Overview
The Indian Olympiad Qualifier in Mathematics (IOQM) is the first stage of India's Mathematical Olympiad Programme, the only pathway that leads to India's team at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), the European Girls' Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO), and the Asian Pacific Mathematics Olympiad (APMO). The programme is run by the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE), on behalf of the National Board for Higher Mathematics, Department of Atomic Energy. IOQM itself is conducted by the Mathematics Teachers' Association (India), MTA(I).
Who can take part
For IOQM 2025, students in Classes 8 to 12 who were born between August 1, 2006 and July 31, 2013 were eligible. Students must be eligible to hold an Indian passport; OCI cardholders could write IOQM 2025 but, under a Madras High Court order, are not eligible for selection to India's team at the IMO, EGMO or APMO, though they remain provisionally eligible for all earlier stages. Students must not have completed (or be scheduled to complete) their Class 12 board exam before October 30, 2025, and must not have started university by June 1, 2026. INMO 2025 awardees can skip IOQM 2025 and RMO 2025 and go straight to INMO 2026.
Stages and pathway
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. IOQM | Qualifier exam; top scorers in each region advance |
| 2. Regional Mathematical Olympiad (RMO) | Proof-based regional round |
| 3. Indian National Mathematical Olympiad (INMO) | National round; top scorers become INMO awardees |
| 4. IMO Training Camp (IMOTC) | Month-long camp; best six selected as the IMO team |
| 5. International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) | India's team competes internationally |
Exam pattern
| Detail | IOQM 2025 |
|---|---|
| Questions | 30, each answered as an integer from 00 to 99 |
| Marks | 10 questions worth 2 marks, 10 worth 3 marks, 10 worth 5 marks (100 total) |
| Duration | 3 hours |
| Format | OMR-based, offline, objective; no negative marking |
| Language | English or Hindi (choice made at registration) |
Syllabus
HBCSE expects aspirants to know the NCERT Mathematics syllabus for Classes 8 to 12, and to go further in four areas: algebra (inequalities, progressions, theory of equations, complex numbers, functional equations), plane geometry (triangles, circles, Ceva and Menelaus, trigonometry, coordinate geometry), combinatorics (enumeration, pigeonhole principle, recursion, elementary graph theory), and number theory (divisibility, congruences, Fermat's and Wilson's theorems, Diophantine equations). Problems can draw on topics beyond this list.
Results and awards
Scores of at least 10% of the total marks are needed to be considered for the next stage, but this alone does not guarantee qualification. For IOQM 2025, from each region the top 200 students from Classes 8–11 (Category A) and the top 40 Class 12 students (Category B) qualified for RMO 2025, along with 5 additional girl students from Category A under a girls' quota. HBCSE warns that many privately run competitions also call themselves "Olympiads" but are not recognised by the Government of India and do not lead to the international olympiads.
Important dates
For the 2025-26 cycle, IOQM 2025 was held on Sunday, September 7, 2025, from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm (with some regions rescheduled to September 28, 2025). Student registration ran from June 9 to July 25, 2025, through the ioqmexam.in portal.
How to register
Registration is handled by MTA(I), not HBCSE, through https://ioqmexam.in/. Schools register as centres first, and students then register individually or through their school-registered centre; queries about IOQM itself should go to MTA(I), not HBCSE.
Preparation tips
Because IOQM has no negative marking and only integer answers, practising speed and accuracy on numerical-answer problems (rather than full proofs) pays off. Working through NCERT texts for Classes 8–12 first, then moving to the four core topic areas and past IOQM/RMO papers on the HBCSE website, follows the structure HBCSE itself recommends.
Is IOQM the same as RMO?
No. IOQM is Stage 1, a 3-hour objective exam with integer answers. RMO (Stage 2) is a separate 3-hour exam with six proof-based problems, open only to students who qualify through IOQM.
Can a Class 8 student write IOQM?
Yes, IOQM is open to students in Classes 8 to 12, subject to the birth-year window set for that year's exam.
Is there negative marking in IOQM?
No. IOQM has no negative marking; all 30 questions are attempted for possible marks with no penalty for a wrong answer.
Do OCI students face any restriction?
OCI cardholders can write IOQM and progress through earlier stages, but under current court orders they cannot be selected for India's team at the IMO, EGMO or APMO.