JEE Main 2026: NTA to use CBSE registration numbers to avoid exam date clash, postponement

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has asked all schools to share the Class 11 registration number of students with the National Testing Agency (NTA) to avoid a clash between JEE Main and CBSE Board exam dates 2026.

The final CBSE Class 10 and 12 board exam date sheets for 2026 were issued on October 30. As per the CBSE Board exam dates 2026, Class 12 exams will be conducted from February 17 to April 9. The written exams will be conducted from 10.30 am to 1.30 pm, while some papers will be held from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm.

Along with the exam date announcement, the board issued several instructions for students and schools for the smooth conduct of exams. The board had sent multiple reminders to CBSE-affiliated schools to submit error-free data in the List of Candidates (LOC) appearing for the Class 10 and 12 board exams.

"All schools have submitted their LOC and CBSE now has final data of subject combinations offered by the students," the board said, adding that the date sheet was issued 110 days before the start of exams.

Why JEE Main and Class 12 exams matter

The Joint Entrance Examination - Main (JEE Mains 2026) is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) to determine the eligibility of Class 12 students for admission to BE, BTech courses.

BTech courses in IITs continue to be the top choices for engineering aspirants. Around 13 lakh students apply for JEE Mains every year, the qualifying exam for JEE Advanced which is the gateway for IIT admission.

Qualifying among the top 20 percentile of students in their respective boards may also increase a student’s chance of getting admission to IITs, making both Class 12 board exam and JEE important for engineering aspirants.

Efforts to avoid clash between CBSE and JEE Mains

Recently, the NTA announced the JEE Mains exam dates 2026 for both January session 1 and April session 2 exams. The JEE Main session 1 exam will be conducted from January 21 to 30 and session 2 exams will be held between April 1 and 10.

As per the CBSE board exam time table 2026, the final exam for Class 12 will be held on April 9; a day before the JEE Mains session 2 last exam date. For several years, the CBSE board exam dates and JEE Mains have been clashing, forcing the central school board and NTA to change the schedule multiple times.

Such last-minute postponement and overlapping of exam dates have created inconvenience and put pressure on students as performing in both the exams determines their future in education.

Also read CBSE Board Exam 2026: Two exams for Class 10 ‘exhausting’ for teachers, cause more anxiety for students

NTA to use Class 11 data for scheduling JEE

To avoid a repeat of such a situation, “sufficient gap has been given between two subjects while preparing the 2026 date sheet,” the board said.

“The date of conduct of entrance examinations meant for the students of Class XII have been taken into consideration and efforts have been made to complete the examinations much before the entrance examinations. This will help the students in better time management for both the Board and entrance examinations,” the CBSE Board said.

To ensure that the JEE Main and CBSE examinations of the students do not coincide, NTA will require the Registration number of the student of Class XI to be filled in the JEE (Main) application. Accordingly, all the schools are requested to provide the registration number of Class XI to their students applying for JEE(Main).

The CBSE issues a unique registration number for candidates enrolling in Class 11 which remains the same throughout the senior secondary level. This will allow NTA to schedule the JEE Mains exam date 2026 in such a way that they do not overlap with CBSE Class 12 board exam 2026.