New Delhi: The Common Admission Test (CAT) 2026, the national-level entrance examination conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), has officially begun its registration process on August 3. As per the important dates of CAT 2026, the exam will be held on Sunday, November 29, 2026, in three computer-based test (CBT) sessions across approximately 170 test cities. Interested candidates can submit their CAT application form online through the official website, iimcat.ac.in, from August 3 to September 15, 2026. CAT 2026 will be conducted by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Indore. Prof. Aditya Billore of IIM Indore has been appointed as the Convener for CAT 2026.
Apart from the IIMs, CAT scores are accepted by several leading B-schools including FMS Delhi, SPJIMR Mumbai, MDI Gurgaon, IITs offering MBA programmes, IMI New Delhi, TAPMI, GLIM, IRMA and many other institutes. Since CAT 2026 will be conducted in three sessions, scores will be normalized to ensure fairness across different slots before the final percentile is calculated.
CAT 2026 Eligibility Criteria
Candidates must satisfy any one of the following eligibility conditions:
- Hold a Bachelor’s degree with at least 50% marks (General, EWS and NC-OBC) and 45% marks (SC, ST and PwBD)
- Candidates in the final year of graduation or those awaiting their final results are also eligible to apply.
- Candidates possessing professional qualifications such as CA, CS, CMA (ICWA), Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India (FIAI)
Candidates whose universities award CGPA instead of percentage must use the university-approved conversion formula. If no conversion formula exists, CAT will calculate the percentage by dividing the obtained CGPA by the maximum CGPA and multiplying it by 100.
Check complete eligibility criteria of CAT 2026
CAT 2026 Registration Fee
The fee is payable only once regardless of the number of IIMs a candidate wishes to apply for. It is non-refundable.
CAT 2026 Application Form: Step-by-Step Process
In order to apply for the exam, candidates need to first register on the CAT 2026 website. Follow the given steps to fill the application form of CAT 2026 after registration.
- Log in and complete the application form or click here
- Enter personal, academic, and work experience details (if applicable)
- Upload the required documents, photograph, and signature
- Select up to five preferred test cities
- Pay the applicable registration fee
- Submit the form and download the confirmation page for future reference
CAT 2026 Exam Pattern
CAT 2026 will be conducted as a Computer-Based Test (CBT) with a total duration of 120 minutes. There has been no specific change in exam pattern this year. Each section will have a fixed time limit of 40 minutes, and candidates will not be allowed to switch between sections during the examination.
The paper consists of three sections:
CAT 2026 Admit Card
Registered candidates will be able to download the admit card of CAT 2026 on November 4, 2026. It will remain available for download until the exam day. Candidates must carry a printed CAT admit card 2026 along with a valid photo ID to the examination centre as it will contain relevant details like candidate’s details, roll number, photograph, exam date, exam session, reporting time, test center details and exam day instructions.
CAT 2026 Result and Scorecard
The CAT result 2026 is expected to be announced in the first week of January 2027. Candidates can download their scorecards from the official CAT website. Individual score notifications may also be sent through SMS. CAT 2026 score will be valid till December 31, 2027.
Qualifying CAT is only the first stage of admission. Each participating IIM follows its own selection process, which may include:
- CAT score
- Academic performance
- Work experience
- Written Ability Test (WAT) or Essay Writing (where applicable)
- Personal Interview (PI)
- Diversity and other institutional criteria
Although the application form of CAT 2026 can be filled till September 15, candidates are advised to fill the form to avoid last-minute technical issues and begin their preparation for one of India’s most competitive management entrance examinations. For more details related to CAT 2026, candidates can visit iimcat.ac.in or contact helpdesk at 1800 210 0175
