JEE Main 2026 Eligibility: Age Limit & Qualification

From the official National Testing Agency (NTA), Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India documents · last checked 3 October 2026

Age limit

There is no age limit for JEE Main 2026. Institutes may still have their own age rules for admission.

Educational qualification

Posts	Requirement
Who can sit JEE Main 2026 (all papers)	You must have passed Class 12 or equivalent in 2024 or 2025, or be appearing in 2026. If you passed in 2023 or earlier, you cannot appear. The passing year is the year your result was first declared 'pass'. A later improvement exam does not change it.
Paper 1 rank – admission to NITs, IIITs and other CFTIs (JoSAA/CSAB)	Class 12 with Physics, Mathematics, a language, one of Chemistry, Biotechnology, Biology or a Technical Vocational subject, and one more subject. You also need at least 75% aggregate in Class 12 (65% for SC, ST and PwD), or a place in the top 20 percentile of your board for your category.
Paper 2A rank – B.Arch admission	For NIT+ institutes: Class 12 with Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and two more subjects. Under the Council of Architecture rule (Gazette, 19 July 2023), you need 10+2 with Physics and Mathematics as compulsory subjects. The third subject can be Chemistry, Biology, a Technical Vocational subject, Computer Science, IT, Informatics Practices, Engineering Graphics or Business Studies. You need at least 45% aggregate. A 10+3 diploma with Mathematics and at least 45% aggregate is also accepted.
Paper 2B rank – B.Planning admission	Class 12 with Mathematics and four other subjects. You need at least 50% in Mathematics and at least 50% aggregate.

Nationality & other conditions

The 2026 bulletin has no separate nationality rule for taking the exam. It covers Indian nationals, OCI cardholders and foreign candidates. Foreign candidates choose exam cities based on their address. An OCI candidate who passed Class 12 in India is treated like an Indian national for state code. An OCI candidate who passed Class 12 abroad can get All India quota seats in NITs, IIITs and other CFTIs, but not Home State quota seats. The JEE (Advanced) rule in the bulletin is written for Indian nationals.
Number of attempts: JEE Main has two sessions each year (January and April). You may take one or both. If you take both, your better total NTA score counts. The rule on passing year (Class 12 in 2024, 2025 or 2026 for the 2026 exam) means a student can take JEE Main in up to three years in a row.
JEE (Advanced) 2026: the top 2,50,000 successful Paper 1 candidates (all categories together) could sit JEE (Advanced). They also had to meet JEE (Advanced)'s own rules.
Accepted qualifying exams include CBSE, CISCE, state boards and other recognised 10+2 boards. Also accepted: NIOS (with at least five subjects), BOSSE Sikkim, a 3-year AICTE or state board diploma, the NDA Joint Services Wing course, GCE A-level and the IB Diploma. A Class 12 from abroad needs an AIU equivalence certificate.
State code of eligibility is the state where you passed (or are taking) Class 12. It does not depend on where you live.
Reservation in central institutes: Gen-EWS 10%, OBC-NCL 27% (central list only), SC 15% and ST 7.5%. Within each category, 5% of seats are for PwBD candidates.
Application fee for one paper at a centre in India: General male ₹1000; General female ₹800; Gen-EWS/OBC-NCL male ₹900; Gen-EWS/OBC-NCL female ₹800; SC/ST/PwD ₹500; third gender ₹500. Fees are higher for two papers and for centres abroad.
Only one application form is allowed per candidate. More than one form is treated as unfair means.

Practise for JEE Main free

Chapter tests, full mocks and previous-year papers with full solutions — no sign-up needed.

Free mock tests →Score calculator

JEE Main 2026 Eligibility: Age Limit & Qualification

Age limit

Educational qualification

Nationality & other conditions

Official sources