JEE Main 2027 Registration Mistakes to Avoid

1. Starting without documents ready

Fix: Gather the Class 10 certificate as a PDF, Class 12 details, category certificate details, a recent photo, signature and ID first. Use our documents checklist and the step-by-step form guide.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Important Information and Dates at a Glance, Para 3 (Application Procedure), Step 2: live photograph plus scanned photograph (JPG/JPEG, 10 to 200 kb), signature (JPG/JPEG, 10 to 100 kb), Class 10 certificate or marksheet (PDF, 50 to 300 kb), and PwD/PwBD certificate where applicable. Category certificate is not uploaded; you enter its number, date of issue and issuing authority (2026 FAQ no. 25).

2. Using an email or mobile number you do not control

Fix: Use a personal email and a phone you will keep through the results. Parents' or guardians' numbers are fine only if the family will share the OTPs and notices.

Official basis: 2026 Session 1 and Session 2 public notices (Important Instructions, point iv): the email and mobile number must be the candidate's own or the parents'/guardians', because all communication goes only to them. The 2026 correction windows did not allow changing either (Annexure 1).

3. Misreading eligibility and the year of passing

Fix: Check the year in which your Class 12 result was first declared 'pass' against the years the bulletin allows. An improvement attempt does not reset it. See the eligibility page and the droppers guide.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 3.3 (Year of Appearance in Qualifying Examination): Class XII passed in 2024 or 2025, or appearing in 2026, was eligible; passing in 2023 or earlier was not. Passing year means the year the result was first declared 'pass', and an improvement attempt is not treated as the first attempt. Para 3.1: no age limit.

4. Relying on social media for the rules

Fix: Read the Information Bulletin and the public notices on jeemain.nta.nic.in. Photo, signature and document specifications are printed there, and the 2026 notices said candidates not complying with the instructions in the bulletin and on the NTA website may be summarily disqualified.

Official basis: 2026 Session 1 public notice dated 31 October 2025, Important Instructions, point iii. The bulletin's Para 5.9 also says queries already answered in the bulletin are not entertained.

5. Not knowing your category or state code beforehand

Fix: Decide the category by the certificate you actually hold, and the state code by the rules in the bulletin. Our category and state-code pages explain both.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 3.4 (State of Eligibility): the state code is the State from which you first passed Class XII or equivalent, not your native place or residence; if you passed in one State and took improvement in another, the first State counts. Chapter 4 (Reservations): the NTA does not guarantee any change of category or sub-category after submission, and none after the NTA Score is declared.

6. Typing details differently from the certificate

Fix: Copy name, parents' names and date of birth exactly as printed on the Class 10 certificate. No nicknames, initials expanded or reordered. If your Aadhaar is used, update it first.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 5.4 instruction 10 lists name, parents' names, gender and date of birth among details that must be correct, and says change requests at any stage are not considered. NTA's 29 September 2025 advisory asked candidates to update Aadhaar with the name and date of birth as per the Class 10 certificate, and the 2026 FAQ no. 16 says a Class 10 versus Aadhaar name difference does not affect candidature. In the correction windows only one of candidate, father's or mother's name could be changed.

7. Choosing the wrong category

Fix: OBC-NCL and EWS depend on a valid certificate in the format the Government of India prescribes. If you do not hold one, do not claim it. If your application for the certificate is pending, enter its acknowledgement number and date. See the category certificate guide.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Chapter 4 (Reservations): OBC must be on the central list, creamy-layer candidates are treated as General, and GEN-EWS follows the Government of India OM of 17 January 2019. 2026 FAQ no. 25: if the certificate is not yet available, enter the acknowledgement number, date of application and issuing authority and produce the certificate at document verification during admission.

8. Uploading photo or signature that fails the specification

Fix: Check the file format and size limits in the bulletin, use a recent clear colour photo against a light background, and upload your own signature. Never upload someone else's image. See the photo and signature page.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 3 Step 2 and Notes 1 to 4: photograph in colour with 80% of the face including ears visible, white background, no mask, JPG/JPEG 10 to 200 kb; signature JPG/JPEG 10 to 100 kb. Live photograph is captured during the form. Uploading someone else's photograph or signature is treated as Unfair Means, and the photograph could not be changed in the 2026 correction windows.

9. Picking exam cities carelessly

Fix: Choose up to the permitted number of cities from the states in your present and permanent address, in the preference order you want, because allotment is not always the first choice and cannot be changed later.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 5.1 (Choice of Cities): up to four cities, limited to the State of present or permanent address; NTA may allot a different city, its decision is final and NTA is not responsible for inconvenience caused by incorrect selection. FAQ no. 32 and Para 5.4 note 1: the allotted centre and shift on the admit card are not changed.

10. Selecting the wrong paper

Fix: B.E./B.Tech is Paper 1; B.Arch is Paper 2A and B.Planning is Paper 2B. Opting for the wrong or incomplete combination changes the fee and the exam. Also lock the medium of the question paper carefully.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Important Information and Dates at a Glance, Para 2 (fee table by paper combination) and Para 2.2 note 2: the language option cannot be changed later and you must choose the same medium in the exam. Paper and medium could be edited in the 2026 correction window only with any additional fee, which was not reimbursed.

11. Paying at the last minute

Fix: Pay early, from a bank account with enough limit. Keep the transaction ID, and see the payment failure guide if money is debited without confirmation.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 2 and Step 3 (Fee Payment) and Appendix I: payment only online by net banking, credit or debit card or UPI, with processing charges and GST extra; the form is complete only after successful payment. In 2026 the Session 1 form closed 27 November 2025 at 09:00 P.M. with fee payment up to 11:50 P.M. If no Confirmation Page is generated the transaction is cancelled and you must pay again; duplicate payments are reconciled after the final result.

12. Not downloading the confirmation page

Fix: Save the PDF and screenshots of the final page and application number in two places. You need them for login, correction and queries. You do not need to post or email the page to NTA.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Step 3: the Confirmation Page can be printed only after successful payment, and the application number printed on it must be quoted in all correspondence. FAQ no. 26: do not send any document or the Confirmation Page to NTA by post, fax, WhatsApp, email or by hand. FAQ no. 42: copies go to the registered email addresses of the candidate and parents.

13. Ignoring the correction window

Fix: Put the dates in your calendar the day NTA announces them. Review every field with a parent, not just the ones you suspect, and submit all changes in one go.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Dates at a Glance: correction only in certain fields, in a window notified later. 2026 notices of 20 November 2025 and 21 February 2026: a one-time facility, form frozen after submission, additional fee not reimbursed, no correction after the window under any circumstances.

14. Losing the application number or password

Fix: Record both safely. If lost, use the recovery steps rather than creating a second application.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Step 1 and the Important Instruction about PASSWORD: the application number is used for both sessions; the password must be 8 to 13 characters with an upper case letter, a lower case letter, a number and a special character; reset is possible by security question, SMS verification code to the registered mobile, or a reset link to the registered email. Never share the password: NTA and NIC are not responsible for its misuse.

15. Not checking emails and the portal after the deadline

Fix: City slips, admit cards and notices follow. Check the registered inbox including spam, and the official site, every few days.

Official basis: 2026 bulletin, Para 5.2 note 8: check your registered email regularly and reply to any clarification NTA seeks during the entire cycle; admit cards are not sent by post and must be downloaded. In 2026 NTA also emailed candidates whose live photo did not match their identity record (public notice of 2 January 2026).