Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-995176-20161122010151/@comment-9782468-20161123125145

He wasn't promoted to Kakashi's level, Kakashi just told them that they were his teammates now, not his students. As in he could actually rely on them in important fights, and not only have to look after them. Kakashi still outranks all of Konoha 11 except for Neji in the beginning of Shippuden.

He wasn't promoted because he didn't take the Chunin exams. Honestly, it seems critical that the Chunin exams are where they are promoted, because the exams are taken by many Genin from different villages at once. If each village started promoting their students outside of the exams, the other villages would get angry.