JEE Advanced 2026 Date and Eligibility Criteria Confirmed
IIT Roorkee has officially announced the date for the JEE Advanced 2026 examination along with the eligibility criteria for candidates wishing to appear for this prestigious entrance exam. The announcement was made on December 6, 2025, via a notification on the official website.
Exam Date
The JEE Advanced 2026 examination is scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 17, 2026. This exam is critical for students aspiring to gain admission to various top engineering institutions in India.
Eligibility Criteria for JEE Advanced 2026
The eligibility criteria for JEE Advanced 2026 are categorized into five main criteria:
Criterion A1: Performance in JEE Main 2026
Candidates must be among the top 2,50,000 successful candidates in the B.E./B.Tech. paper of JEE Main 2026. The allocation of candidates from various categories is as follows:
- GEN-EWS: 10%
- OBC-NCL: 27%
- SC: 15%
- ST: 7.5%
- OPEN: 40.5%
Additionally, within each of these categories, there is a 5% horizontal reservation for Persons with Disabilities (PwD).
Criterion A2: Age Limit
To be eligible, candidates must have been born on or after October 1, 2001. However, candidates belonging to SC, ST, and PwD categories are granted a five-year age relaxation, meaning they should have been born on or after October 1, 1996.
Criterion A3: Number of Attempts
Candidates are allowed to attempt the JEE Advanced examination a maximum of two times in two consecutive years.
Criterion A4: Class 12th Examination
Eligibility also requires candidates to have appeared for the Class 12th (or equivalent) examination for the first time in either 2025 or 2026, with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics as compulsory subjects. Candidates who appeared for the Class 12th examination for the first time in 2024 or earlier are not eligible to appear for JEE Advanced 2026, regardless of the subjects attempted.
Criterion A5: Previous Admissions to IITs
To qualify for JEE Advanced 2026, candidates must not have been admitted to any IIT under any academic program listed in the JoSAA Business Rules of 2025. This rule applies regardless of whether the candidate continued in the program or accepted an IIT seat. Candidates whose admission was canceled after joining any IIT are also ineligible. However, candidates who were admitted to a preparatory course in any IIT for the first time in 2025 can appear for JEE Advanced 2026.
Registration for JEE Advanced 2026
As of now, IIT Roorkee has not released the registration schedule for JEE Advanced 2026. Typically, the registration process begins after the declaration of results for JEE Main 2026 Session 2. For reference, JEE Advanced 2025 was conducted on May 18, 2025, and the results, along with the list of toppers, were published on June 2, 2025.
Importance of JEE Advanced
JEE Advanced is a crucial entrance exam for students seeking admission to prestigious institutions such as:
- Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs)
- Indian Institute of Science (IISc)
- Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs)
- National Institutes of Technology (NITs)
- Other premium engineering institutions in India
Admissions to these colleges are conducted through counseling by the Joint Seat Allocation Authority (JoSAA) following the announcement of JEE Advanced results.
Further Information
For more details regarding the JEE Advanced 2026 examination, candidates are encouraged to visit the official website at jeeadv.ac.in.
Note: It is essential for candidates to stay updated with the official announcements and guidelines released by IIT Roorkee to ensure a smooth application process.
