JEE Main Eligibility Criteria

A candidate must fulfil all of the eligibility requirements set by the National Testing Agency (NTA), the conducting authority, to appear for the JEE Main 2025. Failing to do so may result in disqualification of their application and admission. The candidates are advised to thoroughly read the eligibility criteria before beginning the JEE Main 2025 application form.

The key eligibility criterion is as follows:

• Age Limit
• Minimum Percentage Required
• Number of Attempts
• Year of Appearance in Qualifying Examination
• Mandatory Subjects

Age Limit

There is no upper age restriction for the JEE Main exam. Candidates who passed class 12 or it’s equivalent in the years 2022, 2023, or 2024 are eligible to sit for the JEE Main 2025. Candidates may be required to fulfil particular age standards by some of the institutions to which they wish to secure admission.

Minimum Percentage Required

Candidates are NO LONGER required to achieve a certain percentage to appear for B.E./B.Tech. courses in the JEE Main 2025. Candidates must, however, meet the minimum percentage standards specified by the institutes of their choice as the admission criterion.

Number of Attempts

According to the most recent NTA revisions, aspirants can take JEE Main 2025 twice a year (Session 1 – January and Session 2 – April). They can improve their performance by taking one or both sessions. The only limitation is that applicants may take the test 3 years in a row, beginning with the year they passed their class 12 or equivalent examination.

List of Qualifying Examinations

• The 10+2 system’s final examination should have been administered by any recognised Central/State Board, such as CBSE, ICSE, and so on.
• A recognised Board/University administers an intermediate or two-year Pre-University exam.
• The candidate took the final examination of the two-year course at the National Defense Academy in the Joint Services Wing.
• Candidate passed the National Institute of Open Schooling’s Senior Secondary School Examination with a minimum of five courses.
• The candidate has finished his/her 10+2 or equivalent examination in India or any other country from any Public School/Board/University recognised by the Association of Indian Universities (AIU).
• Higher Secondary Certificate Vocational Examination.
• The candidate has completed a three-year diploma programme recognised by AICTE or a State Board of Technical Education.
• The applicant has passed the General Certificate Education (GCE) examination (London/Cambridge/Sri Lanka) at the Advanced (A) level.
• The candidate passed the Cambridge University High School Certificate Examination or the International Baccalaureate Diploma from the International Baccalaureate Office in Geneva.
• Candidates who have finished the Class 12 (or equivalent) 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 examination they passed is equal to the Class 12 Examination.
• If the Class 12 Exam is not a public examination, the candidate must have previously passed at least one public (Board or Pre-University) examination.

Year of Appearance in Qualifying Examination

• Candidates who completed their class 12/equivalent exam in 2022, 2023, 2024 or will appear for it in 2025, regardless of their age, are eligible to take the JEE Main 2025.
• Candidates who completed the Class 12/equivalent examinations in 2020 or earlier and candidates who will appear for the 10+2 exam after 2025 are not eligible to take the JEE Main 2025.

Mandatory Subjects

Candidates must fulfil the following eligibility criteria in addition to the above-mentioned eligibility criteria. To take JEE Main 2025, students must have studied and passed particular subjects in 10+2 or equivalent.

JEE Main NRI Students Eligibility

Aside from the aforementioned eligibility requirements, India’s Ministry of Education established the DASA Scheme, which permits Indian people living overseas to take engineering entrance exams. As a result, if an engineering applicant meets the above conditions in addition to the DASA Scheme, he or she is qualified to pursue technical education in India.

DASA Scheme

As Notified by the Indian Ministry of Education, under the Direct Admission of Students Abroad (DASA) Scheme or commonly known as ‘NRI Quota’, the Foreign Nationals (FNs) studying in any country (including India), wards of Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) and Non – Residents Indians (NRIs), can pursue Technical Education in India in National Institute of Technology (NITs), International Institute of Information Technology (IIITs) and other Centrally Funded Technical Institutions excluding Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).

CIWG Scheme

The popular DASA Scheme has a scheme called CIWG, which stands for Children of Indian Workers in the Gulf. The policy is part of the NRI Quota. The key distinction is that this part of the scheme offers additional benefits to NRI students in Middle Eastern nations such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain.

This scheme is solely available to the NRI students from the Middle East countries seeking admission to Indian Engineering Colleges.

Through the CIWG Scheme, NRI students can gain admission to India’s top engineering colleges like NITs, IIITs and other engineering institutions funded by the central government.

Students in the CIWG category can enrol in any of the various streams, such as Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE), Computer Engineering (CE), Mechanical Engineering (MEC), Information Technology, Software Engineering, and so on.