• Application Begin : 28/08/2025
• Last Date for Apply : 28/09/2025
• Fee Payment Last Date : 09/10/2025
• Correction Date : 2025-11-06
• Exam Date : N/A
• Admit Card Available : 2026-01-02

• - A candidate who is currently studying in the 3rd or higher years of any undergraduate degree program OR has already completed any government approved degree program in Engineering/Technology/Architecture/Science/Commerce/Arts/Humanities is eligible.
• - Candidates in their 5th/6th/7th semester or higher, or those who have already completed M.B.B.S./B.D.S./B.V.Sc./B.Sc. (Agriculture, Horticulture, Forestry) degrees, are also eligible.
• - For specific degree programs and detailed eligibility criteria, candidates should refer to the official information brochure and Table 2.

Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG) is the Organizing Institute (OI) for GATE 2026. The official website of GATE 2026 is https://gate2026.iitg.ac.in. GATE 2026 will be conducted as a Computer Based Test (CBT). There will be a total of 30 test papers. GATE 2026 will have a new sectional test paper on Energy Science (XE-I) in Engineering Sciences (XE) paper. GATE 2026 test papers will be in English and entirely of the objective type. The types of questions include Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), Multiple Select Questions (MSQs), and Numerical Answer Type (NAT) questions. In MCQs, only one out of four options is correct. In MSQs, one or more than one out of four options is/are correct; and for NAT questions, the answer must be keyed in using a virtual keypad. The candidates must use only the on-screen virtual calculator provided for their calculations. Candidates are allowed to appear for one or two test papers only. Examination for some test papers may be held in multiple sessions. However, a candidate will be required to appear for the examination in only one of the sessions of the test paper on the date and time specified on the Admit Card. A candidate who is currently studying in the 3rd or higher years of any undergraduate degree program OR has already completed any government approved degree program in Engineering/Technology/Architecture/Science/Commerce/Arts/Humanities is eligible to appear for GATE 2026 examination. A candidate who is currently studying in 5th/6th/7th semester or higher semester OR has already completed M.B.B.S./B.D.S./B.V.Sc./B.Sc. (Agriculture, Horticulture, Forestry) degree is also eligible to appear for GATE 2026 examination. There is NO age limit to appear for GATE 2026. Applications will be accepted ONLINE only through the GATE 2026 Application Portal, which can be accessed from the GATE 2026 official website. GATE 2026 will be held at several centres spread across more than 200 cities/towns in India only. GATE 2026 score will remain valid for THREE years from the date of the announcement of results. Dates of examination are February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026. The exam will be held in two sessions on these dates – forenoon and afternoon. Dates for ONLINE Registration: Regular Period Opening date August 25, 2025, Closing date September 25, 2025. Extended Period Closing date with late fee October 06, 2025. Dates are liable to change.

Mode of examination: Computer Based Test (CBT). Language of examination: English. Duration: 3 hours*. Number of papers (subjects): 30 test papers. Sections: General Aptitude (GA) + Candidate’s Selected Subject(s). Types of questions: (a) Multiple Choice Question (MCQ), (b) Multiple Select Question (MSQ), (c) Numerical Answer Type (NAT). Test of abilities: (a) Recall, (b) Comprehension, (c) Application, (d) Analysis and Synthesis. Number of questions: 10 (General Aptitude) + 55 (Subject) = 65 Questions. Distribution of marks: General Aptitude: 15 marks; Engineering Mathematics: 13 marks (for most papers); Subject Questions: 72/85 marks. Total: 100 marks. Marking scheme: Questions carry either 1 mark or 2 marks. Negative marking: For a wrong answer to an MCQ, 1/3 for 1-mark MCQ and 2/3 for 2-mark MCQ will be deducted. There is no negative marking for wrong answers to MSQ and NAT questions. There is no partial marking for any question. *PwD candidates are eligible for compensatory time of one hour as per the guidelines F. No. P-13013/75/2023-Policy-DD-III dated August 01, 2025.

Candidates qualifying GATE can seek admission with possible financial assistance to Master's and Direct Doctoral programs in Engineering/Technology/Architecture, and Doctoral programs in relevant branches of Engineering/Technology/Architecture/Science/Humanities, in institutions supported by Ministry of Education (MoE) and other Government agencies. Some colleges and Institutions also use GATE scores for postgraduate admissions without MoE scholarship. Several Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) use GATE scores for recruitment. Direct recruitment to Group-A level posts in central government (e.g., Cabinet Secretariat) is also conducted based on GATE scores. Qualification in GATE is a minimum requirement for various fellowships by government organizations.

Table 1 gives a tentative list of the examination cities (zone-wise) in which GATE 2026 examination is scheduled to be held. A candidate can choose three cities from the list given in Table 1, with the three choices chosen from the same GATE 2026 zone. Because of operational constraints, the GATE Committee reserves the right to add a new city or remove an existing one and allot a city that may not be from any of the choices selected by the candidate.

GATE 2026 will follow the O.M. F. No. P-13013/75/2023-Policy-DD-III dated August 01, 2025 of Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Government of India. A PwD candidate, in the category of blindness, locomotor disability (both arms only) and cerebral palsy, can request for the facility of scribe upon production of valid disability certificate/UDID card. In case of all other specified disabilities, the facility of scribe will be allowed on production of a certificate to the effect that the person concerned has a functional limitation to write, caused by the specified disability. The candidate must exercise this option at the time of filling the application. "Candidate’s own scribe" are discouraged; GATE will arrange scribes. Candidate’s own scribe will be allowed if GATE is unable to arrange. The scribe arranged by GATE will have a qualification of minimum "two academic years below" and maximum "three academic years below" the minimum qualification for GATE 2026. PwD candidates are permitted to use assistive devices and can request for compensatory time (60 minutes) during application, even if not using a scribe but having functional writing limitations.

Candidates must specify ANY ONE of the following valid photo Identity Documents (IDs) during the online application process and enter the document number: Aadhaar-UID (preferable), Aadhaar Virtual ID, Government issued ID, Passport, PAN card, Voter ID or Driving License. On the day of the examination, the candidate must bring the same original ID proof. SC/ST candidates must upload a valid documentary proof. OBC-NCL and EWS candidates are not required to submit/upload any category certificate while filling the online application form. To avail the application fee concession under the Person with Disability (PwD) category, candidates should attach a recently obtained and valid PwD certificate (UDID or UDID enrollment number encouraged). To avail scribe services, dyslexic candidates should attach a valid dyslexic certificate.

Photograph Requirements: Upload a good quality, color passport size photograph (3.5 cm width × 4.5 cm height) with the face covering 60-70% of the photograph. The background must be white and not contain any other objects or persons. The photograph must show the frontal face view looking directly into the camera and must show the forehead, eyes, nose, and chin. Normal spectacles for vision correction are allowed, but glare is not acceptable. Head coverings are not permitted except for religious reasons, but facial features must be clearly shown. Photograph can be in JPEG/JPG format with minimum aspect ratio of 0.66 and maximum aspect ratio of 0.89. Max pixel resolution 530×690, min 200×260. File size must be minimum of 5 kB and a maximum of 600 kB. Photographs not adhering to criteria could lead to rejection. Signature Specifications: Upload an image of the signature in JPEG/JPG format of size with an aspect ratio (height:width) of 1:R, where R can be between 2.75 and 3.75. The area of the signature must cover 70-80% of the image. The signature must be in black or dark blue color ink only. File size must be a minimum of 3 kB and maximum of 300 kB. Max pixel resolution 580 × 180, min 250 × 80. The signature must be signed only by the applicant. Mismatched signatures at the time of examination could lead to disqualification.

GATE 2026 applications will be scrutinised for accuracy of the data, which include verification against the uploaded supporting documents, clarity of the photograph and signature. If everything is found to be in order, the application will be accepted. Otherwise, the defects will be marked and intimated to the candidate by email or SMS for rectification within a stipulated time frame. The status of an application will be updated after scrutiny by the respective zonal GATE offices. Candidates must promptly rectify defects in their application within the stipulated time.

Admit Cards can ONLY be downloaded in January 2026 from the application portal on the official website of GATE 2026. Admit Cards will NOT be sent by post or email. Candidates must bring a printed copy of the Admit Card on A4 paper to the examination for verification along with a valid original photo Identity Document, specified during the filling up of the online application. The Admit Card is valid if and only if the candidate's photograph and signature are clear. Candidates are advised to print the Admit Card on A4 size paper using a laser printer, preferably in color. GATE 2026 Admit Card and Original ID proof are essential for entry into the examination centre.

GATE 2026 examination will be conducted for 30 test papers in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode. Candidates can appear for one or two (as per combinations given in Table 4) of the 30 test papers. A virtual scientific calculator will be available on the computer screen. Calculators, mobile phones, Bluetooth devices, electronic/communication devices, wallets, books, papers, loose sheets, data or handbooks, tables, pen/pencil box/pouch, analog/digital/smart watches are strictly prohibited in the exam halls. A scribble pad will be provided to the candidates for rough work, which must be returned at the end of the examination. All test papers of GATE 2026 will be of the duration of three hours (four hours in case of candidates availing compensatory time), consisting of 65 questions for a total of 100 marks. Candidates will be permitted to occupy their allotted seats 40 minutes before the scheduled start and login 20 minutes before, but not after 30 minutes from the scheduled start. No early departure. Test papers contain Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), Multiple Select Questions (MSQs), and Numerical Answer Type (NAT) questions. MCQs have negative marking (1/3 for 1-mark, 2/3 for 2-mark wrong answers). MSQs and NAT questions have no negative marking and no partial credit. Questions assess abilities such as Recall, Comprehension, Application, Analysis and Synthesis. Every test paper has 65 questions carrying a total of 100 marks, out of which 10 questions (15 marks) will be on General Aptitude (GA). Subject component distribution varies; some papers include 13 marks for Engineering Mathematics.

After the GATE 2026 examinations conclude, candidates’ responses will be available in their account on GOAPS and answer keys will be displayed on the official website. Candidates may submit contests against answer keys (with a fee). GATE 2026 results (score) will be announced, and qualified candidates can download Score Cards from their GOAPS account. For multi-session test papers, raw marks will be converted to normalized marks for computing the GATE score. The GATE 2026 score will be computed using a specific formula. Qualifying marks for the General category = max(25, min(40, Mean + Standard Deviation)). Qualifying marks for OBC-NCL/EWS categories = (9/10) × Qualifying marks for GENERAL category. Qualifying marks for SC/ST/PwD categories = (2/3) × Qualifying marks for GENERAL category. GATE 2026 results will be announced on the official website. Scorecards will be available for free download from March 27, 2026 to May 31, 2026. After this period, until December 31, 2026, a fee of ₹500 per test paper will be levied for obtaining the Scorecard. From January 1, 2027 onward, Score cards will not be issued. GATE 2026 scorecard is valid for THREE years from the date of announcement of the results. No hard copies of the scorecard are issued.

Candidates appearing for GATE 2026 must strictly comply with the following code of conduct: Carry Admit Card and ORIGINAL valid photo-identity proof. A scribble pad will be provided for rough work; candidates MUST write their name and registration number on it, and return it to the invigilator. Carrying mobile phones (even in the switched-off mode), watches of any form, calculators, any electronic/communication devices, wallets, papers, loose sheets, pen/pencil box/pouch, and printed or hand-written textual materials is strictly PROHIBITED. All means and modes of communication among the candidates inside the examination hall are strictly PROHIBITED. If any prohibited acts or items are detected, it will automatically lead to CANCELLATION of candidature. Tampering with the computer and related hardware provided in the examination hall will lead to candidature cancellation and legal action. The GATE Examination Body will not take any responsibility regarding the safety and security of candidates' personal belongings.