NIFT Admission through SAT/GRE/GMAT: Admission Process, Eligibility Criteria and Seat Intake
National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Exam 2026 ( NIFT Entrance Exam )
NIFT Registration for e-Counselling / Seat Allotment
To be notified
NIFT Admission Process for Foreign National/NRI /OCI/PIO/SAARC is different from that of Indian Students. The procedure, eligibility criteria, and admission process are different. Read the article to find how.
NIFT Admission Process for Foreign National/NRI /OCI/PIO/SAARC
Candidates under the Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories are not required to appear for the NIFT Entrance Examination. They get admission to the NIFT Institutes based on the scores of SAT/GMAT/GRE examinations. The application process for NIFT Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC candidates is open. All the candidates who fulfill the eligibility criteria under this category could apply before April 30, 2026.
- Who can Apply for NIFT Admission (residing in India or abroad)?
- What are the eligibility criteria to apply under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
- Procedure under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories
- Dates for NRI/Foreign National /OCI/PIO/SAARC
- Seat Intake at NIFT for Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories
- How to apply for NIFT B.Des and B.F.Tech Programme under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
- How to apply for NIFT M.F.M, M.Des & M.F.Tech Programmes under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
Who can Apply for NIFT Admission (residing in India or abroad)?
Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC candidates (residing in India or abroad) with the following status and who meet the eligibility criteria may apply for NIFT 2026 admission.
- Foreign National: A foreign national is a citizen of a country other than India, and who is not of Indian origin.
- NRI (Non-Resident Indian): An Indian citizen who is ordinarily residing outside India or in India and holds an Indian Passport with NRI Status.
- PIO (Person of Indian Origin): A person who or whose any of the ancestors was an Indian national and who is presently holding another country’s citizenship/nationality, i.e. he/she is holding a foreign passport.
- OCI (Overseas Citizen of India): A person registered as an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Cardholder under section 7A of the Citizenship Act., 1955.
- SAARC: (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation): The citizen from the countries Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
Commonly asked questions
Candidates will be able to check the cutoff for NIFT Delhi on the website of NIFT: nift.admissions.nic.in. The opening and closing rank of all the programmes is given on this page. This year, NIFT 2026 cutoff is expected to be on the lower side.
The National Instituite of Fashion Technology will release the NIFT 2026 at the time of seat allotment and counseling.
The cut-offs will be available institute and category-wise for all the program at nift.admissions.nic.in.
The cut-offs will be prepared by considering factors like the seat intake, the merit rank of candidates, admission category, etc. Note that if the seat intake is increase the cut-off would likely go down and vice versa.
The cut-offs are available for the following titles:
- Opening and Closing Rank Details for NIFT UG Counselling 2026
- Opening and Closing Rank Details for NIFT UG (Lateral Entry) Counselling 2026
- Opening and Closing Rank Details for NIFT PG Counselling 2026
To download the cut-offs, visit: https://nift.admissions.nic.in/or-cr/
Candidates can check NIFT cutoff 2026 online on the official website of the National Institute of Fashion Technology. NIFT cutoff is released as a PDF file containing the opening and closing ranks. The cut-off would be category-specific. So, the candidate needs to check the cut-off for the category they belong to. Also, note that candidates from reserved categories will be considered for admission under general category as well. However, candidates belonging to open category will not be considered for admission under reserved categories.
What are the eligibility criteria to apply under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
The eligibility criteria for NIFT Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories is given below.
- Candidate must have appeared in SAT/ GMAT/GRE score.
- The minimum requirement of SAT/ GMAT/GRE score is 50%.
-
Age Limit: For UG programmes, the maximum age should be less than 24 year as on 1st August of the year of admission. For PG programmes, there is no age limit.
Procedure under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories
Those who want admission under this category have to apply online at NIFT website: nift.ac.in/admission. The last date for applying under this category was April 30, 2026. The candidates who fulfill the admission criteria specified for this category may apply online with the requisite application fee of Rs. 11,100/- through the online NIFT payment gateway.
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Commonly asked questions
NIFT master's programme is offered in Master of Design (M. Des. ), Master of Fashion Management (M. F. M) and Master of Fashion Technology (M. F. Tech. ).
The cut-off would be released separately for all these courses. This means, if the candidate meets the cut-off criteria for M. Des but fails to meet the cut-off for M. F. Tech, in that case the candidate will only be eligible for admission to the M. Des programme. So, the candidate needs to check out the cut-off or closing ranks for the programme they are seeking admission to. The cut-off would be determined by considering factors like total applicants, seat intake, merit ranks of the applicants, and also admission category.
NIFT 2026 cut off list will include opening and closing ranks of candidates for each participating institute and category. Among the various categories for which the cut-off would be released are General, SC, ST, OBC-NCl, Domicile, and PwD categories. The candidate needs to consult the cut-off for their respective categories for the programme they are seeking admission to.
Opening rank is the highest rank for which the seat has been allocated. Closing rank is the minimum rank for which admission is allocated. Only such candidates who secure a rank equal to or higher than the closing rank will get admission.
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Dates for NRI/Foreign National /OCI/PIO/SAARC
Check out the important dates for NRI/Foreign National /OCI/PIO/SAARC.
| UG / PG Programmes - NRI/Foreign National /OCI/PIO/SAARC |
|
|---|---|
| Activities |
Timeline |
| Online Registration |
08th December, 2025 |
| Last date for online registration |
30th April, 2026 |
| Last date to receive SAT / GMAT / GRE Scores |
30th April, 2026 |
| Seat allotment and payment of Fee |
*June/July, 2026 |
Seat Intake at NIFT for Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories
Check out the seat intake for NIFT Admission through NRI Category.
| NIFT Institutes | Seats | Programmes |
|---|---|---|
| NIFT Campuses Bengaluru, Chennai, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi | 5 (supernumerary) seats for each programme | All Programmes |
| Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Daman, Jodhpur, Kangra, Kannur, Nava Raipur, Panchkula, Patna, Shillong and Varanasi | 3 (supernumerary) seats for each programme | All Programmes |
Commonly asked questions
The category-wise cut-off for the Accessory Design programme for NIFT Bangalore campus is given below:
Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
EWS | 1099 | 2179 |
OBC (NC) | 438 | 1333 |
Open | 35 | 482 |
SC | 2034 | 4214 |
ST | 2839 | 7286 |
Note that reserved category candidates will be considered for admission to both their reserved and open categories.
The cut-off of NIFT for the various academic courses is not fixed. This is because the cut-off depends on variables like seat intake, the performance of applicants in the NIFT exam, total number of applications received for admission, etc. Now these variables may change from year to year. For instance, the number of candidates appearing in NIFT and qualifying the exam may be different across the years. And when that happens, the cut-off also changes. Typically, if the seat intake increases, the cut-off goes down and vice versa. Likewise, if the number of applicants increases, expect a higher cut-off.
The Situation Test/ Personal Interview (PI) are the 2nd stage of the NIFT 2026 entrance exam. Candidates were shortlisted for the Situation Test/ PI based on the NIFT 2026 written exam scores.
Note that if the candidate fails to qualify for the 2nd stage, he or she is not considered for admission to various design courses offered by the NIFTs.
The only exception is B.F.Tech program, where the merit list for admission will be prepared solely on the basis of GAT scores.
In the case of other courses, the merit list will be prepared by giving weightage to the written exams and Situation Test/ PI.
The expected cutoff for NIFT 2026 for B.Des is:
| Category | Expected Cutoff for B.Des |
|---|---|
| Open | 30-80 |
| EWS | 26-29 |
| OBC | 26-29 |
| SC | 22 |
| ST | 19 |
How to apply for NIFT B.Des and B.F.Tech Programme under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
Candidates should have the following to apply for Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories.
- Candidates applying for Bachelor Programmes of NIFT need to arrange to send SAT scores directly from the College Board USA to NIFT through College Board Portal.
- SAT scores had to be submitted through the College Board, USA, to NIFT before April 30, 2026. The Designated Institution (DI) Code is 7258.
- Candidates at the time of NIFT registration for SAT should indicate DI code: 7258.
- Candidates whose SAT scores have not been received from the College Board, USA, may not be considered for admission under this category.
- The Campus and Programme will be allotted to the successful candidates based on a merit list drawn as per SAT score of the candidates and the preference of the candidate.
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How to apply for NIFT M.F.M, M.Des & M.F.Tech Programmes under Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories?
Candidates should have the following to apply for Foreign Nationals/NRIs/OCIs/PIOs/SAARC categories.
- Candidates applying for Master of Fashion Management (M.F.M) need to arrange to send GMAT test scores.
- Candidates applying for Master of Design (M.Des.) and Master of Fashion Technology (M.F.Tech.) should arrange to send GRE test scores directly to Admissions Department, NIFT Head Office, New Delhi.
- The candidates must designate NIFT Programmes as a choice in the GRE/GMAT.
- Candidates whose GRE/GMAT scores have not been received from the Educational Testing Services/Graduate Management Admission Council may not be considered for admission under this category.
- The campus and programme will be allotted to the successful candidates based on merit list drawn as per GRE/GMAT score of the candidates as well as the preference of the candidate.
- Candidates who want admission under this category should apply online in the prescribed application form.
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Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered a month ago
NIFT 2026 Final Result for UG and PG programmes was released on June 03, 2026.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
There is no fixed number of mock tests one should take before the NIFT Entrance Exam. A candidate should take at least one mock test daily for the NIFT Entrance Preparation. 10-15 mock tests will really help in preparing for the exam.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
There are 20 participating institutes of NIFT that offer the B. Des and B.F.Tech programmes. B. Des programme offers specializations in the following programs: Fashion Design (FD), Leather Design (LD), Accessory Design (AD), Textile Design (TD), Knitwear Design (KD), Fashion Communication (FC).
For B
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
NIFT cutoff for a participating NIFT is the last rank for which admission is offered in for a particular programme and category. This means, if a candidate fails to score a rank equal to or higher than the cutoff rank, they don't get admission. Typically, a higher ranked institute will invite: More
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
NIFT Delhi is frequently ranked among the top design colleges in the country. So, the admission cut-off for the institute is pretty high, especially when compared to the lower-ranked colleges. This is because being a higher-ranked college, NIFT Delhi receives a higher number of applicants. Another f
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
Yes, Pearl Academy, Mumbai BBA students who wish to avail the NIFT Rank scholarship are required to appear for the NIFT entrance exam separately. This can be done either before or after securing the BBA admission at Pearl Academy, Mumbai.
There are also other BBA scholarships that do not require cand
S
Contributor-Level 10
Sayeba Naushad is a commerce postgraduate from Banaras Hindu University. She has over five years of experience in content writing and editing. She has a nose for current events in design field. At Shiksha.com, she s
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