MEXT Scholarship 2026-27: Eligibility, Amount, Important Dates and Application Process

MEXT Scholarship offers seven study categories in Japan for Indian students. Check eligibility, monthly stipend, important dates, documents required and the full application process in one place.

MEXT Scholarship 2026-27: Eligibility, Amount, Important Dates and Application Process

MEXT Scholarship 2026-27 is funded by the Government of Japan. It is open to Indian students who have finished 10th Class, 12th Class or a Bachelor's degree. Seven categories run through the Embassy of Japan in India. The monthly stipend ranges from JPY 117,000 to JPY 242,000, depending on the category. Tuition fees are exempted and a return air ticket is provided. There is no application fee at any stage. 

Students apply through two routes, Embassy Recommendation and University Recommendation. Selected grantees study at institutions such as University of Tokyo. All forms, category pages and guidelines are published on the Embassy of Japan in India website. This guide covers eligibility, stipend, dates, documents and the full selection process.

MEXT Scholarship Latest Updates

Applications for the 2027 intake under the Embassy Recommendation route have closed. The selection stage is now under way. Research Student applications shut on May 15, and the Undergraduate, KOSEN and Specialised Training College forms shut on May 25. Written tests and interviews were held between June and July 2026. Students planning for the next intake should watch the Embassy website, since fresh category guidelines are usually put up around April.

What is the MEXT Scholarship

MEXT stands for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan. It is the ministry that funds and runs this scholarship programme. Indian students apply through the Embassy of Japan in New Delhi or through the consulate that covers their state. The scholarship pays a monthly living allowance, waives tuition and covers travel to Japan and back.

MEXT Scholarship Overview

The table below lists the main points of the programme in one place.

Types of MEXT Scholarship

Each category has its own level of study, seat count and stipend. The table gives a side by side view. The monthly stipend below is in Japanese Yen. Convert it to INR to see the amount. 

Which Category Should You Apply For

Your last completed qualification decides the category. Students who finish 12th Class and want a full Bachelor's degree apply under the Undergraduate category, which can lead to a place at a university such as Kyoto University. Students who want hands-on engineering after 10th Class apply under KOSEN. Those who want a short vocational course after 12th Class apply under the Specialised Training College category. Graduates and postgraduates apply as Research Students, and this is the route that feeds most departments at Tohoku University. Working school teachers apply under Teacher Training. Serving officials nominated by an approved body apply under the Young Leaders Programme.

MEXT Scholarship Eligibility Criteria

Every category has a separate cut-off for marks and a separate age bar. All applicants must be Indian nationals applying from India.

Age and Nationality

Age is fixed by date of birth, not by completed years. Undergraduate, KOSEN and Specialised Training College applicants must be born on or after 2 April 2002. Research Student applicants must be born on or after 2 April 1992. Teacher Training applicants must be born on or after 2 April 1991. Young Leaders Programme applicants must be under 40.

Academic Marks

The table compares the minimum marks and qualification needed in each category. Research Student intake is the largest single group and covers 20 study fields, from physics and robotics to law and sports science, at universities including Kyushu University.

Other Conditions

A few extra rules apply beyond marks and age.

• Applications go only to the Embassy or consulate that covers the applicant's state.

• Undergraduate and Specialised Training College applicants waiting for their 2027 board result may apply on 10th Class marks, along with a provisional document from the school.

• Applicants must be willing to learn Japanese and to study in Japanese after reaching Japan.

• A medical certificate in the prescribed format, signed by a doctor, must be attached with the application.

• Past MEXT Scholarship grantees cannot apply again, with limited exceptions listed in the guidelines.

• Military personnel and civilian employees of the military are not eligible.

• Applicants cannot apply to two MEXT programmes in the same cycle.

• Arts and music courses are not offered to Undergraduate applicants from India.

• Natural Science C, which covers medicine and dentistry, is not offered to Indian applicants.

• Research Student applicants must send the Preliminary Application Form in Microsoft Word format, under 1 MB in size.

MEXT Scholarship Amount and Benefits

The scholarship is not a one-time grant. It pays a fixed amount every month for the whole course period.

Monthly Stipend

Stipend depends on the category and, for Research Students, on the level of study.

Amounts are fixed in Japanese yen. The rupee value keeps changing with the exchange rate. Students posted in specially designated regions get an extra JPY 2,000 or JPY 3,000 per month on top of the figures above. The amount may be revised each financial year, based on the Japanese government budget.

Tuition, Airfare and Other Benefits

Tuition, entrance fee and examination fee are exempted for every category. The grantee does not pay these at the university. A round-trip economy air ticket between India and Japan is arranged for the grantee. Domestic travel to the airport, airport taxes and insurance are paid by the grantee.

Undergraduate grantees in Natural Sciences spend their first year in preparatory education at Osaka University, while Social Sciences and Humanities grantees go to ABK. This first year covers Japanese language and basic subjects. Research grantees are placed directly with a supervising professor, and departments at Nagoya University take students through both the Embassy and the nomination route.

Scholarship Period

The period is fixed at the time of award. Undergraduate grantees get five years, from April 2027 to March 2032, including one year of preparatory education. Students placed directly get four years. Grantees who take up veterinary medicine or a six-year pharmacy course get a longer period of seven years, up to March 2034.

KOSEN grantees get four years, up to March 2031, and Maritime Engineering students get four years six months, up to September 2031. Specialised Training College grantees get three years, up to March 2030. Non-regular Research Students are funded from 2027 to March 2029. Those admitted to a regular Master's or doctoral programme are funded for the standard period of that programme.

Extension of Scholarship Period

The period can be extended in some cases. A non-regular Research Student who moves to a regular Master's or doctoral course may apply for an extension. A Master's grantee who wants to continue to a doctoral course may also apply. MEXT grants the extension only after its own examination, and only if the student has cleared the entrance test for that course. An Undergraduate grantee who finishes the degree and gets admission to a Master's or doctoral course during the scholarship period can apply on the same basis. A student who joins a higher course without approval does not get the extension.

MEXT Scholarship Important Dates

Dates below are for the 2027 intake through the Embassy Recommendation route.

Research Students

The Research Student timeline starts earliest and runs the longest.

Undergraduate, KOSEN and Specialised Training College

These three categories share a deadline but their test dates differ.

This is the New Delhi schedule. Consulate offices may follow slightly different dates, so applicants should check their own office page. Undergraduate applicants who want direct placement have until February 12, 2027 for that consultation. Students who clear this stage may later join campuses such as Waseda University.

Other Categories

Teacher Training applications for the 2026 cycle closed on February 6. Japanese Studies selection also runs in February, with a document screening followed by a written test and interview.

How to Apply for the MEXT Scholarship

There are two separate routes. A student picks one route, not both.

Embassy Recommendation

This is the main route for Indian students. Steps are given below.

1. Open the Embassy of Japan India website and go to the page of your chosen category.

2. Download the application form and the 2027 guidelines PDF for that category.

3. Fill the form in the exact format stated on the category page. Research Student applicants must use Microsoft Word format and keep the file under 1 MB. Files sent as PDF, as scans, or as Google Docs links are rejected without review.

4. Attach the documents listed in the guidelines, in the required number of originals and copies.

5. Send the application to the office that covers your state, before the deadline. Research Student applications go by email to scholarship-india@nd.mofa.go.jp.

6. Appear for the written examination and the online interview if you are shortlisted.

7. Research Student applicants must then approach Japanese universities for a letter of provisional acceptance and submit the Placement Preference Application Form.

University Recommendation

Under this route, a Japanese university nominates the student directly to MEXT. The student applies to the university, not to the Embassy. Each university sets its own deadline and its own list of eligible programmes. Keio University offers this route through its Graduate School of Science and Technology. University of Tsukuba accepts students through both routes. Waseda University runs it only for fall enrolment.

Documents Required

The checklist changes with the category. Research Student applicants send one original set along with two copies of each document.

• Application Form in the 2027 format

• Placement Preference Application Form

• Field of Study and Research Plan

• Academic transcript covering every year of university study

• Certificate of graduation or the degree certificate

• Recommendation letter from the president, dean or academic advisor of the last university attended

• Medical certificate in the prescribed 2027 format

• Abstracts of theses, only if the applicant has written any

• Certificate of Japanese or English language proficiency, only if the applicant holds one

• Recommendation letter from the present employer, only for working applicants

Undergraduate applicants send one original set and one copy of the documents listed below.

• Application Form in the 2027 format

• Academic transcripts for all school years attended

• Certificate of graduation, or a certificate of prospective graduation for students still in 12th Class

• Recommendation letter from the class teacher or the principal of the last school attended

• Medical certificate in the prescribed 2027 format

• Certificate of enrolment, only for those already studying in a university

• Certificate of language proficiency, only if the applicant holds one

Every document must be in English or Japanese. If it is in another language, a translation must be attached. Submitted papers are not returned, so applicants should keep their own copies.

Selection Process

Selection happens in two stages. The Embassy or consulate holds the first screening, which covers document checking, a written examination and an interview. Undergraduate applicants in Social Sciences and Humanities are tested in Japanese, English and Mathematics. Natural Sciences applicants also take Chemistry, along with Physics or Biology. Calculators are not allowed. Research Student applicants are tested in Japanese and English.

Applicants who clear the first screening are recommended to MEXT for the second screening. Research Student applicants must first obtain a letter of provisional acceptance from a Japanese university, and this letter carries heavy weight in the final result. They may list up to three universities in the preference form but can hold only two acceptance letters. MEXT then confirms the award and decides the placement, which may be at a campus such as Kobe University. 

For the Undergraduate category, around 12 applicants clear the first screening and move ahead. Past examination papers are published on the Study in Japan website and are useful for practice.

Universities That Accept MEXT Scholarship Students

MEXT grantees are placed across national and private universities in Japan. The University of Tokyo takes both Research Students and Undergraduate Students. Kyoto University accepts grantees in select categories. Kyushu University runs the widest spread, covering research, undergraduate, the Japanese Language and Culture Course and the Young Leaders Programme. Kobe University offers four of the seven programmes.

Hokkaido University nominates students under the University Recommendation route for its Graduate School of Engineering for the 2027 academic year. Ritsumeikan University gives a university recommendation to applicants who clear its admission process. Other campuses that take MEXT students include Osaka University, Tohoku University, Nagoya University, Keio University, Waseda University and the University of Tsukuba. Where an applicant lists both a national and a private university, the national university is given priority at the placement stage.

Common Problems and How to Avoid Them

Most rejections happen before the written test, at the document stage.

Why Applications Get Rejected

The table lists the mistakes that cost applicants a seat, and the fix for each.

Application Status

Results are shared through the Embassy or the consulate that handled the application, not through a public status page. The first screening result is announced on the schedule set by that office. Final results for Research Students go out between January and March 2027. Undergraduate results go out after February 2027. The reasons behind a result are not disclosed, and the placement decision cannot be challenged.

Scholarship Payment

The stipend is paid every month after the grantee reaches Japan. The grantee opens a Japan Post Bank account in Japan, and the money is credited only into that account. MEXT does not transfer the stipend to any other bank account, in India or abroad. 

The first instalment reaches the grantee about one month to one and a half months after arrival. Students are advised to carry roughly US$2,000 to cover the first few weeks. Payment stops if the grantee stays away from the university or the preparatory institution for a long stretch.

Contact and Helpline

Applicants should contact the office that covers their state.

KOSEN and Specialised Training College applicants should confirm the jurisdiction on their own category page, as the list published there is slightly different.

For scholarship queries, the Japan Information Centre is at the Embassy of Japan, 50-G Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021. Phone: +91-11-46104865. Email: scholarship-india@nd.mofa.go.jp.