JEE Main 2026 Provisional Answer Key & Response Sheet Out @jeemain.nta.nic.in; Raise Objection Till February 6

Garima Content Writer

Content Writer | Updated On - Feb 4, 2026

NTA has released the JEE Main 2026 Session 1 provisional answer key and response sheet. The answer keys are provisional in nature and open for objections, which can be raised online till February 6, 2026.

JEE Main 2026 Provisional Answer Key & Response Sheet Released

The National Testing Agency (NTA) has released the provisional answer keys and recorded response sheets for JEE Main 2026 Session 1 (January). The answer keys for Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech.), along with the question papers and candidates’ recorded responses, have been uploaded on the official website jeemain.nta.nic.in.

Collegedunia has developed a dedicated tool that follows the official NTA marking scheme for JEE Main 2026, enabling candidates to calculate their expected scores accurately and estimate their marks even before the official results are declared. For quick and error-free calculation, use Collegedunia’s JEE Main Score Calculator 2026 to calculate your marks.

Candidates who are not satisfied with the provisional answer keys can submit challenges online from February 4 to February 6, 2026. The objection facility is available only for Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech.). To challenge a question, candidates are required to pay a non-refundable processing fee of ₹200 per question. No challenge will be accepted without successful payment of the processing fee, and objections submitted after the deadline will not be entertained.

Direct Link – JEE Main 2026 answer key & challenge link

If a challenge raised by a candidate is found to be correct, the answer key will be revised and applied to the responses of all candidates. The final result of JEE Main 2026 Session 1 will be prepared and declared based on the finalised answer keys approved by subject experts. NTA has clarified that candidates will not receive individual communication regarding the acceptance or rejection of their challenges.

Also Read:- JEE MAIN 2026 Result Date Announced For Session 1; Final Result Declaration on February 12

JEE Main 2026 Session 1 Key Dates

Event	Date
Release of provisional answer key	4 February 2026
Response Sheet Release Date	4 February 2026
Answer key challenge window opens	4 February 2026
Last date to challenge the answer key	6 February 2026
JEE Main 2026 Result	12 February 2026

JEE Main 2026 Answer key & Resonse Sheet Dates — **Image Source - @jeemain.nta.nic.in**

How to Download JEE Main 2026 Response Sheet?

Candidates can download the JEE Main 2026 response sheet PDF by following the steps given below:

Visit the official website jeemain.nta.nic.in.
Click on the link titled “JEE Main Candidate Response Sheet 2026 – Session 1”.
Log in using your JEE Main Application Number, Password, and CAPTCHA code.
After logging in, the candidate dashboard will appear on the screen.
Click on the response sheet link available on the dashboard.
The response sheet will open in a new window. Use the Print option to download and save the response sheet PDF.

Also Read:- JEE Main 2026 Session 2 Registration Begins @jeemain.nta.nic.in; Apply by February 25

JEE Main 2026 Session 1 Dropped Questions

After the release of the JEE Main 2026 provisional answer key, candidates can raise objections if they have any queries about a question during the answer key challenge window as per NTA guidelines.

If any question is dropped after review, full marks are awarded to all candidates who appeared in that shift, irrespective of whether the question was attempted or not.

This means:

Marks are not restricted to students who attempted the dropped question.
Every candidate who appeared in the affected shift gets marks for that question.
The scoring is applied uniformly during result preparation after final answer keys are approved.

Recently, a discussion on a Reddit thread related to JEE Main 2026 highlighted that one question was reportedly dropped in one of the Session 1 shifts. In such cases, as per NTA norms, all candidates who appeared in that shift will receive full marks, even if they left the question unattempted.

JEE Main 2026 Session 1 Dropped Questions — **Image Source - Reddit**

For details on dropped questions, candidates can refer to the JEE Main 2026 Dropped Question List available on Collegedunia.

JEE Main 2026: Answer Key vs Candidate Response Sheet

Many students get confused between the JEE Main Answer Key and the Candidate Response Sheet. The table below explains the difference simply:

Feature	JEE Main Response Sheet	JEE Main Answer Key
Shows answers marked by you in the exam	Yes	No
Shows official correct answers by NTA	No	Yes
Can be challenged if there is an error	No	Yes (Provisional Answer Key only)
Used to calculate the expected score	Yes (with answer key)	Yes (with response sheet)
Available through candidate login	Yes	Yes
Helps identify mistakes in the exam	Yes	Yes

JEE Main 2026: Score vs Percentile vs Expected Rank

Now that the JEE Main 2026 provisional answer key and response sheet have been released, candidates can calculate their expected marks using the official marking scheme. After estimating the score, students can refer to the table below to get an idea of their expected percentile and All India Rank (AIR) based on previous years’ trends.

Score Range	Expected Percentile	Expected AIR
285–300	99.99–100	1–20
265–284	99.90–99.99	Up to 200
245–264	99.70–99.90	Up to 1,000
225–244	99.00–99.70	Up to 8,000
205–224	98.00–99.00	Up to 18,000
185–204	96.00–98.00	Up to 35,000
165–184	94.00–96.00	Up to 65,000
150–164	90.00–94.00	Up to 1,00,000
120–149	80.00–90.00	Up to 2,00,000
Below 120	Below 80	2,00,000+