The National Testing Agency (NTA) has officially released the JEE Main 2026 provisional answer key and individual response sheets for over 13 lakh candidates who appeared for the national-level engineering entrance examination. Candidates can access their answer key and recorded responses by logging in to the official website jeemain.nta.nic.in using their application number and date of birth/password.

The release of the answer key marks a crucial step in the JEE Main 2026 result process, allowing aspirants to evaluate their performance and estimate their expected scores before the declaration of final results.

What Has Been Released

NTA has published the following materials for candidates:

• Provisional Answer Key for all question papers and shifts

• Recorded Response Sheet showing candidates’ submitted answers

• Question Paper PDFs corresponding to each session

These documents enable candidates to cross-check their responses against the official answers provided by NTA.

Objection Window Open

Along with the answer key, NTA has opened the answer key challenge window, allowing candidates to raise objections against any answer they believe to be incorrect.

• Candidates can submit objections online by paying a non-refundable fee per question.

• Supporting documents or academic references must be uploaded while submitting challenges.

• All objections will be reviewed by subject experts, and if found valid, the answer key will be revised accordingly.

The final answer key will be released after considering all valid challenges, and the JEE Main 2026 results will be prepared based on the revised key.

Marking Scheme Reminder

Candidates calculating their probable scores should note the official marking scheme:

• +4 marks for each correct answer

• –1 mark for each incorrect answer

• No negative marking for unattempted questions

Next Steps After Answer Key

Once the final answer key is released, NTA will announce:

• JEE Main 2026 Result and Percentile Scores

• All India Rank (AIR)

• Eligibility list for JEE Advanced 2026

• Rank lists for JoSAA and State Counselling Authorities

JEE Main scores are used for admission to NITs, IIITs, GFTIs, and other centrally funded technical institutions, as well as several state and private engineering colleges.

About JEE Main 2026

JEE Main 2026 was conducted in computer-based test (CBT) mode across multiple shifts for BTech, BArch, and BPlan programmes. The exam witnessed participation from nearly 13 lakh candidates, reaffirming its status as one of the largest engineering entrance examinations in the country.