JEE Main 2027 Exam City Choice: How to Select
How city preferences work, how to rank your options, and what to do if the city you get is not the one you wanted.
How City Preferences Work
During the JEE Main application, you pick exam cities in order of preference. As of mid-October 2026, NTA has not opened 2027 registration or issued the Information Bulletin, so the details here come from the JEE Main 2026 Information Bulletin (Para 5.1, Choice of Cities). It says candidates can select up to a maximum of four convenient cities from Appendix VI, in order of priority, and that the choice is limited to the State of the Permanent Address or the State of the Present Address, so in some cases only one option may be available. Confirm all of this in the 2027 bulletin.
The preferences are requests, not guarantees. The Bulletin says all efforts will be made to allot a city in your order of choice, but a different city can be allotted for administrative or logistic reasons. If very few candidates come from a city, NTA reserves the right to merge two or more cities, and where too few candidates opt for a regional-language medium in a city, a centre in another city may be allotted irrespective of your choice. Allotment is mostly in one of the preferred cities and involves no human intervention, and NTA's decision is final. The result is published as the city intimation slip, and the specific centre appears later on the admit card. For the release pattern, see our page on the exam city slip release timing.
In the 2026 application procedure, choosing examination cities is part of Step 2 (Application Form), alongside personal details, the paper and educational qualifications; the screen is called "Exam and Centre Details" in the Bulletin's replica of the form. In our complete walkthrough it comes after personal and academic details and before the upload and payment steps.
City, Slip and Admit Card: Who Decides What
| Stage | What you learn | Who decides |
|---|---|---|
| Application form | You give city preferences | You |
| Correction window | Cities were editable in both 2026 windows (NTA not bound by your choices) | You, within limits |
| City intimation slip | Allotted city and exam date | NTA |
| Admit card | Exact centre, address, shift, reporting time | NTA |
The intimation slip is advance information to help travel planning. It is not an entry pass; only the admit card is.
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Tips for Choosing Your Cities
- List the city you can reach most easily first, then the next-nearest by train or road. Do not fill remaining slots at random.
- Prefer cities with several test centres. Large cities usually have more capacity, so your first choice is more likely to hold.
- Avoid choosing a smaller town if you would need a long journey to reach the centre on the morning of the exam.
- Think about the exam date, not just the place. Session 1 may span several days, and a long travel leg before an early shift is tiring. Check the exam dates section below.
- Check the day-before stay options. If you must travel overnight, a city with relatives or an affordable lodge helps.
- Keep all four options genuinely acceptable (the Bulletin allows up to four). The fourth choice is the one most people ignore, and it is the one you may end up with.
- Candidates in remote areas, hill states or islands should check whether their region's cities are in the list and plan travel early.
A reported tentative calendar points to Session 1 in late January 2027, but this is unofficial; see JEE Main 2027 exam dates for the latest status. January means winter travel in much of north India, so allow extra time for fog-related delays on rail and road.
What the 2026 Cycle Did, Step by Step
| Event | Official date or rule |
|---|---|
| Session 1 application | 31 October to 27 November 2025 |
| Session 1 correction (cities editable) | 1 to 2 December 2025, up to 11:50 PM |
| Session 1 city slip | Available from 8 January 2026, for exams on 21 to 24 and 28 to 29 January 2026 |
| Session 2 application | 1 to 25 February 2026; re-opened 12 to 13 March 2026 |
| Session 2 correction (cities editable) | 27 to 28 February 2026 |
| Session 2 city slip | Advance intimation notice of 21 March 2026 |
| Session 2 returning candidates | Could change only paper, medium and exam cities, and pay the fee |
The Session 1 city slip notice repeated that the slip is NOT the admit card but advance information about the city where the centre will be located; the admit card is issued later. In the Session 2 public notice, candidates who had already applied for Session 1 were told they could choose only the paper, medium, exam cities and fee payment. The 21 March 2026 notice is the one that advanced the Session 2 city slip; the exact release date is on the notice itself. For a Session 2 advisory on Kuwait, Dubai and Bahrain, NTA said city changes could be requested at 011-40759000 or jeemain@nta.ac.in.
For 2027, treat the dates above as a pattern only. Our exam dates page, the correction window page and the Information Bulletin page will carry the confirmed schedule.
A Short Decision Guide for Your Four Choices
| Slot | Suggested use |
|---|---|
| Choice 1 | Nearest city by travel time, ideally with several centres |
| Choice 2 | Next-nearest city on a different rail or road line, so one disruption does not hit both |
| Choice 3 | A larger hub within one day of travel |
| Choice 4 | A city where you have a relative or lodging, in case you are sent furthest |
This is our practical suggestion, not an NTA rule. The Bulletin only requires that you rank up to four cities from the permitted states. If your permanent and present addresses are in different states, both states' cities may be offered; if they are the same, the list may be narrower. See the droppers and repeaters page if you are living away from home for coaching, since the present address you enter decides which cities appear.
City Choice and State of Eligibility
The 2026 Bulletin does not link exam cities to the state code of eligibility. It links them to your addresses: the list of cities you see is limited to the State of your Permanent Address or the State of your Present Address. For convenience it advises choosing your own city or neighbouring cities in your State of residence or permanent address, and says NTA will not be responsible for inconvenience caused by incorrect selection. The two fields therefore do different jobs: the exam city is logistics tied to addresses, and the state code is your quota identity at JoSAA. A student whose Class 12 state differs from the address state can still sit in the address state. We explain the quota side on the state code of eligibility page.
Special Situations
Candidates with disability or a scribe. If you need a scribe, extra time or an accessible centre, your city choice should be somewhere that can realistically arrange these. Read the guide to PwD and scribe registration before finalising.
Centres outside India. For foreign candidates too, the 2026 Bulletin bases the choice on the present and permanent address. For Session 1 2026, NTA's notice mentioned 15 cities outside India, and fees at centres outside India were higher (for example Rs 5,000 for a General male candidate in Paper 1, against Rs 1,000 in India). Candidates abroad should see the NRI and foreign candidates page and check the bulletin for the 2027 list.
B.Arch and B.Planning candidates. Paper 2 includes a drawing component and may be held on a different day or mode from Paper 1. Your city choice should work for both. Details are on the Paper 2 registration page.
Common Mistakes With City Choice
- Entering a hostel or coaching address as the present address without realising it decides which state's cities you can pick. Addresses could not be changed in the 2026 correction window, so get this right at the start.
- Filling only one city and ignoring the other slots. The Bulletin allows up to four, and a longer list gives the system more room to place you near home.
- Selecting a city mainly because friends chose it. Allotment is automatic, and a shared choice does not guarantee a shared centre.
- Assuming the exam date or shift can be requested. The 2026 FAQs say the date, shift and slot are allotted randomly by computer, and NTA does not move them if they clash with another exam.
- Treating the city slip as the admit card. The slip only shows the city; centre, address and reporting time are on the admit card.
- Expecting the allotted centre to change after allotment. The 2026 FAQ says it cannot, in any case.
For the full list of form errors that cost candidates time and fees, read registration mistakes to avoid. If you are still choosing your registration timing, see JEE Main 2027 registration.
If Your Preferred City Is Not Allotted
Not receiving your first choice is common and not an error. Follow this order of action.
- Download your city intimation slip as soon as it is released and read the city and date carefully.
- Check whether a correction window is still open. In 2026 NTA let candidates edit cities there, but the 2026 FAQ says the allotted examination city or centre cannot be changed after allotment, in any case.
- If the allotted city is unworkable for a real reason, such as a medical condition, you can write to the helpline, though the Bulletin says NTA's decision on allotment is final. Our helpline and grievance page explains how to approach it.
- Book travel and a place to stay early. Wait for the admit card for the exact centre, and do not pay anyone who promises to change your city.
Related Pages
JEE Main 2027: complete guide
Dates, eligibility, pattern, syllabus, result and counselling in one place.
JEE Main 2027 Exam City Choice – FAQs
Common questions about city preferences and allotment
1How many exam city choices can I give in JEE Main?
2Will I definitely get my first-choice city?
3Can I change my exam city after submitting the form?
4Does my state code of eligibility limit which cities I can choose?
5What if no city of my choice is allotted?
6Is the exam city the same as the exam centre?
7Does exam city choice affect my score or rank?
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Disclaimer
As of mid-October 2026, JEE Main 2027 registration has not opened. City rules here are taken from the 2026 Information Bulletin. Confirm the number of choices, the city list and correction options at jeemain.nta.nic.in.