JEE Main Eligibility Criteria 2024: Age Limit, Educational Qualification, Nationality, Reservations, Attempts

JEE Main Eligibility 2024

National Testing Agency (NTA) will officially release the JEE Main 2024 Eligibility Criteria in detail for all aspirants. Candidates planning to appear for JEE Main 2024 must fulfil the eligibility criteria set by the conducting authority. The eligibility criteria will be released along with the JEE Main Exam 2024Syllabus, exam pattern and other details on the official website. As part of the eligibility criteria for JEE Main 2024, the candidates have to fulfil the requirements related to the qualifying examination, the number of attempts, age, nationality, qualifying marks, etc. Only those who fulfil the stated eligibility conditions for JEE Main examination will be able to fill out the JEE Main 2024 Application Form. Since the previous year, few relaxations have been made to the JEE Main Eligibility Criteria 2024, as mentioned on this page.

JEE Main 2024 Exam Session 1 will be conducted on January 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 & February 1, 2024. The exam dates for JEE Main 2024 Session 2 are April 1 to 15, 2024. 

Also Read - JEE Main 2024 Age Limit: Check Details on Eligible No. of Attempts & Educational Qualification Required

JEE Main 2024 Age Limit

The rules & regulations pertaining to the age limit of JEE Main 2024 are as follows -

• There is no age limit specified for JEE Main 2024

• Only those candidates who have passed the Class 12 or equivalent examination in 2022 and 2023, or those who are appearing in the Class 12/equivalent examination in 2024, are eligible to appear in JEE Main 2024.

• Candidates who have passed Class 12 or equivalent examination in 2021 or before are not eligible to sit for JEE Main 2024. 

Detailed JEE Main Eligibility Criteria 2024

The detailed JEE Main 2024 eligibility criteria can be checked below -

Number of Attempts in JEE Main

• Candidates get 3 attempts for JEE Main and 2 attempts for JEE Advanced

• In order to get admission in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Gujarat and Odisha institutions, the number of attempts and age limit will be similar to the previous practices of their respective state-level examinations.

Nationality

• Candidates must be a citizen of India/Indian Nationality

• The ones who belong to the category of Non-Residential Indian (NRI), Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) or Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) can also apply for JEE Main 2024, provided they produce a category certificate. 

Number of Subjects Required for the Qualifying Examination (Class XII)

• For Paper 1 (B.Tech), candidates must have studied Physics and Mathematics as compulsory subjects and Chemistry/ Biotechnology as optional subjects in Class 12 or equivalent.

• For Paper 2A & 2B, candidates must have studied Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics as compulsory subjects in Class 12 or equivalent.

Marks Required in Class XII (Qualifying Examination)

• There are no minimum marks required in class XII for writing the JEE Main 2024 Exam.

Date of Birth Criteria

• General and OBC candidates whose birth date falls on or after 1st October 1995 will be eligible to take JEE Main 2024.

• However, in the case of the reserved category the upper age limit is relaxed by 5 years, i.e. people under the categories of Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST), as well as Persons with Disabilities (PwD) who are born on or after 1st October 1989, will be eligible.

• The birth date given in the Secondary Education Board/University Certificate will be considered.

Year of Appearance in Qualifying Examination (Class XII)

• Only those who have cleared their Class XII examination or any equivalent qualification examination in the year 2023/ 2022 are eligible to apply for JEE Main 2024. 

• Also, candidates who are appearing in the class XII exam or any equivalent qualifying examination in 2024 can apply for the JEE Main 2024 Exam.

• Candidates who passed Class 12 or equivalent examination in 2021 or before are not eligible to appear for JEE Main 2024 Exam. 

Aadhar Card Criteria

Candidates appearing for the JEE Main 2024 Examination need not compulsorily mention details of the Aadhar card while filling up the application form. A notice issued by NTA has asked candidates to register any identification proof that may comprise a Passport, Bank Account Number, Ration Card Number, or any valid Government ID or Aadhar Card. The form-filling process for JEE Main is expected to start in December 2023.  

State of Eligibility

• For Indian nationals passing the Class XII (or equivalent) examination from Nepal/Bhutan, the State code of eligibility will be determined based on a permanent address in India as given in the passport of the candidate.

• The State code of eligibility for OCI/PIO passing the Class XII (or equivalent) examination in India is at par with Indian nationals. However, OCI/PIO passing the Class XII (or equivalent) examination from an institution abroad are eligible for Other State quota seats or All India quota seats (but NOT for Home State quota seats) in all NITs, IIEST and Other-CFTIs

• If a candidate has passed the Class XII (or equivalent) qualifying examination from one State but appeared for improvement from another State, the candidate’s State code of eligibility will be from where the candidate first passed the Class XII (or equivalent) examination and NOT the State from where the candidate has appeared for improvement.

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JEE Main 75% Criteria Relaxation

The key highlights of the JEE Main 75% Relaxation Criteria are explained below - 

• 'General Category' candidates must obtain at least 75% marks in Class 12 for admissions to NIT, IIITs and GFTIs through JEE Main 
• 'Reserved Category' candidates must score at least 65% marks in Class 12 for admissions to NIT, IIITs and GFTIs through JEE Main 
• Students from the years 2023 and 2022 who do not meet the criteria but are still in the top 20% of the candidates in the board exams are eligible to apply for the JEE Main
• Candidates who featured in the top 20% in the 2021 board exam (since the board exam was not conducted and marks were given based on performance) are eligible to apply
• Those candidates who meet the above-mentioned criteria will be considered eligible for counselling through the CSAB Special Round and not JoSAA Counselling. 

List of Qualifying Exams for JEE Main 2024

• The final examination of the 10+2 system, which is administered by any recognised Central/State Board, such as the Central Board of Secondary Education in New Delhi, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations in New Delhi, and so on.
• A recognised Board/University administering an intermediate or two-year Pre-University test
• Final test for the National Defence Academy's two-year Joint Services Wing programme
• The National Institute of Open Schooling conducts a Senior Secondary School Examination with a minimum of five topics
• The Association of Indian Universities recognised any public school/board/university examination in India or any other country as comparable to the 10+2 system (AIU).
• Vocational Examination for the Higher Secondary Certificate
• A three-year diploma approved by AICTE or a state body of technical education.
• Advanced (A) level General Certificate of Education (GCE) test (London/Cambridge/Sri Lanka)
• Cambridge University's High School Certificate Examination or the International Baccalaureate Diploma from the International Baccalaureate Office in Geneva
• Candidates who have finished the Class 12 (or comparable) examination outside of India or from a Board other than those listed above must present a certificate from the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) stating that the test they passed is equal to the Class 12 Examination
• If the Class 12 Exam is not a public test, the candidate must have previously passed at least one public (Board or Pre-University) examination

JEE Main Reservation of Seats 2024

JEE Main 2024 Reservation Criteria will be determined by the exam organizing body. Based on the criteria, admissions will be organized in the participating institutes. The criteria for reservation in JEE Main will be applicable to the candidates belonging to SC, ST and OBC categories, and the Person with Disability (PwD) category. The reservation criteria will also include criteria related to the home state quota and other state quotas.

These categories are:

• Other Backward Classes (OBC) if they belong to Non-Creamy Layer (NCL)

• Scheduled Castes (SC)

• Scheduled Tribes (ST)

• Persons with Disability (PwD) with 40% or more disability

Category-Wise JEE Main Reservation of Seats

JEE Main Reservation of Seats (Institute-Wise)