GATE 2026 Registration at gate2026.iitg.ac.in: The Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2026 online registration process is set to begin on August 28, 2025. Candidates who are planning to pursue postgraduate Master’s and direct Doctoral programs in India, seeking recruitment opportunities in Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), or applying to certain international universities, can register for the examination at the official portal at gate2026.iitg.ac.in.
In post-pandemic years, counselling rooms at IITs are busier than ever
GATE 2026 Registration: Important dates
Candidates must carefully take note of the timeline provided by the exam authorities. The entire process, from registration to results, has been scheduled in advance–
| Activity | Day | Date |
| Opening Date of GATE Online Application Processing System (GOAPS) | Thursday | August 28, 2025 |
| Closing Date of REGULAR online registration/application process (Without Late Fee) | Sunday | September 28, 2025 |
| Closing Date of EXTENDED online registration/application process (With Late Fee) | Thursday | October 09, 2025 |
| GATE 2026 Examinations | Saturdays and Sundays | February 7, 8, 14 and 15, 2026 |
| Announcement of results | Thursday | March 19, 2026 |
GATE 2026 Registration: What’s new?
Every year, certain changes are introduced to improve the registration and examination process. For GATE 2026, the major highlights include:
–Updated two-paper combinations for candidates opting for dual subjects.
–Minor modifications in the eligibility criteria clarifications for candidates from international universities.
GATE 2026 Registration: Eligibility criteria
Eligibility remains broad to ensure participation from students across academic streams.
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General criteria: Candidates currently studying in the 3rd year or higher of any undergraduate degree program or those who have completed any government-approved degree in Engineering/Technology/Architecture/Science/Commerce/Arts/Humanities are eligible.
Professional society exams: Candidates holding certifications from professional societies must ensure that these are recognised by MoE/AICTE/UGC/UPSC as equivalent to a standard undergraduate program (BE/BTech/BArch, etc).
GATE 2026 previous year questions, sample paper for XE-I released
Foreign degree holders: Students who have completed or are pursuing a Bachelor’s degree (minimum three years) in relevant disciplines from universities outside India are also eligible.
GATE 2026 Registration: Documents
According to the official website of GATE 2026 the following list of documents are required:
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–Good quality image of candidate’s photograph (as per specifications)
–Good quality image of candidate’s signature
–Scanned copy of valid Photo ID (same ID must be presented at the exam centre)
–Category certificate (SC/ST), if applicable
–PwD/UDID certificate, if applicable
–Dyslexic certificate, if applicable
–Any other relevant Annexures, if applicable
GATE 2026 Registration: List of examination cities
GATE 2026 will be conducted across multiple centres, grouped under zonal coordinating institutes. The tentative distribution is as follows:
–IISc Bengaluru Zone
–IIT Bombay Zone
–IIT Delhi Zone
–IIT Guwahati Zone
–IIT Kanpur Zone
–IIT Kharagpur Zone
–IIT Madras Zone
–IIT Roorkee Zone
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Candidates can select three cities for examination. All choices must fall under the same GATE 2026 zone. The organising institute reserves the right to add or remove exam cities and, if required, allot a city not chosen by the candidate. Candidates can find the complete list of cities on the official website.
GATE 2026: IIT Guwahati releases exam pattern, announces paper-wise syllabus
GATE 2026 Registration: Subject paper combinations
Candidates may appear in one or two papers (subject to approved combinations). The primary paper must be selected first, followed by the second paper from the allowed combinations.
Some of the approved combinations are as follows:
| Code of the First Paper | Code of the Second Paper | Code of the First Paper | Code of the Second Paper |
| AE | CE, ME, XE | GG | GE |
| AG | CE | IN | BM, EC, EE, ME |
| AR | CE, GE | MA | CS, DA, PH, ST |
| BM | BT, IN | ME | AE, DA, IN, NM, PI, XE |
Check complete list of GATE 2026 Approved Subject Combinations
According to the notification, candidates are required to take into account that the exam centre for the second paper may differ from the first paper (within the same city) due to scheduling constraints.
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GATE 2026 Registration at gate2026.iitg.ac.in: Examination schedule
The exam will be conducted across four days, with two sessions per day. Each session will last three hours. On February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026, the Forenoon session will be held from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm, while the Afternoon session will be conducted from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm.
