NIFT Lateral Entry Admission 2026: Application, Fees, Seat Matrix, Eligibility Criteria
National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Exam 2026 ( NIFT Entrance Exam )
NIFT Final Result
To be notified
NLEA 2026 was conducted on February 08, 2026, and the preliminary answer key was released on February 17, 2026. The window to challenge the official NIFT 2026 answer key was open from February 17, 2026 to February 19, 2026. Get full updates here.
NIFT (Lateral) 2026
NIFT Lateral Entry Admission 2026 - NTA started the admission process for NLEA 2026 with the application process on December 08, 2025. The NLEA 2026 entrance exam was conducted on February 08, 2026. The written exam included a NIFT General Ability Test (GAT).
The result for NIFT NLEA is expected in May 2026. The result will be released on the website of NTA NIFT and after this, NIFT counselling will begin.
- What is NIFT Lateral Entry?
- NLEA Admission 2026 Highlights
- NIFT 2026 (GAT) General Ability Test
- NIFT NLEA 2026 Admission Schedule
- NIFT Lateral Entry Admission (NLEA) 2026 Eligibility Criteria
- NLEA Admission 2026 - Exam Pattern
- NIFT 2026 - NLEA Seat Intake
- NLEA Application Form 2026
- NLEA Application Fee 2026
- NLEA Exam Center 2026
- NLEA Result 2026
- NIFT 2026 - NLEA Counselling
What is NIFT Lateral Entry?
NIFT NLEA stands for Later NIFT Lateral Entry Admission. It is offered by NIFT to get admissions directly into the second year (third semester) of the undergraduate programme (B.Des and B.F.Tech) at NIFT. The students should fulfill the eligibility criteria to get admission in the NIFT NLEA.
Under the NLEA admission scheme, eligible candidates will be considered for admission directly to the 3rd semester of the UG program of NIFT. The NLEA admission route is open for candidates who have completed their Diploma in a relevant or related field of Design & Technology. Interested candidates will have to appear for NIFT entrance examination to get lateral admission. NLEA 2026 admission will be merit-based. Candidates selected through lateral entry will join the regular UG students of NIFT in their second year.
Also Read:
Commonly asked questions
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 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.
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.
NLEA Admission 2026 Highlights
The key points related to the NLEA 2026 admission process are given in the table below.
| Particulars |
Description |
|---|---|
| Exam Name |
NIFT NLEA Admission |
| Conducting Body |
NTA |
| Frequency of exam |
Once every year |
| Number of Attempts |
There is no limit on the number of attempts |
| Entry |
Admission is offered directly into the second year of the regular UG programme. |
| Mode of exam |
GAT - Computer-based mode Studio Test + Personal Interview - Offline TAT + Personal Interview - Offline |
| Courses Available for NIFT NLEA |
NIFT NLEA: Bachelor of Design (B.Des) and Bachelor of Fashion Technology (B.FTech) |
| Application fee |
INR 2,000 for General and INR 500 for ST and SC |
| Mode of application |
Online |
| NIFT NLEA 2026 application form START date |
Closed |
| Release of Exam Notification |
December 08, 2025 |
| Exam date |
February 08, 2026 |
| Related exam |
NIFT Entrance Exam 2026 |
NIFT 2026 (GAT) General Ability Test
NIFT GAT is conducted in a computer-based mode. The scores of the written exam will be used to shortlist candidates for:
- NIFT Studio Test + NIFT Personal Interview (B.Des course)
- Technical Ability Test (TAT) + Personal Interview (B.F.Tech)
Under the NLEA scheme, candidates will be considered for admission directly into the 3rd semester. For regular admission, candidates need to apply for NIFT 2026.
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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NIFT NLEA 2026 Admission Schedule
The admission schedule for the Artisan category is also given below for reference.
| Events |
Dates |
|---|---|
| Registration open for NIFT admission 2026 |
December 08, 2025 |
| Last date to apply |
January 16, 2026 |
| Last date to apply with a late fee of INR 5000 |
January 17, 2026 to January 19, 2026 |
| Edit window |
January 21, 22, 2026 |
| Advance City Intimation Slip |
January 29, 2026 |
| Issue of Admit Cards |
February 04, 2026 |
| Conduct of NIFTEE Entrance Exam |
February 08, 2026 |
| Answer Key for GAT Examination only (using registered user ID & password) |
February 17, 2026 |
| Result of Entrance Examination |
March 20, 2026 |
| Situation Test (Regular) / Studio Test, Personal Interview & documents verification (NLEA) at Test Centres |
April 26, 2026 |
| Declaration of Final Result (Online) |
Last week of May 2026 |
| Seat Allocation |
June 2026 |
NIFT Lateral Entry Admission (NLEA) 2026 Eligibility Criteria
Candidates seeking admission to the B.Des or B.F.Tech programs need to meet the following eligibility criteria. Note that admission officials will verify the information shared by the candidate, and if any anomaly is discovered, the candidate can be disqualified.
The eligibility criteria for NIFT NLEA 2026 are:
| Programme |
Eligibility Criteria |
|---|---|
|
Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) NLEA |
|
| OR |
|
|
|
| OR |
|
| Candidates who have completed 2-year regular UG Diploma Programme at NIFT after passing Senior Secondary Examination/ 12th standard. |
|
|
Bachelor of Fashion Technology (B.F. Tech) NLEA |
|
| OR |
|
|
|
| OR |
|
| Candidates who have completed 02 years UG Diploma Programme at NIFT after passing Senior Secondary/12th standard recognized by AIU with Mathematics. |
Also Read:
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 |
NLEA Admission 2026 - Exam Pattern
The exam pattern provides insights into the question paper structure, including the sections, weightage, exam timings, etc. The NLEA question paper had questions from GAT. Here is how to prepare for the NIFT GAT paper. The candidate must strictly refer to the exam pattern when preparing for the NLEA 2026 entrance exam.
B.Des - NLEA 2026 Exam Pattern
The pattern of NIFT NLEA B.Des is given below.
| Programe |
Exam components |
Marks |
Exam Date |
Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bachelor of Design (B. Des.) |
GAT |
40 |
8 February 2026 |
10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon |
| Studio Test |
40 |
April 26, 2026 |
10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon |
|
| Personal Interview |
20 |
12:30 PM onwards |
||
|
|
General Ability Test (GAT) |
40 |
8 February 2026 |
10:00 AM to 01:00 PM |
| Technical Ability Test (TAT) |
40 |
April 26, 2026 |
10:00 AM to 11:00 AM |
|
| Personal Interview (PI) |
20 |
11:30 AM to 01:00 PM |
B.F.Tech - NLEA 2026 Exam Pattern
The exam pattern of NIFT NLEA is.
| Programe |
Exam components |
Marks |
Exam Date |
Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
General Ability Test (GAT) |
40 |
8 February 2026 |
10:00 AM to 01:00 PM |
| Technical Ability Test (TAT) |
40 |
April 26, 2026 |
10:00 AM to 11:00 AM |
|
| Personal Interview (PI) |
20 |
11:30 AM to 01:00 PM |
NIFT 2026 - NLEA Seat Intake
The program-wise seat intake for the NLEA 2026 admission is given below for the reference of the candidate.
| Programmes |
Total UG seats |
10% of Seats |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor of Design (Accessory Design) |
637 |
64 |
| Bachelor of Design (Fashion Communication) |
719 |
72 |
| Bachelor of Design (Fashion Design) |
801 |
80 |
| Bachelor of Design (Fashion Interiors) |
82 |
8 |
| Bachelor of Design (Knitwear Design) |
351 |
35 |
| Bachelor of Design (Leather Design) |
152 |
15 |
| Bachelor of Design (Textile Design) |
681 |
68 |
| Bachelor of Fashion Technology (Apparel Production) |
591 |
59 |
| Total |
4014 |
401 |
Commonly asked questions
The expected cutoff for NIFT M.Des is given below:
| Category | Expected Cutoff M.Des |
|---|---|
| Open | 26-70 |
| EWS | 22 |
| OBC | 22 |
| SC | 16 |
| ST | 16-18 |
The Cut off for NIFT Gandhinagar 2025 will be out soon on the official website. The Cut off for NIFT Gandhinagar 2024 can give a fair idea for this year.
The following table shows the NIFT Gandhinagar 2024 Round 1 Cutoff for Fashion Design:
| Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
|---|---|---|
| OBC | 725 | 1485 |
| Gen-EWS | 1105 | 2770 |
| Open | 208 | 466 |
| Open (PwD) | 8824 | 8824 |
| SC | 876 | 2586 |
| ST | 3004 | 3306 |
The Cut off for NIFT Mumbai 2025 for B.Des in Textile Design will be out soon. In the meanwhile, we can have a look at the Cutoff 2024 to get a rough idea.
The following table presents the Cutoff for Round 1 under All India Quota for NIFT Mumbai 2024:
Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
|---|---|---|
| OBC | 722 | 2044 |
| Gen-EWS | 581 | 2653 |
| Open | 301 | 570 |
| Open (PwD) | 5654 | 5654 |
| SC | 3522 | 4385 |
| ST | 5076 | 5499 |
The Cutoff for NIFT Mumbai for B.Des in Fashion Design 2025 will be out soon once the Stage 2 Exams are over and the final results are declared. However, we can get a fair idea by looking at the Cut offs for NIFT Mumbai Fashion Design 2024.
The following table presents the Cutoff for Round 1 under All India Quota:
Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
|---|---|---|
| OBC | 517 | 870 |
| OBC (PwD) | 5828 | 5828 |
| Gen-EWS | 937 | 1498 |
| Open | 3 | 170 |
| Open (PwD) | 3193 | 3193 |
| SC | 816 | 1275 |
| SC (PwD) | 4848 | 4848 |
| ST | 1736 | 2094 |
NLEA Application Form 2026
Candidates meeting the program-wise eligibility criteria to apply had to follow the steps given below:
- Register for the exam - The candidate can register for the NIFT 2026 exam using their Aadhaar details. On successful registration, a candidate account will be created.
- Log-in to fill out the form - The candidate has to log in to the account and fill in personal, academic, and contact details.
- Select test center - The candidate has to next select an exam city from the drop-down list. The entries must be in the order of priority.
- Upload documents - Follow the document specifications when uploading the documents.
- Pay the application fee to complete the NIFT application process.
NLEA Application Fee 2026
The category-wise application fee for NLEA 2026 is given below. Note that the application fee is non-refundable.
| Category |
NIFT 2026 Application Fee (non-refundable) |
|---|---|
| General/OBC (Non-Creamy)/GEN-EWS Category |
INR 2,000 |
| SC/ ST/ PwD Category |
INR 500 |
NLEA Exam Center 2026
The NIFT 2026 exam was conducted in 102 cities across India. The candidate can select their choice of exam centers for NLEA 2026 from the list when filling out the application form.
| State |
City |
|
|---|---|---|
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands |
Port Blair |
|
| Andhra Pradesh |
Kurnool |
|
| Andhra Pradesh |
Vijayawada |
|
| Andhra Pradesh |
Visakhapatnam |
|
| Andhra Pradesh |
Rajahmundry |
|
| Andhra Pradesh |
Tirupathi |
|
| Arunachal Pradesh |
Naharlagun |
|
| Assam |
Guwahati |
|
| Bihar |
Muzaffarpur |
|
| Bihar |
Patna |
|
| Chandigarh |
Chandigarh/Mohali |
|
| Chhattisgarh |
Raipur |
|
| Chhattisgarh |
Jagdalpur |
|
| Dadra & Nagar Haveli |
Silvassa |
|
| Delhi |
Delhi NCR |
|
| Goa |
Mapusa |
|
| Gujarat |
Ahmedabad/ Gandhinagar |
|
| Gujarat |
Rajkot |
|
| Gujarat |
Surat |
|
| Gujarat |
Anand |
|
| Gujarat |
Gandhinagar |
|
| Gujarat |
Mehsana |
|
| Haryana |
Hisar |
|
| Haryana |
Kurukshetra |
|
| Himachal Pradesh |
Bilaspur Hp |
|
| Himachal Pradesh |
Kangra |
|
| Jammu And Kashmir |
Jammu |
|
| Jammu And Kashmir |
Srinagar |
|
| Jharkhand |
Dhanbad |
|
| Jharkhand |
Ranchi |
|
| Karnataka |
Bengaluru |
|
| Karnataka |
Mysuru (Mysore) |
|
| Karnataka |
Mangalore (Mangalore) |
|
| Kerala |
Ernakulam |
|
| Kerala |
Kannur |
|
| Kerala |
Kozhikode |
|
| Kerala |
Kollam |
|
| Kerala |
Kottayam |
|
| Kerala |
Thiruvananthapuram |
|
| Kerala |
Thrissur |
|
| Ladakh |
Leh / Kargil |
|
| Lakshadweep |
Kavaratti |
|
| Madhya Pradesh |
Bhopal |
|
| Madhya Pradesh |
Jabalpur |
|
| Madhya Pradesh |
Gwalior |
|
| Madhya Pradesh |
Satna |
|
| Madhya Pradesh |
Ujjain |
|
| Maharashtra |
Mumbai / Thane |
|
| Maharashtra |
Nagpur |
|
| Maharashtra |
Pune |
|
| Maharashtra |
Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar |
|
| Maharashtra |
Amravati |
|
| Maharashtra |
Kolhapur |
|
| Maharashtra |
Nanded |
|
| Manipur |
Imphal |
|
| Meghalaya |
Shillong |
|
| Mizoram |
Aizawl |
|
| Nagaland |
Kohima |
|
| Odisha |
Berhampur-Ganjam |
|
| Odisha |
Bhubaneswar |
|
| Puducherry |
Pondicherry |
|
| Punjab |
Ludhiana |
|
| Rajasthan |
Jaipur |
|
| Rajasthan |
Jodhpur |
|
| Rajasthan |
Udaipur |
|
| Sikkim |
Gangtok |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Chennai |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Coimbatore |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Madurai |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Salem |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Tiruchirappalli |
|
| Tamil Nadu |
Vellore |
|
| Telangana |
Hyderabad |
|
| Tripura |
Agartala |
|
| Uttar Pradesh |
Meerut |
|
| Uttar Pradesh |
Muzaffarnagar |
|
| Uttar Pradesh |
Kanpur |
|
| Uttar Pradesh |
Lucknow |
|
| Uttar Pradesh |
Varanasi |
|
| Uttarakhand |
Dehradun |
|
| Uttarakhand |
Haldwani |
|
| West Bengal |
Kolkata |
|
NLEA Result 2026
- NTA will declare the results in May 2026.
- To check your results, you need to go to the result portal and log-in using your candidate credentials.
- The written exam results will be used to shortlist candidates for a Studio Test/ PI (B.Des) / Technical Ability Test/ PI.
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NIFT 2026 - NLEA Counselling
- The counseling and seat allotment for NLEA 2026 will be conducted after the declaration of the results. Registration for counseling will start around June 2026.
- Candidates will be considered for seat allotment based on their merit rank in the NIFT NLEA 2026 entrance exam.
- Upon seat allotment, the candidate will have to pay the seat acceptance fee and confirm their admission. If the fee is not paid by the given deadline, the allotment can be cancelled.
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Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 4 weeks ago
NIFT 2026 Final Result for UG and PG programmes is expected in May - June. It can be released between the last week of May to Second week of June 2026.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a month 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
Answered 2 months ago
The material kit of NIFT Situation Test 2026 can include the following:
- Corrugated sheets: 2
- Cardboard: 1
- OHP Sheets: 1
- Translucents Sheet: 1
- Coloured sheets: 4
- Ice cream sticks: 8-10
- Toothpicks: 6-7
- All pinks
- Jute Thread: 2m
- Needle
- Balloon
- Clay: 2 colors
- Chopsticks: 2
- Quilling strips
- Paper plate: 2
- Bubble wrap: 1
- M
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 months ago
Some of the important topics for NIFT Situation Test are:
- Momentoes
- Badges
- product Design
- Set Design
- Book Cover/Diaries
- Window Display: For Shoes, Clothes, etc.
- Accessories
- Character Design
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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