The Consortium of NLUs has published the CLAT 2026 first merit list on January 7, 2026. The CLAT 2026 first merit list comprises the names of candidates and the allotted NLUs to them. As the CLAT 2026 1st merit list is released, the further admission process, like exercising options, fee payment etc, has begun. The CLAT 2026 cutoff for round 1 is higher for top NLUs. Candidates targeting NLSIU Bengaluru must have a rank of around 101 in the general category. Similarly, for other top NLUs like NALSAR Hyderabad, WBNUJS Kolkata, and NLU Jodhpur, candidates must have a rank somewhere under 300-400. In this article, we will discuss the CLAT 2026 expected cutoff for round 1 of counselling.
Event | Date |
Counselling registration begins | December 16, 2025 |
Last date for counselling registration & fee payment | December 27, 2025 |
First allotment list released | January 07, 2026 |
Confirmation fee payment & admission (Round 1) | January 07, 2026 – January 15, 2026 |
Second allotment list released | January 22, 2026 |
Confirmation fee payment & admission (Round 2) | January 22, 2026 – January 29, 2026 |
Third allotment list released | February 05, 2026 |
Confirmation fee payment & admission (Round 3) | February 05, 2026 – February 12, 2026 |
Last date to pay university fee (Rounds 1–3 freeze candidates) | April 24, 2026 |
Fourth allotment list released | May 02, 2026 |
Confirmation fee payment & admission (Round 4) | May 02, 2026 – May 08, 2026 |
Fifth and final allotment list released | May 15, 2026 |
Confirmation fee payment & admission (Final round) | May 15, 2026 – May 20, 2026 |
Last date to pay university fee (Rounds 4 & 5 freeze candidates) | May 30, 2026 |
CLAT 2026 Round 1 Cut-Off
NLU / Program | General | OBC | EWS | SC | ST |
NLSIU Bengaluru | 101 | 1018 | 702 | 3072 | 5000 |
NALSAR Hyderabad | 148 | 915 | 630 | 3259 | 5200 |
NLIU Bhopal (BA LLB Hons) | 432 | 1714 | 1315 | 5407 | 9461 |
NLIU Bhopal (BSc LLB Hons Cyber Security) | 684 | 2326 | 2056 | 7996 | 10429 |
WBNUJS Kolkata (BA LLB Hons) | 284 | - | - | 3833 | 6010 |
WBNUJS Kolkata (BSc LLB Hons) | 550 | - | - | 6186 | 9615 |
NLU Jodhpur (BA LLB Hons) | 310 | 1273 | 868 | 4042 | 5907 |
NLU Jodhpur (BBA LLB Hons) | 386 | 1427 | 970 | 4985 | 8113 |
HNLU Raipur | 736 | 1994 | - | 6464 | 11239 |
GNLU Gandhinagar | 376 | 1834 | 1167 | 5340 | 7913 |
GNLU Silvassa | 1259 | 2541 | 1836 | 9215 | 14278 |
RMLNLU Lucknow | 747 | - | - | - | - |
RGNUL Punjab | 1059 | - | - | 9118 | 13152 |
CNLU Patna (BA LLB Hons) | 1141 | - | - | - | - |
CNLU Patna (BBA LLB Hons) | 1287 | - | - | - | - |
NUALS Kochi | 1076 | - | - | - | - |
NLUO Cuttack (BA LLB) | 800 | - | - | 7833 | 14196 |
NLUO Cuttack (BBA LLB) | 828 | - | - | 9202 | 17986 |
NUSRL Ranchi (BA LLB Hons) | 1297 | 2585 | 2000 | 9826 | 15765 |
NUSRL Ranchi (BBA LLB Hons) | 1356 | 2653 | 2189 | 10338 | 17445 |
NLUJA Assam | 1764 | 3527 | 2597 | 11539 | 17399 |
DSNLU Visakhapatnam | 1281 | 2508 | 2217 | 10433 | 15199 |
TNNLU Tiruchirappalli (BA LLB Hons) | 1370 | 2713 | - | 11222 | - |
TNNLU Tiruchirappalli (BCom LLB Hons) | 1517 | 3419 | - | 11652 | 19158 |
MNLU Mumbai | 481 | - | - | - | - |
MNLU Nagpur (BA LLB Hons) | 1225 | 12425 | 9418 | 18014 | 52882 |
MNLU Nagpur (BBA LLB Hons) | 1307 | 13711 | 10620 | 21508 | 66593 |
MNLU Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (BA LLB Hons) | 1518 | 14588 | 13387 | 20072 | 60165 |
MNLU Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (BBA LLB Hons) | 1770 | 17523 | 15627 | 23626 | 55620 |
HPNLU Shimla (BA LLB Hons) | 1824 | - | 2692 | 10935 | 19833 |
HPNLU Shimla (BBA LLB Hons) | 1871 | - | 2937 | 12188 | 21090 |
DNLU Jabalpur | 1740 | 3056 | 2575 | 11792 | 21749 |
NLU Sonepat (DBRANLU) | 1665 | 3409 | 2594 | 11562 | 20080 |
NLUT Agartala | 2015 | - | - | - | - |
RPNLUP Prayagraj | 1930 | - | - | - | - |
IIULER Goa (BA LLB Hons) | 2127 | 4093 | 3148 | 13475 | 22702 |
IIULER Goa (BBA LLB Hons) | 2236 | 4289 | 3236 | 13737 | 23793 |
NLU Name | General Category Closing Ranks | OBC Category Closing Ranks | SC Category Closing Ranks | ST Category Closing Ranks | EWS Category Closing Ranks |
NLSIU Bengaluru | 100 | 1302 | 2881 | 3396 | 694 |
NALSAR Hyderabad | 150 | 1219 | 3177 | 3621 | 513 |
WBNUJS Kolkata BA LLB | 285 | 10297 (OBC-A-WB) | 3952 | 6343 | - |
WBNUJS BSc LLB | 652 | 13417 (OBC-A-WB) | 6584 | 9739 | - |
NLIU Bhopal BA LLB | 458 | 1757 | 5763 | 8243 | 1261 |
NLIU Bhopa; BSc. LLB | 821 | 2453 | 7200 | 11901 | 1890 |
NLU Jodhpur | 357 | 1699 | 4659 | 5232 | 910 |
HNLU Raipur | 765 | 2385 | 7350 | 9973 | - |
GNLU Gandhinagar | 402 | 2138 | 5796 | 7639 | 1118 |
GNLU Silvassa | 1252 | 3356 | 8676 | 12880 | 1921 |
RLMNLU Lucknow | 721 | 3354 (OBC-UP) | 11064 (SC-UP) | 19305 (ST-UP) | 1370 (EWS-UP) |
RGNUL Patiala | 1146 | - | 8126 | 11761 | - |
CNLU Patna BA LLB | 1278 | 3083 (BC-Bihar) | 11577 (SC-Bihar) | 16829 (ST-Bihar) | 1922 (EWS-Bihar) |
CNLU Patna BA LLB | 1424 | 3905 (BC-Bihar) | 15604 (SC-Bihar) | 27043 (ST-Bihar) | 3905 (EWS-Bihar) |
NUALS Kochi | 1175 | - | 15029 (SC-Kerala) | 32306 (ST-Kerala) | 22632 (EWS-Kerala) |
NLU Odissa BA LLB | 943 | - | 6557 | 11889 | - |
NLU Odissa BBA LLB | 1034 | - | 7711 | 12684 | - |
NUSRL Ranchi BA LLB | 1476 | 3025 | 9324 | 13373 | 1911 |
NUSRL Ranchi BBA LLB | 1504 | 3634 | 9515 | 13619 | 2088 |
NLUJ Assam | 1643 | 32829 (OBC-Assam) | 25640 (SC-Assam) | 26581 (STP-Assam) | 18701 (EWS-Assam) |
DSNLU Visakhapatnam | 1489 | 3612 | 9240 | 13834 | 1872 |
TNNLU Tiruchirappalli BA LLB | 1516 | 3090 | 9564 | 14211 | - |
TNNLU Tiruchirappalli BA LLB | 1642 | 4096 | 11547 | - | - |
MNLU Mumbai | 536 | 7008 (OBC-Maharashtra) | 12388 (SC-Maharashtra) | 13124 (ST-Maharashtra) | 7523 (EWS-Maharashtra) |
MNLU Nagpur BA LLB | 1353 | 10946 (OBC-Maharashtra) | 19874 (SC-Maharashtra) | 43425 (ST-Maharashtra) | 13040 (EWS-Maharashtra) |
MNLU Nagpur BBA LLB | 1375 | 14912 (OBC-Maharashtra) | 23556 (SC-Maharashtra) | 51639 (ST-Maharashtra) | 16868 (EWS-Maharashtra) |
MNLU Aurangabad BA LLB | 1580 | 15068 (OBC-Maharashtra) | 21432 (SC-Maharashtra) | 55196 (ST-Maharashtra) | 18424 (EWS-Maharashtra) |
MNLU Aurangabad BBA LLB | 1850 | 15631 (OBC-Maharashtra) | 25614 (SC-Maharashtra) | 56594 (ST-Maharashtra) | 20039 (EWS-Maharashtra) |
HPNLU Shimla BA LLB | 1951 | - | 11003 | 15816 | - |
HPNLU Shimla BBA LLB | 1994 | - | 12439 | 18083 | - |
MPDNLU Jabalpur | 1762 | 3926 | 11784 | 18330 | 2321 |
DBRANLU Sonepat | 1621 | 3856 | 11377 | 16128 | 2292 |
NLUT Agartala | 2098 | - | 51262 (SC-Tripura) | 57030 (ST-Tripura) | - |
RPNLU Prayagraj | 1987 | 4773 (OBC-UP) | 13293 (SC-UP) | - | 2636 (EWS-UP) |
IIURL Goa BA LLB | 2096 | 4411 | 12539 | 19667 | 2817 |
IIURL Goa BBA LLB | 2150 | 4866 | 12730 | 19819 | 2940 |
Once the CLAT 2026 first seat allotment has been published, candidates will have three options to exercise - Freeze, Float and Exit. All these options shall be exercised from the candidate portal. The detailed uses and functions of all three options have been given in the table below:
Option | What It Means | When to Choose It | Impact on Seat Allotment |
Freeze | The candidate accepts the allotted NLU and course and does not wish to participate in further counselling rounds. | When you are fully satisfied with the allotted NLU and course. | Seat is confirmed and the candidate is not considered for further rounds. |
Float | The candidate accepts the current seat but wishes to be considered for a higher-preferred NLU or course in the next round. | When you are satisfied with the seat but want a possible upgrade. | Current seat is retained and the candidate is considered only for higher preferences. |
Exit | The candidate withdraws completely from the CLAT counselling process. | When you do not want to accept the allotted seat or continue counselling. | Seat is forfeited and the candidate is removed from all further rounds. |
The Consortium of NLUs has published the CLAT 2026 1st seat allotment in online mode on January 7, 2025. Candidates can access the CLAT 2026 NLU wise seat allotment list for round 1 on the official website - consortiumofnlus.ac.in. Additionally, candidates can access the seat allotment order through their candidate login portal. Candidates can exercise the Freeze, Float and Exit options from their candidate login only.
On Question asked by student community
Yes, you can switch from one college to another to a CLAT college through the entrance test. However, it is important to note that you will have to start from year 1 rather than transferring directly into the second or third year. Some of the top
CLAT participating colleges
here.
Here you can check out the top
NLUs offering admission into 3-year LLB
with and without CLAT exam:
1. NLSIU Bengaluru for LLB programme through NLSAT.
2. NLU Odisha and NLU Visakhapatnam offer admission into the 3-year LLB course through their own admission process.
3. CNLU Patna
Yes, for CLAT preparation, building a reading habit daily is a good approach. You can read the daily newspapers like The Hindu and The Indian Express. While going for Animal Farm by George Orwell, Word power Made Easy by Norma Lewis for novel comprehension.
Yes, you can elevate your law entrance journey with Careers360’s CLAT mock test PDF free download link given below:
https://law.careers360.com/articles/clat-mock-test
The CLAT 2027 application form will open in the first week of August 2026. While the exam will be held on the first or second Sunday of December 2026.
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