JEE Main 2026 exam dates out; session 1 on January 21-30; NTA to increase exam centres for wider reach

The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced the JEE Main 2026 exam dates for both January and April sessions. The JEE Mains registration 2026 for session 1 exams will begin in October on the official website, jeemain.nta.nic.in, it reiterated. The Joint Entrance Examination - Main (JEE Main) January session will be conducted between January 21 and 30. JEE Mains 2026 Registration LIVE

Wishing JEE aspirants a Happy Diwali, the NTA has provided a clarity on the engineering entrance exam for the upcoming academic year 2026. As per the JEE Main schedule, the January session will be held from January 21-30 and April session from April 1 to 10.

The JEE Main application form 2026 for session 2 will be made available in the last week of January, most likely after the January exams.

The NTA is also working towards increasing the number of exam cities for wider reach and ease of access for aspirants. “Furthermore, special attention is being given to address the requirements and needs of PwD/PwBD candidates appearing in the Examination,” it said.

JEE Mains exam dates 2026

The JEE Mains 2026 registration and exam dates for BE, BTech, BArch, and BPlanning papers.

In its latest advisory, the testing agency advised candidates to fill in the details such as name, date of birth, gender, photograph, and address as per Aadhaar data obtained from UIDAI. However, since parents' names are not recorded in Aadhaar, applicants will have to add details separately in the JEE application form.

“In case of name mismatch in Aadhaar Card and 10th Educational Certificate/Marksheet of any candidate, an option will be given to overcome this issue during the online application stage,” it added.

The steps taken by the NTA to maintain the accuracy of details is to ensure transparency, trust, and integrity of the exam process — factors which were widely criticised by the public in previous years due to large-scale mismanagement, paper leak, and scam allegations.