subject, you do not meet the essential qualification as printed.
Table of Contents
- What This Post Actually Is
- Vacancy Details at a Glance
- Eligibility — Read the Conjunction
- Two Posts, Four Disciplines
- How to Apply — All Three Channels
- The Terms of Engagement
- An Honest Assessment
- A Note on the Conflicting Reports
- Frequently Asked Questions
1. What This Post Actually Is
The DGFT is an attached office of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. It frames and implements the Foreign Trade Policy, issues scrips and authorisations to exporters, and monitors their obligations through a network of twenty-four regional offices across the country.
Here is the detail that gives this advertisement its character. The circular records that the Office of Assistant DGFT, Raipur — the DGFT's office for Chhattisgarh — "shall be operationalized soon" and will operate from the Mandi Board Building, Naya Raipur.
In other words, the office does not yet exist. It is being staffed in advance of opening. The circular is issued not by Raipur but by the Office of the Joint DGFT, Nagpur, which has jurisdiction over Raipur, and applications go to Nagpur.
For a candidate that cuts both ways, and it is worth being clear-eyed about it. You would be among the first people through the door of a new Government office, with the exposure that brings. You would also be joining an office with no established practice, no institutional memory and no settled workflow, on a contract, reporting to a Joint DGFT in another state.
2. Vacancy Details at a Glance
| Issuing authority | Office of the Joint Director General of Foreign Trade, Nagpur, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India |
|---|---|
| Circular | Vacancy Circular dated 24.08.2026, signed by Dr. Praveen Kumar, Joint DGFT (Nagpur) |
| Post | Young Professional (YP) |
| Number of posts | Two (2) |
| Place of posting | Regional Authority, Raipur — Mandi Board Building, Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh |
| Nature | Contract basis, purely temporary |
| Remuneration | ₹56,000 per month, consolidated, less Professional Tax / TDS. No other allowance or facility. |
| Tenure | Initially one year, extendable up to three years. After three years, no further extension under any circumstances. |
| Age limit | Below 35 years as on 1 September 2026 |
| Experience | Minimum one year post-qualification experience in the relevant field, with proficiency in computer skills |
| Last date | 7 September 2026 — applications received by email after this date, or incomplete in any respect, are liable to be rejected without further correspondence |
| nagpur-dgft@nic.in | |
| Google Form | https://forms.gle/okYh4iwjysXkHA1n8 |
| Postal address | O/o Joint DGFT, First Floor East Wing, N.S. Building, Opposite V.C.A. Stadium, Civil Lines, Nagpur – 440001 |
3. Eligibility — Read the Conjunction
The circular sets out four disciplines, and a candidate qualifies under any one of them.
| # | Discipline | Essential qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Economics | Master's Degree in Economics (preferably with International Trade) |
| 2 | Legal | LLM/LLB and PG Diploma in any legal subject |
| 3 | General Management | MBA or equivalent from an institution with NIRF ranking up to 100 in the Management category as per the latest NIRF ranking, or Masters in Public Policy / International Trade |
| 4 | Data Science | B.Tech / B.E. in any discipline, MCA, or Masters in Data Science, Data Analytics or Computational Mathematics |
Desirable, for the General Management discipline only: experience in multimedia content creation, graphic design, and proficiency in relevant multimedia tools and software.
For degrees from universities or institutes outside India, the circular states that Times / QS ranking will be taken into account.
The point law graduates must not skim
The legal entry reads "LLM/LLB and PG Diploma in any legal subject". On its plain terms that is two qualifications, not one: a law degree plus a postgraduate diploma in a legal subject.
This will exclude a great many otherwise strong applicants, and it is the kind of clause that gets missed at the shortlisting stage only to surface at document verification. If you hold a PG Diploma — in cyber law, IPR, international trade law, corporate law, ADR, taxation, labour law or anything comparable — say so on the first page of your application. If you do not, be realistic: an application that does not meet the essential qualification as printed is at risk, and the circular reserves the right to reject anything incomplete "in any respect".
The one qualification worth making is that the clause is not artfully drafted, and a candidate holding an LL.M. may reasonably take the view that a master's degree subsumes a postgraduate diploma. That is an argument, not a certainty. If you are in that position and you have the time, a short email to nagpur-dgft@nic.in asking for clarification costs nothing and creates a record.
Experience — one year, not zero
The experience column applies across all four disciplines: minimum one year post-qualification experience in the relevant field with proficiency in computer skills. There is no fresher's route in this circular.
4. Two Posts, Four Disciplines
This is the framing most listings get wrong, and it matters for how you pitch yourself.
This is not a legal post. It is a Young Professional post for which a legal qualification is one of four qualifying routes. Two seats are open, and a law graduate is competing not only against other lawyers but against economists with master's degrees, MBAs from NIRF top-100 institutions, and data scientists.
The practical inference is that a bare recitation of your law degrees will not distinguish you. What will is demonstrated proximity to the work the office actually does — foreign trade policy, export incentives, customs and DGFT procedure, WTO and international trade law, FEMA, or the adjudication and appellate work that arises under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992.
If you have appeared before or advised on matters involving DGFT authorisations, advance licences, EPCG, MEIS or RoDTEP, or handled customs and trade compliance work, put it at the top of the experience table on the application form. The form gives you a "Responsibilities Assigned" column — use it properly rather than writing "associate".
5. How to Apply — All Three Channels
The circular sets out a procedure in three parts, and the closing NOTE makes clear that all of it is mandatory.
- Fill the Google Form at https://forms.gle/okYh4iwjysXkHA1n8, using a valid email ID.
- Complete the prescribed Application Form annexed to the circular (it is at pages 5 and 6 of the PDF), affix a recent passport-size photograph, and sign it.
- Scan the completed and signed form together with self-attested copies of educational qualifications, experience certificates, identity proof and other supporting documents.
- Email the scanned set to nagpur-dgft@nic.in with the subject line exactly as prescribed:
"Application for Engagement as Young Professional [Name of Candidate]"
— this must reach them before 07.09.2026. - Post the hard copy — the duly filled application form with self-attested copies of all supporting documents — by post or speed post to:
O/o Joint DGFT, First Floor East Wing, Opposite V.C.A. Stadium, Civil Lines, Nagpur – 440001. - The circular states in terms that the Google Form, the email and the hard copy "should contain identical information".
The closing NOTE adds the documents to enclose: the Resume, a copy of the PAN card, a copy of the Aadhaar card, and copies of relevant qualification documents.
Which deadline actually binds. The circular fixes 7 September 2026 for the email, and paragraph 8 is explicit that applications received on email after that date will be rejected without further correspondence. No separate date is stated for the hard copy. The safe reading — and the only one worth acting on — is that the email is the deadline-critical channel and the hard copy should be despatched the same day, by speed post, with the tracking receipt retained. Do not assume that posting the hard copy on time cures a late email.
With only a few days left, the order to work in is: fill the Google Form now, send the email today, post the hard copy today.
6. The Terms of Engagement
The circular sets out seventeen conditions. Most are routine; several are not, and a candidate should read them before accepting rather than after.
| Condition | What it says |
|---|---|
| Fee | ₹56,000 per month consolidated, less Professional Tax and TDS, subject to periodic completion of work certified by the controlling officer. No other allowance or facility. |
| Hard ceiling | One year initially, extendable to three. "After three years no further extension will be permissible under any circumstances." Emphasised in the original. |
| Insurance | The Young Professional is solely responsible for arranging, at his own expense, life, health and other insurance. |
| Death or injury in service | In the event of death, injury or illness while serving, neither the Young Professional nor the next of kin is entitled to any compensation or appointment. |
| Termination for unsatisfactory service | If services are not found satisfactory, or are found in conflict with the interest of DGFT or the Government, they "will be terminated forthwith, without any notice period or compensation". |
| Ordinary termination | Either side may end the engagement on 30 days' notice or pay in lieu. |
| Hours | 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on working days, including a half-hour lunch break. May be required to sit late and to attend on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. |
| Leave | 18 days a year, pro rata, on prior written approval. Unused leave cannot be carried forward. Up to one month without remuneration is possible. Maternity leave per the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017. |
| Secrecy | Governed by the Official Secrets Act, 1923. All information, records, papers, software and emails are Government property. |
| No publicity | May not publicise the engagement for commercial advantage, or use the name, emblem or seal of the Government or DGFT, without prior written permission. |
| Police verification | A police verification report from the candidate's police station is required. |
| No future claim | The engagement confers no claim or right to any subsequent engagement or employment with DGFT or any other Government Department. |
| Travel | May be required to travel anywhere in India. On tour, TA/DA admissible at the rate of an Assistant Section Officer of the Central Government. |
| Health | A Statement of Good Health from a recognised physician may be required before commencement. |
Two of these deserve a moment's attention.
The death and injury clause is stark even by the standards of Government contract engagements. Read together with the requirement that the Young Professional arrange his own insurance at his own expense, the position is that the engagement carries no personal-accident or life cover of any kind. Anyone accepting should arrange cover independently and treat the cost as a deduction from the ₹56,000.
The three-year ceiling is absolute and is underlined in the circular itself. This is not a route into Government service, and the circular says as much twice — once in the tenure clause and once in the clause disclaiming any right to future employment. Treat it as a defined three-year experience, not a foot in the door.
7. An Honest Assessment
The case for applying
- The subject matter is genuinely specialised and genuinely marketable. Foreign trade policy, export authorisations, DGFT procedure and trade compliance are a niche in which very few Indian lawyers have first-hand regulatory-side experience. Three years inside a DGFT regional office is a credential that is difficult to acquire any other way.
- ₹56,000 a month is respectable for the profile — roughly ₹6.72 lakh a year — for a candidate one to a few years post-qualification, particularly in Raipur, where living costs are far below the metros.
- You would be there from the opening. Being among the first two professionals in a new regional office is a different proposition from joining an established one.
- No fee, no examination. Selection is on the application and document verification.
The case for hesitating
- Three years, and then it ends. No extension is permissible in any circumstance, and the engagement confers no right to anything afterwards. Plan the exit before you accept the entry.
- The terms are hard. No allowances, no insurance, no compensation for injury or death in service, and termination forthwith without notice or compensation if the work is not found satisfactory.
- Two posts across four disciplines. A law graduate is competing with economists, MBAs and data scientists, and there is nothing in the circular indicating that any discipline is preferred or that the two seats will be split between disciplines.
- The office is not yet operational. The date of joining is the date of joining at RA Raipur — but the circular does not say when the office will open, and the engagement period runs from joining.
- The PG Diploma requirement will exclude candidates who are otherwise well suited.
Who should apply
This suits a lawyer one to five years qualified, under 35, holding an LL.B. or LL.M. together with a postgraduate diploma in a legal subject, who has some exposure to customs, trade, FEMA or regulatory compliance work and wants to build a specialisation in international trade law from the regulator's side. It suits especially anyone already in or willing to relocate to Chhattisgarh.
It suits least a candidate looking for security, a route into permanent Government service, or a post that will still be there in year four.
8. A Note on the Conflicting Reports
Several recruitment portals are currently carrying DGFT Young Professional listings that state "no prior work experience required — freshers are eligible" and give the location as New Delhi.
Those reports do not describe this circular. DGFT has issued more than one Young Professional advertisement in recent weeks — including for its headquarters and for other regional authorities — and the aggregators have run them together. This circular, issued by the Joint DGFT Nagpur on 24 August 2026 for the Raipur office, requires a minimum of one year's post-qualification experience and posts the successful candidates to Naya Raipur.
The lesson is the ordinary one: read the circular, not the listing. Where an aggregator and the issuing authority differ, the circular governs, and an application built on an aggregator's summary is an application built on somebody else's mistake.
9. Frequently Asked Questions
What is the last date to apply?
7 September 2026. The circular fixes that date for the emailed application and states that applications received by email after it, or incomplete in any respect, are liable to be rejected without further correspondence. No separate date is given for the hard copy, so despatch it the same day.
Can I apply with just an LL.B.?
On the terms of the circular, no. The legal qualification is "LLM/LLB and PG Diploma in any legal subject" — a law degree together with a postgraduate diploma in a legal subject. A candidate holding an LL.M. may argue that it subsumes a diploma, but that is an argument rather than a settled position; ask the office by email if you have time.
Are freshers eligible?
No. This circular requires a minimum of one year's post-qualification experience in the relevant field, with proficiency in computer skills. Reports to the contrary relate to a different DGFT circular.
What is the age limit?
Below 35 years as on 1 September 2026. The circular does not mention any relaxation.
Do I really have to apply three times?
Yes — through the Google Form, by email, and by post — and the circular requires all three to contain identical information. The closing NOTE describes both the Google Form and the signed hard-copy application as mandatory.
What is the salary and does it increase?
₹56,000 per month consolidated, less Professional Tax and TDS, subject to periodic certification of work by the controlling officer. There are no other allowances or facilities, and the circular provides for no increment.
Is this a route into a permanent Government job?
No. The circular states that the engagement is purely temporary, that no extension is permissible after three years in any circumstances, and that it confers no claim or right to any subsequent engagement or employment with DGFT or any other Government Department.
Where will I actually work?
At the Regional Authority, Raipur, in the Mandi Board Building, Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh — an office the circular records as one that "shall be operationalized soon". Applications go to the Joint DGFT at Nagpur, which has jurisdiction over Raipur.
Conclusion
Two posts, three days, and a specialisation that very few Indian lawyers ever get near from the regulator's side. Against that: a hard three-year ceiling, terms that put every risk on the individual, and a competition in which your law degree is one of four ways in rather than the reason you are wanted.
If you have the LL.B. or LL.M. and the postgraduate diploma, you are under 35, and you have a year behind you, this is worth the evening it will take.
Fill the Google Form. Send the email with the subject line exactly as prescribed. Post the hard copy by speed post and keep the receipt. And make all three say the same thing.
Disclaimer: This post is prepared for informational purposes from the Vacancy Circular dated 24 August 2026 issued by the Office of the Joint Director General of Foreign Trade, Nagpur, for engagement of Young Professionals at the Regional Authority, Raipur, and does not constitute legal or career advice. Candidates must read the official circular in full and satisfy themselves as to eligibility before applying; the observations above on the construction of the qualification clause are the author's reading and are not authoritative. Any doubt should be addressed to the issuing office at nagpur-dgft@nic.in or by post to the address given in the circular. Vacancy numbers, terms, qualifications and dates are subject to change at the discretion of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade. Lawizard.in is not connected with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, plays no part in the selection process, and receives no consideration in relation to it.
