Stokes has been cleared by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to play in the competition if he wishes.
The all-rounder, who is missing from England's Ashes campaign as he waits to hear if he will be charged with actual bodily harm after a fracas in Bristol in September, has returned to Durham for "family reasons" after spending a month in New Zealand with Canterbury Kings.
Stokes could now return to the IPL for another multi-million pound fee having signed a £1.7m deal with Rising Pune Supergiant last year.
Ahead of the IPL player auction later this month, the franchises announced the players they were retaining on Thursday, with David Warner (SunRisers Hyderabad) and Steve Smith (Rajasthan Royals) among those to be kept on.
Reigning champions Mumbai Indians have retained Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, while Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers will once again play for Royal Challengers Bangalore and MS Dhoni has been re-selected by Chennai Super Kings.
Elsewhere, Dehli Daredevils have announced Ricky Ponting as their new head coach.