01 Aug, 2025 — CLAT 2026 registration is now live at consortiumofnlus.ac.in; the final date to apply is October 31, 2025. Check live updates for the latest information.
CLAT 2026 (Common Law Admission Test) is the national law entrance exam administered by the Consortium of National Law Universities (NLUs). It grants admission to undergraduate (5-year LL.B.) and postgraduate (1-year LL.M.) programs across 24 NLUs in India. The test is scheduled for December 7, 2025 (2:00 PM – 4:00 PM) and will be conducted in offline (pen-and-paper) mode.
Download the CLAT 2026 exam notification (PDF)
The CLAT pattern for 2026 features 120 multiple-choice questions spanning English Language, Current Affairs & GK, Legal Reasoning, Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Techniques. Each correct answer is worth 1 mark and each incorrect response carries a -0.25 penalty. CLAT remains very competitive with an estimated acceptance rate around 3%, serving as a key route into India’s top law schools, leading legal careers, and public-sector recruitment.
CLAT 2026 registration status – Open
Related reads
CLAT is held annually by the Consortium of NLUs to admit students into integrated five-year LLB and one-year LLM programs. Scores from CLAT are used by premier institutions such as NLU Bengaluru, NALSAR Hyderabad, West Bengal NLU, NLU Jodhpur, NLU Bhopal, and others for selection.
Several affiliated universities and organizations also use CLAT scores for admissions and recruitment. Year-on-year trends show growing interest in law courses, reflected in rising candidate numbers.
Want a concise preparation plan for CLAT 2026? Watch the video by Keshav Malpani for a focused four-month strategy to prepare for CLAT and AILET 2026.
Further reading
3.1 CLAT 2026 — Types of questions covered in the syllabus
4.1 Trends in CLAT question patterns
4.2 Previous years’ CLAT question papers
5.1 Educational qualifications required for CLAT 2026
5.2 Documents needed for CLAT 2026 application
Key summary: CLAT 2026 is set for December 7, 2025. Registration is open until October 31, 2025. This article covers everything you need to know to prepare for and take CLAT 2026.
The official CLAT 2026 dates have been announced. Candidates can find the tentative schedule and important deadlines in the table below for quick reference.
If you are targeting CLAT 2026, begin your preparation early. Familiarity with the CLAT exam pattern and up-to-date knowledge in current affairs, legal topics, politics, and economics is essential.
Knowing the CLAT syllabus for 2026 is the first step. Master the syllabus thoroughly to maximize your chances of scoring well.
Further reading
Below is a breakdown of question types and topic areas drawn from the CLAT syllabus. Review the detailed CLAT syllabus to strengthen your preparation and improve scores.
The table below summarizes CLAT 2026 sections, their approximate weightage, and marks distribution based on the current pattern:
Additional resources
Analysis of the previous five years of CLAT papers reveals trends and recurring themes. The table highlights question counts and weightage per section, with commonly tested topics noted for your reference.
Try CLAT mock tests to get a better feel for question patterns and timing.
Reviewing previous year papers is essential. We’ve included past exam papers below so you can practice different question types and build familiarity.
Find last year’s CLAT question paper here.
Amitendra Kumar, Product Head at CL-LST, noted that last year’s paper ranged from easy to moderate compared to earlier editions.
Overall difficulty for last year’s CLAT fell in the easy-to-moderate range.
English Language: The English section in CLAT 2025 was generally easy to moderate, containing about 20–21 questions and felt slightly simpler than the prior year.
Current Affairs & General Knowledge: This section had a slight reduction of 2–3 questions from the previous year, totaling roughly 20–21 fair questions.
Legal Reasoning: Legal Reasoning was on the easier side and, as a decisive section, all 32 questions were considered manageable by experts.
Logical Reasoning: One question set had an error; apart from that, about 16–18 questions were solvable for most aspirants.
Quantitative Techniques: This section was lengthy, with around 5–6 questions assessed as readily doable.
Further reading
Before applying for CLAT, confirm that you meet the eligibility criteria. Without meeting eligibility requirements you cannot proceed with the application. Key eligibility points are listed below.
The academic qualifications for CLAT 2026 differ for undergraduate and postgraduate applicants. Details are described below:
Undergraduate (UG) Program — 5-year LLB:
Postgraduate (PG) Program — LLM:
Qualifying examinations accepted for CLAT:
Further reading
Documents required for UG applicants to CLAT include:
Documents required for PG applicants to CLAT include:
Understanding CLAT cut-offs is crucial. Use the College Predictor tool to estimate which colleges you may qualify for based on your expected CLAT score and to set realistic goals.
Familiarity with these trends helps you prioritize study areas. For example, investing time in current affairs and General Knowledge, as well as approaches to handling dense English passages, is likely to be more effective than focusing solely on math-heavy topics. Awareness of evolving legal themes and a strategic study plan will boost performance.
| Year | Number of Candidates |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 80,000+ |
| 2025 | 75,000+ |
| 2024 | 70,000 |
| 2023 | 80,000+ |
| 2022 | 70,000+ |
| 2021 | 68,000+ |
| 2020 | 59,000+ |
| Key Summary:
|
| Events | Dates |
|---|---|
| Registration Starts | August 1, 2025 |
| Last Date to Register | October 31, 2025 |
| Admit Card Release Date | November 2025 |
| Exam Date (Out) | December 7, 2025 |
| Provisional Answer Key Release | December 2025 |
| Challenging Answer Key | December 2025 |
| Result Announcement | December 2025 |
| Counselling Date | December 2025 |
| Events | Five-year LLB |
|---|---|
| Exam duration | 2 hours |
| Exam mode | Offline (Pen & paper mode) |
| Total Questions | 120 questions |
| Maximum marks | 120 marks |
| Type of questions | Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) |
| Test language | English |
| Marking scheme | +1 for correct answer, -0.25 for incorrect answer |
| Sections |
|
| Seats Available | Approximately 3,400 UG seats and 1,200 PG seats |
| Section | Topics | Description |
|---|---|---|
| English Language Syllabus | Comprehension of Passages | This section evaluates reading comprehension, command of language, and the ability to interpret passage-based content. |
| Grammar, Vocabulary, Sentence Correction | Focuses on rules of grammar, vocabulary usage, and sentence-level corrections. | |
| Themes from Contemporary Literature and Law | Covers articles, essays, and legal writings where you analyze language and underlying themes. | |
| Current Affairs & GK Syllabus | Current Events (National & International) | Tests awareness of recent developments in politics, economics, international relations, and major global events. |
| Static GK (History, Geography, Polity, Science) | Assesses foundational knowledge in history, geography, polity, basic economics, and science relevant to law. | |
| Legal GK (Constitutional Law, Environmental Laws, etc.) | Covers basic legal principles, landmark judgments, and essential statutes. | |
| Legal Reasoning Syllabus | Legal Principles & Reasoning | Focuses on interpreting legal propositions and applying reasoning to fact patterns. |
| Constitutional Law, Tort Law, Contracts, International Law, etc. | Includes key branches of law such as constitutional law, contract law, torts, and international law. | |
| Current Legal Issues (e.g., Data Privacy, Cyber Laws, etc.) | Addresses contemporary legal problems affecting society, technology, and governance. | |
| Logical Reasoning Syllabus | Critical Reasoning (Arguments, Inferences) | Examines your ability to analyze arguments, draw inferences, and evaluate conclusions. |
| Analytical Reasoning (Patterns, Sequences) | Involves puzzles, sequences, and pattern recognition tasks to test analytical skills. | |
| Verbal Reasoning (Analogies, Antonyms, Synonyms, etc.) | Includes analogies, classification, and other verbal logic questions testing linguistic reasoning. | |
| Quantitative Techniques Syllabus | Arithmetic (Percentages, Ratios, Averages, etc.) | Tests basic arithmetic concepts such as number operations, percentages, averages, and ratios. |
| Data Interpretation (Graphs, Tables, etc.) | Requires interpreting data from charts and tables and solving related numerical problems. | |
| Simple & Compound Interest, Probability | Covers elementary finance problems, probability, and basic combinatorics. |
| Sections | Question Types | Key topics |
|---|---|---|
| Current affairs & GK | Passage-based questions, static GK items, and current events | National & international affairs, summits & conferences, arts & culture, awards, government schemes, science & technology, sports, and notable historical events |
| Legal Reasoning | Objective MCQs based on short passages | Indian Constitution, fundamental duties and rights, judiciary structure, parliament and local government, directive principles, landmark judgments, amendments, torts, contract law, family law, IPR, and contemporary legal affairs |
| Logical reasoning | Passage-based MCQs (approximately 300-word passages) | Series, analogies, syllogisms, blood relations, calendars and clocks, seating arrangements, sequences, and matching |
| Quantitative Techniques | Sets of graphs, facts or propositions, numerical or diagrammatic data interpretation | Algebra, mensuration basics, statistical estimation, ratios and proportions |
| English | Passage comprehension and related tasks | Understand main points, evaluate arguments, draw inferences, summarize passages, compare viewpoints, and interpret words and phrases in context. |
| Section | Number of Questions | Weightage | Total Marks | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 28–32 | ~20% | ~28–32 | Emphasis on comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary with passage-based interpretative questions. |
| Current Affairs & GK | 35–39 | ~25% | ~35–39 | Focuses on recent events, static general knowledge, and important legal developments. |
| Legal Reasoning | 35–39 | ~25% | ~35–39 | Assesses legal aptitude through scenario-based questions on laws, rights, and principles. |
| Logical Reasoning | 28–32 | ~20% | ~28–32 | Tests critical thinking, pattern recognition, and inferential reasoning skills. |
| Quantitative Techniques | 13–17 | ~10% | ~13–17 | Assesses numerical analysis, data interpretation, and basic mathematical problem solving. |
| Total | 150 | 100% | 150 | Exam duration: 2 hours. Negative marking: -0.25 for each wrong answer. |
| Year | English Language | Current Affairs & GK | Legal Reasoning | Logical Reasoning | Quantitative Techniques | Key Observations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 28 questions | 35 questions | 40 questions | 35 questions | 12 questions | Moderate difficulty; Legal Reasoning was comparatively easier than GK and Logical Reasoning. |
| 2022 | 28 questions | 35 questions | 40 questions | 35 questions | 12 questions | Emphasis on contemporary topics; English passages were relatively longer. |
| 2021 | 28 questions | 35 questions | 40 questions | 35 questions | 10 questions | More direct GK items; legal questions often involved constitutional matters. |
| 2020 | 28 questions | 35 questions | 40 questions | 35 questions | 10 questions | Quantitative questions focused on basics like ratios and percentages; AI topics appeared in Logical Reasoning. |
| 2019 | 40 questions | 50 questions | 50 questions | 40 questions | 20 questions | Heavy emphasis on memorization in GK; Legal Reasoning covered contract law and related topics. |
| Year | Slot | Paper |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | A | View PDF |
| B | View PDF | |
| C | View PDF | |
| D | View PDF | |
| 2024 | A | Check Here |
| B | Check Here | |
| C | Check Here | |
| D | Check Here | |
| 2023 | Check Here | |
| 2022 | Check Here |
| Criteria | Eligibility | |
|---|---|---|
| Age | No age limit | |
| Nationality | Indian nationals, Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIO), and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) | |
| Academic Criteria | Class 12th or Equivalent Examination | |
| Category | Min. percentage | |
| Gen/OBC/PWD/NRI/PIO/OCI | 45% | |
| SC/ST categories | 40% | |
| College Name | CLAT Score | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| NLU, Bengaluru | 90+ | 1 | 97 |
| NALSAR, Hyderabad | 90+ | 6 | 158 |
| The West Bengal NLU, Kolkata | 90+ | 140 | 262 |
| NLU Jodhpur | 84+ | 170 | 341 |
| NLU, Bhopal | 84+ | 311 | 404 |
| Gujarat NLU, Gandhinagar | 84+ | 210 | 429 |
| MNLU Mumbai | 82+ | 99 | 547 |
| Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya NLU, Lucknow | 75+ | 410 | 694 |
| HNLU Raipur | 75+ | 434 | 707 |
| NLU, Odisha | 72+ | 591 | 10180 |
