NISM XXV-A is the certification SEBI now expects from sales and non-core research staff at registered Research Analyst firms, formally the Persons Associated with Research Services (PARS) exam. If you distribute research, support sales, or service clients but never make recommendations, this is your exam, not NISM XV. It is a light paper: 50 questions in 60 minutes, a 50% pass mark, no negative marking, and a Rs. 1,500 fee. The workbook is out and booking is open, and existing staff have until July 23, 2026 to clear it. This guide covers the syllabus, exam pattern, and preparation.

Table of Contents

• NISM XXV-A explained
• Roles that require NISM XXV-A
• NISM XXV-A vs NISM XV: the deciding difference
• NISM XXV-A exam pattern and fee
• NISM XXV-A syllabus and study material
• How to register for the NISM XXV-A certification
• How to prepare for NISM XXV-A
• Compliance teams and NISM XXV-A
• Frequently asked questions
• References
• Conclusion

NISM XXV-A Explained

NISM XXV-A is the short name for the NISM-Series-XXV-A: Persons Associated with Research Services (Sales and Other Non-Core Services) Certification Examination. NISM built it for the people who work around a research desk at SEBI-registered firms without doing the core analyst work themselves. If you are staring at the workbook and wondering where to start, it can help to have someone take you through the NISM XXV-A syllabus step by step rather than piecing it together alone.

It exists because SEBI created a formal category, Persons Associated with Research Services (PARS), under Regulation 2(ne) of the SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014. This covers the support staff around a research desk who distribute reports, support sales, and service clients, but do not generate the research themselves.

Earlier, these staff sat in a gap. A salesperson could forward a report, discuss it with a client, and influence a decision without holding any certification. NISM XXV-A closes that gap. It is lighter than NISM XV by design, meant to make sure support staff know where the line sits between distributing research and making a recommendation, without creating regulatory risk for the firm.

If you have been searching for NISM XXV-A study material, NISM XXV-A certification, or simply nism xxv a, this is the exam you are looking for. It is now fully live, with the workbook published, booking open, and the certification listed on the NISM portal.

Roles That Require NISM XXV-A

NISM XXV-A is aimed at anyone in a sales or non-core research role at a broking house or research firm. That covers people who send research reports out, back up the sales effort, answer client queries about existing research, or forward and coordinate research communications without ever putting out a buy, sell, or hold call.

The word that decides it all is recommendations. If your day is spent moving research to clients, helping the sales process along, or fielding questions about reports that already exist, you are a PARS and NISM XXV-A is your exam. You are not writing the research, you are getting it to the people who read it.

To make this concrete, these roles clearly fall under NISM XXV-A:

• Sales executives who share the firm's research reports with clients

• Relationship managers and client servicing staff who field queries about existing research

• Dealers and support staff who forward or coordinate the distribution of research communications

• Business development staff who use published research as part of their pitch without generating it

• Fresh joiners entering a research-support or sales-support role before they begin client-facing work

For all of these, NISM XV is no longer the exam to sit. NISM XXV-A takes its place going forward, which is genuinely good news for support staff who used to grind through the far heavier NISM XV despite never having published a single report. It also saves firms the cost and time of pushing whole sales teams through an analyst-level paper that never fit what those teams actually did.

NISM XXV-A vs NISM XV: The Deciding Difference

Everything separating NISM XXV-A from NISM XV rests on one thing: whether you make or help make research recommendations.

You must still take NISM XV, the Research Analyst certification, if you:

• Publish research reports

• Generate buy, sell, or hold calls

• Assist in preparing research reports

• Plan to become a SEBI-registered Research Analyst

• Work in any core analytical or recommendation-making role

NISM XV remains mandatory for SEBI Research Analyst registration and is not going away.

You should take NISM XXV-A instead if you sit on the sales side or in a non-core support role around the research desk. A single firm will typically have a few people who need NISM XV, the analysts who sign the reports, and a larger group who need NISM XXV-A, the sales and servicing staff who take those reports to clients. The compliance officer maps each employee to the correct certification based on the actual work they do, not their job title.

This mapping matters because titles rarely tell the whole story. Two people can both be relationship managers, yet if one occasionally drafts a view on a stock and the other only forwards published reports, they land in different certifications. So the sensible thing is to ignore the title and look at what the person actually does, then ask a single question: do they generate or contribute to a recommendation, or only pass on and service research that someone else produced? That answer sets the certification, and getting it wrong leaves the firm exposed to SEBI action.

NISM XXV-A Exam Pattern and Fee

The NISM XXV-A exam is short and designed to be cleared by support staff without a heavy analytical background. Here is the full pattern.

A couple of things keep this exam friendly. There is no negative marking, so a blank answer never beats a guess and you may as well attempt everything. And it is remotely proctored, so you sit it from home on your own machine with no trip to a test centre. The pass mark sits at 50% rather than the 60% NISM XV asks for, which fits the lighter, non-core nature of the role.

NISM XXV-A Syllabus and Study Material

The NISM XXV-A syllabus focuses on what a sales or support person needs to know to work around research services responsibly, without straying into the analytical depth of NISM XV. The workbook is the primary study material and is available through the NISM certification portal.

The syllabus broadly covers these areas:

• The structure of the Indian securities market and where research services fit within it

• The SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014 and how they define and govern Persons Associated with Research Services, which is the regulatory core of the exam

• The rules around distributing research reports and communicating with clients

• The disclosures and disclaimers that must accompany research material

• The do's and don'ts for sales staff so they do not accidentally cross into making recommendations

• The ethical and conflict-of-interest rules that apply to research services, including how to handle a client who pushes for a personal opinion

One theme runs under all of it: the line between distributing research and recommending it. Most of the practical questions really just test whether you can tell apart sharing published research, which a PARS is allowed to do, from offering your own buy or sell view, which they are not. Get comfortable with that one distinction and a big chunk of the paper stops being tricky.

The official NISM workbook is where all of this comes from, and the exam is set straight out of it. Read it fully, since the questions are practical and about the limits of your role rather than theory. Do not rush the regulatory chapters, because that is where most of the marks live. Then add mock tests to get used to the phrasing and the clock, as 50 questions in 60 minutes leaves time to check your answers but rewards someone who has seen the style before. Mocks also expose the scenarios examiners love, like a client asking a salesperson point-blank whether to buy a stock, along with the response that keeps you compliant.

If you want a faster, more structured path than reading the workbook alone, Prof Sheetal Kunder Academy offers a bilingual NISM XXV-A course with 4 hours of concept-based video lectures, 300+ exam-pattern mock questions, and quick-revision one-liners, built for sales teams, non-core research professionals, and fresh aspirants entering research-support roles.

How to Register for the NISM XXV-A Certification?

Registration is done entirely online through the NISM certification portal at cert.nism.ac.in. The steps are simple:

• Create an account or log in to the NISM certification portal

• Select the NISM-Series-XXV-A certification from the list

• Pay the Rs. 1,500 fee

• Choose an exam date and time slot

• Complete the system check to confirm your computer, camera, and internet connection meet the requirements before the exam day

A few practical points make the process smoother:

• Keep your PAN and a valid photo identity document ready, because the system verifies your identity before the exam begins

• Take the exam in a quiet, well-lit room with a stable internet connection, since the proctor monitors you throughout and a disconnection can interrupt the attempt

• Close other applications and browser tabs, as proctored exams typically block background activity

Give yourself a clear runway before the July 23, 2026 compliance deadline. Book the slot early so you have a fixed date to prepare towards, and keep a buffer in case you need a re-attempt. Firms with several staff to certify should stagger bookings across the weeks leading up to the deadline rather than leaving everyone to the final few days, when slots fill up and any technical issue leaves no time to recover.

How to Prepare for NISM XXV-A?

Preparation for NISM XXV-A is manageable in a few weeks, even alongside a full-time job. A simple plan works best:

• Read the official workbook once fully to understand the scope

• Go through it a second time, making short notes on the regulations, disclosures, and do's and don'ts for sales staff

• Focus most of your effort on the regulatory and conduct portions, since that is where most questions come from

• Be crystal clear on what counts as a recommendation and what does not, because that boundary is the entire reason the PARS category exists

• Take timed mock tests to build speed and confidence, aiming to clear the 50% mark with margin to spare

Because there is no negative marking, always attempt every question. Even where you are unsure, an educated guess can only help you. A focused two to four week plan is enough for most candidates to clear this exam on the first attempt.

If you would rather follow a ready-made plan than build one yourself, Prof Sheetal Kunder Academy provides a structured NISM XXV-A course with 4 hours of concept-based video lectures, 300+ mock questions, structured notes, and daily doubt-clearing sessions aimed at getting you certified before the deadline.

Compliance Teams and NISM XXV-A

Compliance staff who touch research services are the one group that does not slot in cleanly, and the right certification really does depend on how their role is scoped. Once a compliance function starts reviewing or approving research output, a firm should map that role deliberately instead of assuming it is covered. The safe path is for the compliance officer to hold each role up against SEBI's definition of Persons Associated with Research Services and confirm the requirement against current NISM and SEBI guidance well before the deadline.

If your role is purely non-core support around research services, NISM XXV-A applies. If it crosses into core analytical or recommendation-linked work, NISM XV may be required instead. When in doubt, confirm the requirement on the NISM certification portal rather than guessing.

References

• NISM certification programs and study material: https://www.nism.ac.in/certification/
• SEBI Circular for NISM-Series-XXV-A dated March 11, 2026: https://www.nism.ac.in/circular/sebi-circular-for-nism-series-xxv-a-persons-associated-with-research-services-sales-and-other-non-core-services-certification-examination-dated-march-11-2026/
• NISM certifications registration portal: https://cert.nism.ac.in
• SEBI, Securities and Exchange Board of India: https://www.sebi.gov.in

NISM XXV-A finally hands sales and non-core research staff an exam that matches what they actually do, rather than dragging them through the much heavier NISM XV. If you distribute research, back up sales, or service clients without making recommendations, this is your paper, and it is fully live now with the workbook out and booking open. The route through it is not complicated: read the official workbook, spend your time on the regulations and conduct rules, run a few mock tests, and book a slot with room to spare before July 23, 2026. Clear it early and the one regulatory box that could otherwise stall your work at a research firm is simply done.