CUET 2026 Eligibility Criteria: Age Limit, Qualification, Course Wise Admission Criteria

CUET eligibility criteria 2026 prescribes the academic qualification requirement, age limit and university and course-wise requirements. Check for detailed CUET UG eligibility criteria here. NTA has commenced the CUET registration 2026. Candidates must ensure to check the CUET 2026 eligibility to apply successfully.

University Wise Eligibility Criteria For CUET UG

CUET 2026 eligibility criteria mentions whether a candidate can apply for UG courses offered in all the CUET participating institutions. Candidates who wish to apply for CUET must meet the eligibility criteria prescribed by NTA. CUET UG eligibility criteria prescribe the age limit, academic qualifications, and nationality. CUET application form 2026 window has been reopened. Candidates can now fill the CUET form 2026 till February 26, 2026 and pay application fee till prescribed date. NTA will administer CUET UG 2026 exam tentatively between May 11 and May 31 in CBT mode.

LATEST: CUET UG 2026 Registration Last Date Live Updates

CUET Eligibility Criteria 2026

Students must fulfill the CUET eligibility requirements below to appear in the CUET for UG admissions. 

CUET 2026 Eligibility Criteria: Academic Qualification Requirement

• Students must have passed Class 12 or appeared in Class 12 from a recognised board (any stream).
• For the General category, the candidate needs to secure a minimum of 50% in Class 12;
• SC/ST, candidates must have secured a minimum of 45% in Class 12.
• For BTech programmes, the minimum aggregate for the General category candidates is 45%, and that of the reserved category candidates is 40%.

CUET Eligibility Criteria 2026: Age Limit

• For Age Criteria the candidates will be required to fulfill the CUET age criteria (if any) of the Universities in which they are desirous of taking admission.
• The admission to Universities through CUET (UG) the educational qualification is subjective to existing policies regarding quota, category, relaxation, reservations, qualification, subject combinations, preferences, etc. of the respective University shall be applicable.

CUET Eligibility Criteria 2026: Nationality 

To be eligible for the CUET Exam, aspirants must abide by the following citizenship rules:

• The candidate must be an Indian citizen.
• A constituent subject of Nepal, Bhutan
• A Tibetan refugee who landed in India before 1 January 1962 to make India their permanent home and reside there permanently.
• Pakistanis, Burmese, Sri Lankans, Kenyans, Ugandans, Tanzanians, Zambians, Malawians, Zaireans, Ethiopians, and people from Vietnam who permanently moved to India.

Also Read: CUET UG 2026 Login

CUET 2026 Eligibility Criteria: Reservations

Indian nationals belonging to the categories below are admitted under the seats reserved for them under the rules prescribed by the Government of India. However, in the case of the Central Universities, the reservation policy of the respective universities shall be applicable.

• For GEN-EWS Category

GEN-EWS certificate needs to be uploaded in the Online Application Form of CUET UG 2026, which should have been issued on or after 01 January 2026 in regard with the latest guidelines of the Government of India. If any GEN-EWS candidate fails to submit the GEN-EWS certificate (issued on or after 01 January 2026) at the time of online registration, the candidate has to upload a declaration [Declaration in Lieu of Gen-EWS Certificate at Annexure-IB mentioned in the CUET Brochure 2026] to that effect.

• For OBC-NCL Category

OBC-NCL certificate needs to be uploaded in the Online Application Form of CUET UG 2026, which should have been issued on or after 01 January 2026, in consonance with the latest guidelines of the Government of India. If any OBC-NCL candidate fails to upload the OBC- NCL certificate (issued on or after 01 January 2026) at the time of online registration, the candidate has to upload a declaration [Declaration in Lieu of OBC-NCL Certificate as per Annexure-IIB mentioned in the CUET Brochure 2026] to that effect. 

• For SC or ST Category

The caste (for SC) or tribe (for ST) certificate needs to be uploaded in the CUET online form 2026, as per the latest guidelines of the Government of India.

NOTE-

1.  As the eligibility criteria for admission through CUET 2026 may be unique for every University, the candidates are advised to visit the University website to which they are applying for their respective programs. 
2.  Candidates are advised to satisfy themselves before applying that they possess the eligibility criteria laid down by the University they are applying. 
3.  Mere appearance in the Entrance Test or securing pass marks at the test does not entitle a candidate to be considered for admission to the Programme unless he/she fulfil the Programme-wise eligibility conditions of the University they are applying to.

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CUET UG Eligibility Criteria 2026: Central Universities

To qualify for admission to the desired University/College, the Candidate must have passed class 12 or its equivalent examination from a single recognised board. As per the recent changes, candidate can now appear for CUET subjects irrespective of subjects studied in class 12th and as per the subject combination mentioned below for the applied program(s). Here is the eligibility criteria for some of the famous central, state, and deemed universities/ colleges under CUET 2026.

Delhi University CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

University of Allahabad CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

Also Read: CUET Syllabus for Arts Students

Banaras Hindu University CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

Jawaharlal Nehru University CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

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• How is CUET syllabus different from CBSE syllabus?
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Jamia Milia Islamia University CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

Aligarh Muslim University CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

Other Central Universities CUET UG Eligibility Criteria

Check the table below to check eligibility criteria and subject combinations for central universities:

CUET UG Eligibility Criteria 2026: State Universities

CUET UG Eligibility Criteria 2026: Deemed Universities

CUET UG 2026 deemed universities list will be updated on release of official website. Click here to check the complete list of CUET UG 2026 deemed universities

Candidates seeking admission at universities accepting CUET score can check the university-wise eligibility criteria at cuet.nta.nic.in under the "Universities" tab on the Main Menu or at specific university's admission brochure.

CUET Reservation Policy 2026

Candidates desiring admission to Universities offering UG programmes must ensure to check CUET reservation criteria. As per the reservation criteria, candidates belonging to reserved categories are exempted by 5% for each program. Universities follow the reservation policy as per the Government of India. Candidates failing to fulfill the procedure to claim reservations will be disqualified from the admission process to any university.

CUET Application Form 2026

Candidates meeting CUET UG eligibility criteria 2026 can fill the CUET application form online. Candidates can fill the online application form at cuet.nta.nic.in and create login credentials to fill the CUET application form. NTA has reopened the CUET application form 2026 for candidates who have earlier missed applying for exam. Candidates must make sure that they paid the CUET registration fee 2026, without which the registration process will not be considered complete and the candidate will not be able to appear for exam. Students must note that CUET correction 2026 window will not be reopened.

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