On this page
The JEE Main 2027 Session 1 form is open from 24 October to 22 November 2026, and the exam-city choice inside it decides where you travel in late January (NTA public notice, 24 October 2026). NTA plans to announce cities on 30 December 2026 and hold the exam on 20 to 24 and 28 January 2027.
How many exam cities can you choose in JEE Main and NEET?
For JEE Main 2027, the NTA information bulletin asks you to pick four cities, in order of preference, from its list. Choices are limited to the state of your permanent or present address; if those states have fewer than four exam cities, you may be offered cities in other states, subject to availability.
For NEET-UG 2026, the NEET-UG 2026 information bulletin asked for three cities, again from the state of your permanent or present address. Check the NEET-UG 2027 bulletin when it comes out.
Both bulletins warn that NTA tries to give you one of your choices but can allot a different city for administrative or logistical reasons, and may merge cities with very few candidates. The NEET-UG bulletin adds that no travel allowance is paid and that you appear at your own risk and expense.
How should you rank your exam cities?
Rank by when you can arrive, working backwards from the gate. For a JEE Main 2027 morning shift, entry and identity checks run from 7:00 to 8:30 a.m., the paper starts at 9:00, gates close 30 minutes before the start, and NTA advises reaching the centre two hours early (JEE Main 2027 bulletin, chapters 7 and 8). For the 3 May NEET-UG 2026 paper, the bulletin set reporting at 11:00 a.m. and let nobody in after 1:30 p.m. (NEET-UG 2026 bulletin, chapter 13).
Score each city on four questions:
How long is it door to door, including the auto from the station?
Can you get there that morning with time to spare, or will you need to sleep there the night before?
Where would you stay: a relative, a hostel, or a hotel you can cancel?
If the first train or bus is cancelled, is there a second way in?
Here is a worked example. Say you live in a district town. City A is your own town, with centres 25 minutes away. City B is the state capital, 3 hours by train, and your aunt lives there. City C is 90 minutes away, served by a single 5 a.m. bus. City D is 5 hours away and you know nobody there.
For a 7:00 a.m. entry, A needs nothing special. B needs a night at your aunt's. C looks close, but one missed bus ends your exam. D needs a hotel and a long day of travel. Your order is A, B, C, D: B beats C because it has a backup and C does not.
Can you change your exam city after you submit the form?
Only in the correction window. For JEE Main 2027 Session 1, corrections run from 27 to 29 November 2026 (NTA public notice). The bulletin says details such as exam cities are treated as final once you submit, that only the fields NTA enables can be edited in that window, and that change requests after it closes are not considered. Check your four cities before you pay.
What should you do if NTA allots a city you did not choose?
You cannot count on changing it: the JEE Main bulletin says NTA's decision on the city or centre is final, and the NEET-UG bulletin says no request for a change of centre is entertained. Plan instead. Between the 30 December city announcement and the first exam day on 20 January there are 21 days (NTA public notice).
Download the city slip the day it comes out. It is not an admit card, as NTA's city intimation notice for NEET-UG 2026 said plainly.
Book travel and a stay you can change, because the JEE Main bulletin says your exact date, shift and city appear on the admit card, due on 13 January 2027.
If the trip is long, arrive the day before and find the centre that evening. The NEET-UG 2026 bulletin told parents it would be appropriate to visit the centre a day before.
If the slip will not download or a detail looks wrong, call the NTA helpline on 011-40759000 or 011-69227700.
Away from home, protect your sleep: read why sleep before an exam beats an all-nighter. On the journey, JEE candidates can review the JEE Main computer-based test screen, and NEET candidates can reread the OMR sheet mistakes to avoid on NEET exam day.
If travel eats into your last week, Fermi's AI tutor can work out what you already know and build a plan for the session, so a short evening in a guest room still has a clear next step.
Open the form, write each city's door-to-door time beside it, and submit well before 22 November.
