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The National Testing Agency (NTA) has opened registration for the Joint Entrance Examination (Main) 2027, Session 1. Candidates can apply online at jeemain.nta.nic.in, and the regular application window closes on 22 November 2026 at 11:50 pm. The announcement, posted by NTA on 24 October 2026, matters to lakhs of engineering aspirants because JEE Main is the gateway to undergraduate engineering, architecture and planning seats at the National Institutes of Technology (NITs), Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) and other centrally funded technical institutions, and it is also the qualifying examination for JEE Advanced.
This explainer brings together the confirmed dates, fees, eligibility rules and application steps reported from NTA's notice, so that applicants can plan without relying on rumours or coaching-centre forwards. Where a date is still tentative — notably for Session 2 — that is stated clearly. The official information bulletin on the NTA website remains the final authority if any detail here differs from it.
The Session 1 schedule reported from NTA's 24 October 2026 notice is:
- Regular online application: 24 October to 22 November 2026, up to 11:50 pm
- Regular fee-payment deadline: 22 November 2026, up to 11:50 pm
- Late application with an additional fee of Rs 500: 23 to 26 November 2026
- Late fee-payment deadline: 26 November 2026, up to 11:50 pm
- Correction of application particulars: 27 to 29 November 2026, up to 11:50 pm
- Session 1 examination: 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 28 January 2027
- City intimation slip: reported for 30 December 2026
- Admit card: reported for 13 January 2027
Two points in that list cause the most confusion every year, so they are worth stating plainly. First, the late window is not a second regular deadline: it costs an extra Rs 500 on top of the normal examination fee, and it closes on 26 November. Second, the correction window is for fixing particulars in an already-submitted form; it is not an extra chance to register from scratch.
JEE Main is conducted by NTA in two sessions a year. Session 1 is held in January and Session 2 in April; a candidate's best performance across sessions is used for the merit list. The examination is held in computer-based test mode, in thirteen languages including English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.
There are three papers. Paper 1 is for B.E. and B.Tech courses. Paper 2A is for B.Arch, and Paper 2B is for B.Planning. A candidate can opt for more than one paper, and the fee depends on the papers chosen, the category and the examination centre. Paper 1 carries 75 questions for 300 marks over three hours. Candidates should check the information bulletin for the marking scheme for their paper before the examination, rather than relying on last year's pattern.
The eligibility conditions reported for JEE Main 2027 are straightforward, but each one has a trap for the careless applicant.
There is no age limit for appearing in JEE Main. Candidates who passed their Class 12 or equivalent examination in 2025 or 2026, or who are appearing for Class 12 in 2027, are eligible. Candidates who passed in 2024 or earlier fall outside the window for the 2027 examination. A candidate can appear in JEE Main for a maximum of three consecutive years from the year of passing Class 12.
For B.E. and B.Tech, the qualifying examination must include Physics and Mathematics along with Chemistry, Biotechnology, Biology or a technical vocational subject. For B.Arch, Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics are required, and for B.Planning, Mathematics is required along with other subjects. The exact subject combinations are set out in the information bulletin, and applicants should match their own Class 12 subjects against it before paying the fee.
There is no minimum percentage requirement simply to appear in JEE Main. That is a different question from admission: for admission to NITs, IIITs and other participating institutions, candidates generally need at least 75 percent in Class 12, or to be in the top 20 percentile of their board, with a relaxed threshold of 65 percent for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe candidates. Confusing the two thresholds — appearing versus admission — is one of the commonest misunderstandings around this examination.
The notable change this year is MeriPehchaan, a single sign-on platform introduced for JEE Main 2027 registration. Announced alongside the opening of the application window, it is built under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and brings together identity services including JanParichay, e-Pramaan and DigiLocker, so that candidates can reach the registration portal with one set of login credentials and complete identity verification more smoothly.
In practice, this means applicants may be offered a MeriPehchaan login route in addition to the usual registration flow, with DigiLocker and APAAR ID mentioned in coverage of the new system as part of the identity-verification options. Candidates who already have a DigiLocker account or an APAAR ID should keep those details handy, but they should follow the instructions shown on the official portal itself, since the portal — not a news report — decides which login route is offered to each applicant.
For centres in India, the Session 1 fee for one paper, as reported from the information bulletin, is:
- General, male: Rs 1,000
- General, female: Rs 800
- General-EWS and OBC-NCL, male: Rs 900
- General-EWS and OBC-NCL, female: Rs 800
- SC, ST, PwD and third gender: Rs 500
The late fee of Rs 500 is additional to these amounts. Fees for candidates opting for more than one paper, and for centres outside India, are higher and are shown on the portal at the payment step; applicants should confirm the exact amount displayed for their own combination before paying, rather than assuming the single-paper figure.
Application forms most often stall on uploads, not on eligibility. Before beginning, keep scanned copies ready of a recent passport-size colour photograph on a plain white background, in JPG or JPEG format at roughly 10 to 200 KB, and a signature in black or blue ink on white paper, in JPG or JPEG format at roughly 4 to 30 KB. The photograph should show the face clearly, without a cap or heavy shadow.
Also keep the Class 10 certificate or marksheet, which serves as proof of date of birth, and the Class 12 marksheet, pass certificate or admit card, depending on whether the candidate has passed or is appearing. Candidates claiming reservation should keep the relevant category certificate for SC, ST, OBC-NCL or EWS, and candidates claiming disability benefits should keep the PwD or UDID certificate. A government photo identity document, such as Aadhaar, is also used for verification, and the name and date of birth on it must match the Class 10 certificate exactly. File sizes and formats are those commonly listed in registration guides based on the bulletin; if the portal shows a different limit for a particular upload, the portal's limit governs.
The whole process is online. First, go to jeemain.nta.nic.in and open the JEE Main 2027 Session 1 registration link. Read the instructions, then register with the candidate's name as it appears on the Class 10 certificate, parents' names, date of birth, mobile number and email address, verifying both the mobile number and the email address with the one-time passwords sent to them. On submission, an application number is generated; this is the login ID for every later step, so it should be written down immediately and kept with the password.
Next, log in with that application number and fill in personal details — nationality, state of eligibility, category and PwD status if applicable — followed by academic details, including the Class 10 and Class 12 boards, roll numbers, subjects and years of passing or appearing. Then choose up to four preferred examination cities in order of preference; NTA allots a centre from that list. Select the paper or papers, and the medium of the examination.
Then upload the documents listed above, previewing each file before moving on, since a blurry photograph or a wrong certificate is a common reason for trouble at verification. Finally, pay the fee online and download both the completed application form and the fee receipt. An application without a successful fee payment is incomplete, and the confirmation page is the only proof that the submission went through.
Once the form is submitted, the next milestone is the correction window from 27 to 29 November 2026, when particulars can be edited within the limits NTA allows. Not every field can be changed, so the original entry should be made carefully rather than in reliance on corrections. The city intimation slip is reported for 30 December 2026, telling candidates which city their centre is in, and the admit card is reported for 13 January 2027, carrying the exact centre, date and shift. Candidates should download the admit card from the official website only and check every detail on it as soon as it appears.
Session 2 is tentatively scheduled for 2 to 7 April 2027, with its registration window tentatively reported as 5 January to 3 February 2027. Those dates should be treated as provisional until NTA publishes the Session 2 notice. Candidates who are unhappy with their Session 1 performance can use Session 2 as a second chance, which is one reason not to treat January as the only opportunity.
The avoidable errors repeat every year. Applying in the last hours before the 22 November deadline, when servers are slowest and there is no time to fix a failed payment, is the first. Entering a name that differs from the Class 10 certificate — even by a spelling or an initial — is the second, because it creates a mismatch at verification. Uploading an old photograph, a photograph with sunglasses or a cap, or a signature on ruled paper is the third. Assuming the Rs 500 late charge is the whole fee, rather than an addition to it, is the fourth. And assuming the correction window reopens registration is the fifth.
There is also a wider caution. Only the official website, jeemain.nta.nic.in, and NTA's verified announcements should be trusted for dates, fees and links. Unofficial sites and social-media forwards that promise direct application links or guaranteed seats should be ignored; NTA does not allot seats through agents, and any message asking for payment outside the portal is a warning sign.
For aspirants, the registration window is the least dramatic but most consequential part of the examination. Preparation gets the attention, but it is the form — filed on time, with matching details and a successful payment — that converts preparation into a seat in the examination hall. Applying early leaves room for the correction window, for a re-upload if a document is rejected, and for planning travel once the city intimation slip arrives. Applying late leaves none of that margin.
The January session also sets the tone for the year. A strong Session 1 performance gives a candidate a secure score before the board examinations and the April session; even a disappointing one provides a real examination-hall experience and a clear picture of where preparation stands. Either way, the candidate who registered correctly is the one who gets to find out.
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 registration is open at jeemain.nta.nic.in, with the regular deadline on 22 November 2026 at 11:50 pm, a late window until 26 November with an extra Rs 500 fee, a correction window from 27 to 29 November, and examinations on 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 28 January 2027. Eligibility turns on passing Class 12 in 2025 or 2026 or appearing in 2027, with no age limit and a maximum of three consecutive years of attempts. The new MeriPehchaan single sign-on is designed to make login and verification simpler, but the fundamentals have not changed: match the Class 10 certificate, upload clear documents, pay the correct fee, and download the confirmation. Candidates who do those things early will have done the unglamorous work that makes everything after it possible.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) opened JEE Main 2027 Session 1 registration on 24 October 2026 at jeemain.nta.nic.in. The regular deadline is 22 November 2026 at 11:50 pm, with a late window from 23 to 26 November 2026 on payment of an additional Rs 500 fee.
Candidates who passed Class 12 in 2025 or 2026, or who are appearing for Class 12 in 2027, are eligible. There is no age limit, and a candidate can appear for a maximum of three consecutive years. For admission to NITs and IIITs, 75 percent in Class 12 is generally required (65 percent for SC and ST candidates), but there is no minimum percentage simply to appear in the examination.
For one paper at a centre in India, the fee is Rs 1,000 for General male candidates, Rs 800 for General female candidates, Rs 900 for General-EWS and OBC-NCL male candidates, Rs 800 for General-EWS and OBC-NCL female candidates, and Rs 500 for SC, ST, PwD and third gender candidates. The Rs 500 late fee is extra, and fees for more than one paper are higher.
MeriPehchaan is a single sign-on platform introduced for JEE Main 2027 registration. Built under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, it brings together identity services including JanParichay, e-Pramaan and DigiLocker, so candidates can use one set of login credentials and complete identity verification more smoothly on the registration portal.
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