NEET Eligibility Criteria 2021 Qualification, Age Limit, Marks Required

Before NEET 2021 registration commences, aspirants must ensure that they will go through NEET eligibility criteria 2021. No aspirant will be allowed to fill the NEET 2021 application form if they fail to meet the prescribed legitimate criteria. As per the latest news on NEET 2021, the application form release date of NEET 2021 has been announced. NEET registration will begin from July 13, 5:00 PM. The NEET 2021 exam is scheduled to be held on September 12. Earlier, the medical exam was to be held on August 1, 2021.

Graduate Medical Education, 1997 which was last amended in 2018 is the basis of NEET exam eligibility. Earlier, there were lots of restrictions on the NEET age limit and subjects as well as the type of school but as per the revised NEET eligibility criteria 2021, all those restrictions are now removed. However, the upper age limit criterion has been removed from the eligibility of NEET 2021 as has been the clause of open school students not being eligible.

As per the NEET eligibility criteria, candidates who have studied from an open school or have biology as an additional subject are now eligible to apply for the exam. NEET 2021 will be conducted for admissions to MBBS, BDS, Ayush, and other medical courses. Aspirants seeking more information regarding NEET 2021 eligibility criteria can check the article below to know the details about the conditions of admission, codes, qualifying criteria, NEET age limit and much more relevant information.

Who is eligible for NEET UG 2021?

Citizens of India, Non-resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), and foreign nationals are eligible to appear for NEET 2021 exam. Aspirants who fulfill the below-mentioned eligibility criteria of NEET and complete the application process within the stipulated date will be eligible for appearing for the medical entrance test for the 2021 session. Aspirants must note that, if they want to study medicine UG then they have to appear and qualify for the NEET 2021. Aspirants who wish to study medicine abroad but wish to come back to India for practice NEET are now mandatory for them also.

NEET Eligibility By NTA

Parameters

Details

Qualifying Exam for NEET 2021
  • Candidates must have passed 10+2 or equivalent with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English as core subjects from a recognized board.

  • Class 12 or equivalent appearing aspirants are also eligible to apply for NEET.
NEET age limit 2021
Candidates must have completed 17 years as on December 31, 2021.
NEET Maximum Age Limit*
The decision on the upper age limit is pending, so, all candidates are provisionally eligible to apply for NEET 2021.
NEET eligibility marks 2021

The class 12 percentage required for NEET 2021 exam is separate for each category and can be listed as under. NEET eligibility marks in class 12 to be considered are aggregate marks only for PCB subjects

UR – 50%,
OBC/SC/ST – 40%,
PWD – 45%

Maximum Number of Attempts for NEET
There are no restrictions on the maximum NEET attempt limit 2021.
Nationality
Indian Nationals, NRIs, OCIs, PIOs & Foreign Nationals aspirants are eligible to apply

NEET eligibility criteria 2021 - Know the qualifying examination codes

While filling the application form, aspirants have to select the NEET 2021 qualification codes for the qualifying examination. Aspirants should be aware of NEET qualifications codes by going through the table below.

NEET Qualifying Examination Codes 2021

Sl no. Qualifying codes
1 Code 01
2 Code 02
3 Code 03
4 Code 04
5 Code 05
6 Code 06
7 Code 07

Details of Qualifying Examination Codes for NEET 2021

  • Code 01: Candidates who will be appearing for their Class 12 board exam in 2021 and waiting for their board’s result have to choose this code. However, till the time of admission, such candidates must have qualified their class 12 as per the specified criterion, failing which they will become ineligible.
  • Code 02: Aspirants who are studying from the higher/senior secondary examination or Indian School Certificate Examination (ISCE) which is equivalent to the Class 12 examination and comes after a period of 12 years of study have to choose this code. As per the National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT), the last two years of this study must comprise science subjects namely Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and Mathematics or any other elective subjects with English as a core subject. Candidates who have qualified for Class 12 in the year 2020 or before and have not pursued any other course after the completion of Class 12 have to choose this code.
  • Code 03: Aspirants who have successfully completed their Intermediate/Pre-degree Examination in Science of an Indian University/Board or other recognized body with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and also English as a compulsory subject have to choose this code. The course should have a practical test in science subjects. Candidates whose class 12 or its equivalent qualifying examination is completed from a state board must also choose this code.
  • Code 04: Aspirants who have completed a Pre-professional/Pre-medical Examination after passing either the Higher Secondary Examination or the Pre-University or an equivalent examination with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology & English must have to choose this code while applying. The Pre-professional/Pre-medical examination shall include practical tests in these subjects and also English as a compulsory subject.
  • Code 05: With Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology as mandatory subjects, candidates who are pursuing the three years’ degree course from a recognized University and have qualified the first year including practical tests in each of the aforementioned subjects have to choose this code. Candidates must note that the qualifying exam here must be a University Examination and candidates should have passed the earlier qualifying examination namely 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology with English as a core course.
  • Code 06: With not less than two of the subjects Physics, Chemistry, Biology (Botany, Zoology)/Biotechnology, candidates who have qualified the BSc Examination from an Indian recognized University must choose this code during the filling process of application. Further, they must have passed the earlier qualifying examination (10+2) with English, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.
  • Code 07: Aspirants who have qualified any other examination which in scope and standard (Last two years of 10+2 Study comprising of Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology; which shall include practical test in these subjects) is found to be equivalent to the Intermediate Science Examination of an Indian University/Board, have to choose this code. Aspirants who have completed the qualifying examination from a foreign country are also required to fill in this code.

NEET Eligibility Criteria - Age Limit

The main concern of every aspirant regarding the NEET eligibility criteria 2021 is the age limit for appearing for the medical entrance test. Candidates must have completed 17 years of age either at the time of admission or else on or before December 31, 2021, as per the NEET 2021 eligibility criteria. The decision over the upper age limit for NEET exam eligibility has been challenged in the Supreme Court. Despite pending the court’s judgment, candidates are allowed to appear for the exam and admissions.

Category-wise age criteria for NEET 2021

Category

Date of birth for minimum age

For Candidates of Unreserved Category (UR)

For Candidates of SC/ST/OBC Category

Born on or before December 31, 2004

Qualifying Marks for NEET 2021

  • Candidates have to be qualified in Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English individually in the qualifying examination which is 10+2 or equivalent, as per NEET 2021 eligibility criteria.
  • Candidates belonging from the Unreserved category must have scored a minimum required percentage of 50% marks in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology in their Class 12 or HSC examination.
  • Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes or Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates should have scored 40% of passing marks in Class 12 in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology in aggregate in the qualifying examination.
  • Medical aspirants with locomotor disability of lower limbs must have secured a minimum of 45% marks for General-PH and 40% marks for SC-PH/ST-PH/OBC-PH in aggregate in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology.
Category Aggregate marks required for NEET 2021
Unreserved 50%
SC/ST/OBC/Reserved-PH 40%
Unreserved- PH 45%

NEET 2021 eligibility criteria for NRI/Foreign students

Candidates who have completed their education from outside the country must fulfill the NEET eligibility criteria. The last examination which has to pass by NRI/Foreign students should be equivalent to Class 12 qualification in their respective country. Candidates should have studied Physics, Chemistry, and Biology and must have passed the theory and practical test in each of these subjects as well as English in the qualifying examination.

NEET Eligibility Criteria 2021 – Number of Attempts

With amendments in 2018 for NEET 2021 eligibility criteria, the restrictions on the number of attempts for NEET were removed. Therefore there is no restriction on the number of attempts for NEET 2021. So, as per the NEET 2021 eligibility criteria, candidates will be allowed to appear for the entrance exam as many times as they would like to only if they are eligible.

NEET Eligibility Criteria 2021 - 15% All India Quota seats/Deemed Universities/Central Universities/ESIC and AFMC Colleges

  • Aspirants who qualify for NEET 2021 exam can apply for the 15% All India Quota seats, 100% of the seats in Deemed universities as well as Central Universities, ESIC, and AFMC as well. This counselling for NEET will be conducted at an All India level by MCI.
  • J&K candidates are not eligible for 15% All India Quota seats unless they have filled a self-declaration form to be submitted along with the NEET application form 2021. The self-declaration for NEET 2021 application form denotes that the candidate wishes to participate in the counselling for 15% All India Quota seats and would forgo the home state counselling in return. As per the NEET eligibility criteria, such candidates will be eligible for the seats of Deemed Universities, ESIC, and AFMC colleges.
  • The allotment for 85% seats of DU will be open to candidates who have completed Class 10 and 12 from Delhi while the Institutional Quota seats of AMU will be exclusively for AMU students only.

NEET Eligibility Criteria 2021 - 85% State Quota seats

  • The 85% state quota seats mean seats in all government colleges of the states/union territories respectively. Counselling for such seats will be conducted by the respective state authorities. To apply for state quota seats, candidates must fulfill the NEET 2021 eligibility criteria laid down by each state or union territory authority and include domicile, conditions too
  • Admission to private medical and dental colleges through NEET will also be subject to the policies of the State/ Union Territory.