Apply by 22 October 2026. That is the date printed in the advertisement. FSSAI’s application portal currently shows “Last Date 23rd October, 2026”, linked to a notice we could not read. Until FSSAI publishes a corrigendum you can see, treat the 22nd as the deadline.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India is hiring three Legal Consultants on contract under Advertisement No. 01/2026, dated 8 October 2026. The pay is a fixed ₹70,000 a month. You need a regular LL.B. and five years’ experience in legal matters, and you can be up to 58.
FSSAI has hired legal consultants twice before, in 2022 and 2023. Set this round against those and a pattern emerges: the door is wider and the pay is narrower. And as with the AAI consultancy advertised this week, the terms say more than the headline.
The advertisement at a glance
| Advertisement | No. 01/2026, dated 8 October 2026 (File No. L-15017/128/2023-Legal-FSSAI) |
| Authority | Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, FDA Bhawan, Kotla Road, New Delhi. The advertisement names no other place of engagement |
| Post | Legal Consultant — 3 |
| Qualification | Bachelor’s degree in Law on regular basis; open and distance degrees excluded |
| Experience | Not less than 5 years in legal matters |
| Age | Not more than 58 on the last date of application. No minimum; no relaxation printed |
| Pay | ₹70,000 a month, fixed and consolidated. 5% increment only if the contract is extended |
| Contract | One year, extendable to 1+1+1 years, maximum three |
| Selection | Printed as “Walk in Interview”, but by online application and shortlisting. See below |
| Fee | None is mentioned |
| Apply | Online only, through the link on fssai.gov.in/jobs-at-fssai. Physical applications are rejected |
| Last date | 22 October 2026 (the portal shows 23 October) |
Read the advertisement
Open the advertisement on fssai.gov.in
What changed from the last two rounds
| Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Oct 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Posts | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Experience | 7 years | 7 years | 5 years |
| Desirable | LL.M. or Ph.D. | LL.M. or Ph.D. | None stated |
| Upper age | 55, on the date of interview | 55, on the date of interview | 58, on the last date of application |
| Pay | ₹70,000–80,000, as the Selection Committee assessed | ₹70,000–80,000 | ₹70,000 fixed |
| Increment / tenure | 5% if extended; max 3 years | 5% if extended; max 3 years | 5% if extended; max 3 years |
Two years of experience have come off the requirement, three years have gone onto the age limit, and the LL.M. preference has gone. The ₹80,000 ceiling has gone too. Earlier rounds let the Selection Committee pay a stronger candidate up to ₹80,000; this one pays everyone the floor. Three years and some inflation later, every hire is paid the old floor.
Eligibility, as printed
“A Bachelor’s Degree in Law on regular basis from a recognised University established or incorporated by or under a Central Act, or a state Act, or any institution for higher education deemed to be a university by the Central Government or any other institution or foreign University approved by the Central Government, with not less than 5 years of experience in legal matters.”
“Note: A degree obtained through Open University/ Distance Education mode will not be considered. Candidates, who do not possess the required essential educational qualification and experience on the last date of submission of the application, will not be considered.”
- “Experience in legal matters” is as broad as the words allow. Litigation, in-house, regulatory and government legal work all qualify, and the clause does not say “post-qualification”. It also does not ask that you be enrolled as an advocate, or even eligible to enrol.
- Foreign law degrees count if the university is approved by the Central Government.
- The cut-off for both age and experience is the last date. If your fifth year of experience completes, or your 58th birthday falls, on 22 or 23 October, the discrepancy between the advertisement and the portal is not academic — write to FSSAI before you rely on the later date.
What the job is
The “Terms of references”, as printed:
4.1 Handling, monitoring and coordination of pending court cases before various Courts and Tribunals, including preparation of case-related documents and follow-up with concerned stakeholders.
4.2 Drafting, vetting and review of Regulations, Agreements, MoUs, Contracts, Tenders, Policies, SOPs, Advisories, Speaking Orders, Petitions, counter-affidavits and other legal documents.
4.3 Providing legal interpretation, opinions and advice on Rules, Regulations, statutory provisions, Court Judgments, Orders and other legal matters entrusted by the competent authority.
4.4 Drafting legal opinions, counter-affidavits and other pleadings, and coordinating with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Department of Legal Affairs (DoLA) and other concerned authorities on legal matters.
4.5 Verification and scrutiny of professional fee bills submitted by empanelled law firms and advocates, including examination of supporting documents and compliance with applicable fee provisions.
4.6 Preparation of briefing notes and case briefs for the CEO, FSSAI and Law Officers, including ASGs/SG/AG, and providing necessary legal inputs for matters requiring their assistance.
4.7 Handling other legal assignments and matters entrusted by FSSAI/MoHFW, including research, analysis, drafting and coordination with concerned divisions/authorities.
4.8 The candidate should have working knowledge of MS Office, Internet applications, and other relevant digital tools and resources required for effective discharge of legal and administrative functions.
This is an in-house regulatory legal role at a national regulator. You would be drafting regulations and speaking orders under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, managing FSSAI’s litigation across courts and tribunals, and briefing the Attorney General, the Solicitor General and Additional Solicitors General. For a lawyer who wants food, health or regulatory law on their record, that last item alone is unusual exposure at five years’ standing. You would not be arguing: panel counsel do that, and you scrutinise their bills.
The money
The remuneration is a “Fixed Consolidated Remuneration: ₹70,000/- per month”, or ₹8.4 lakh a year. Clause 3.7.1 is short: “No separate local allowances, HRA, or medical benefits.” That means no house rent allowance in New Delhi.
| Contract year | Monthly | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | ₹70,000 | — |
| Year 2 | ₹73,500 | Only if extended (5% increment) |
| Year 3 | ₹77,175 | Only if extended again; three years is the maximum |
TA/DA for outstation official travel is admissible at the rates for Pay Level 10. Tax is deducted at source. On GST, clause 6 is favourable: GST, “as applicable, shall be admissible to the Individual Consultants”, so a registered consultant can charge it on top. Insurance is your own responsibility (clause 5.6).
For a sense of the market: the Airports Authority of India advertised three Senior Consultant (Law) posts in Chennai this week at ₹1,50,000 a month. Those posts ask for eight to ten years, so the two are not like for like, but the gap is worth knowing.
Hours, leave and how the contract ends
- Hours: 9.30 to 18.00. “in the exigency of work, Consultants may be required to sit late and attend office on Saturdays/Sundays/Holidays. No compensatory leave will be given” (3.5.5).
- Leave: 2 days for each completed month — 24 a year — with no carry-forward. Up to one month’s leave without pay may be allowed with the CEO’s approval (3.5.6).
- Full time: consultants “would not be permitted to take up any other assignment” during the engagement (3.5.3).
- Termination by FSSAI: clause 5.9 opens with “FSSAI can terminate the consultancy contract at any time without prior notice and without providing any reason for it”, and then says that “in the normal course, FSSAI will provide one month’s notice”. Clause 3.5.2 adds short-closure for audit objections, court orders or unsatisfactory performance. Read together, one month’s notice is a practice, not a promise.
- Termination by you: one month’s notice.
- No claim to regularisation, absorption, seniority or lien (3.5.2). Police verification follows engagement; a negative report ends the contract “with immediate effect without any notice” (clause 7).
Three clauses to read before you sign
1. Writing and speaking about your work
Clause 5.4 applies the Official Secrets Act, 1923 to you and then goes further. Without FSSAI’s previous sanction, you may not publish a book or articles, broadcast, post on social media, or write to a newspaper or periodical “either in their own name or anonymously or pseudonymously” on any subject matter assigned to you. The Official Secrets Act obligations continue after the contract ends.
Clause 5.5 adds that you may not make public, “for purposes of commercial advantage”, that you have a contractual relationship with FSSAI, or use its name or emblem, without written permission.
If you write on food law — on a blog, on LinkedIn, in journals — this is the clause that will bind you most. For three years, the area you know best becomes the area you cannot write about without permission.
2. Conflict of interest
Before joining you must declare that “neither their previous work nor any existing interest will create any conflict of interest” with the FSSAI assignment (3.5.4, and again 5.13). The candidates with the most relevant experience are food-business lawyers who have acted against FSSAI, in licensing appeals, adjudication or writ petitions. If that is you, list those matters in your declaration rather than leaving the question to be raised later. A misstatement is a ground for termination.
3. Your enrolment
This is a full-time engagement, during office hours, with no other work permitted. Rule 49 of the Bar Council of India Rules bars a practising advocate from full-time salaried employment. On similar terms, the Gujarat High Court treated a State corporation’s “legal consultant” as a full-time salaried employee under that Rule, whatever the contract called her (Bar Council of Gujarat v. Jalpa Desai, LPA No. 1296 of 2016). Clause 5.1 says you are an “independent Consultant” and not an employee, but that label did not decide the Gujarat case.
If you are in practice, expect to intimate your State Bar Council and suspend practice for the term, and ask the Bar Council before you sign. The advertisement does not require enrolment at all, so being off the rolls is no bar.
A note on the contract terms
Much of clause 5 is adapted from the United Nations system’s general conditions for individual contractors — most closely UNFPA’s. That explains two oddities:
- A force majeure clause (5.8.2) about areas where FSSAI is “engaged in, preparing to engage in, or disengaging from any peacekeeping, humanitarian or similar operations”.
- A heading, “Prohibition of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse” (5.2.2), that sits over a reference to the POSH Act, 2013.
These clauses are harmless, but they tell you the terms are boilerplate. When the contract comes, read it as a document drafted for someone else and ask about anything that matters to you. None of this language appeared in FSSAI’s 2022 or 2023 notices.
The “walk-in” that is not a walk-in
Clause 3.4 says “Manner of Selection: Walk in Interview”. Do not turn up at FDA Bhawan. Clause 8.3 makes the process clear: apply online by the last date; “Shortlisted candidates to be called for selection procedure would be informed through e-mail/telephone with a week’s notice at least.” FSSAI may also keep a reserve panel to fill slots if a selected candidate does not join or leaves early (8.4).
What the coverage gets wrong
| As reported | As printed |
|---|---|
| “FSSAI Legal Officer recruitment” (Times Now Hindi) | The post is Legal Consultant, on contract. There is no Legal Officer post in this advertisement |
| “Pay the application fee” as a step in applying (Times Now Hindi) | No fee is mentioned anywhere in the advertisement |
| “Direct walk-in interview without exam” (Times Now Hindi) | Online application, then shortlisting, then a call by e-mail or telephone with at least a week’s notice |
| Age “18–35” on a portal’s FSSAI jobs index (mysarkarinaukri) | Up to 58, with no minimum |
| “FSSAI Legal Consultant — apply by Oct 28” (older pages still ranking) | That is the 2020 round. The 2023 round closed on 8 January 2024. This one closes on 22 October 2026 |
Credit where due: freejobalert and indgovtjobs have this advertisement right.
Applying
- Start from fssai.gov.in/jobs-at-fssai, which leads to FSSAI’s recruitment portal for Legal Consultants (sites.fssai.gov.in/fssaiconsultant).
- Sign up with an e-mail address you check. The password is e-mailed to you and may land in spam.
- Fill in the form, including a contact number and e-mail. You can edit it until final submission; after that, nothing can be changed.
- Submit by 22 October 2026. Incomplete applications are “summarily rejected”.
- Keep originals ready: your degree (or mark sheet and provisional certificate), proof of five years’ legal experience, and proof of age. If you rely on an equivalent qualification, proving the equivalence is your job (8.2).
Worth applying?
- Five to ten years in, with an interest in regulatory work: yes. Drafting regulations and briefing the Law Officers of the Union is good work for the CV, and the field is small — three posts.
- Retired or retiring government lawyers: the age limit of 58 is unusually generous. If you are under it on 22 October, this is one of few contract legal posts open to you.
- Practising advocates in Delhi: weigh ₹70,000 with no HRA against your practice, and the Rule 49 point against your enrolment. For some, three years at the regulator is worth it. Decide deliberately.
- Food-business lawyers: you are the best-qualified applicants and the most conflicted. Disclose first.
Disclaimer: This post is prepared by Lawizard.in for information. It is not legal or career advice, and it is not an official communication of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. The quotations are taken from Advertisement No. 01/2026 dated 8 October 2026, read from a scanned copy. The portal’s 23 October date, and the notice linked to it, could not be verified. The comparison with earlier rounds is drawn from FSSAI’s notices of 30 November 2022 and 13 December 2023. The discussion of Rule 49 is general; whether it applies to you is for your State Bar Council. The advertisement alone is authoritative.
Sources: FSSAI Advertisement No. 01/2026, File No. L-15017/128/2023-Legal-FSSAI, dated 8 October 2026 (fssai.gov.in); FSSAI recruitment portal for Legal Consultants (sites.fssai.gov.in); FSSAI notice for Legal Consultants dated 30 November 2022 (PDF); FSSAI Advertisement No. 01/2023 dated 13 December 2023 (PDF); UNFPA, General Terms and Conditions of Individual Consultant Contracts (PDF); Bar Council of India Rules, Part VI, Chapter II, Rule 49.
