JoSAA Choice Filling 2026 (Closed): Link, How to Fill JoSAA Counselling Choices

JoSAA 2026 choice filling window has now been closed. Candidates who qualified for this round were allowed to apply themselves and enter their choice of institutions and programs up to June 11, 2026. Candidates could opt and list out their priority among programs and colleges during the choice filling process. As seat allocation is done on the basis of candidate choices, his/her rank in the JEE Main/JEE Advanced test, category and seat availability, it was advised that the candidates make as many choices as possible. 

To improve their chances of admission, candidates should have carefully arranged their preferences after considering factors such as:

• JEE Main or JEE Advanced rank
• Category and reservation benefits
• Home State and Other State quota
• Gender-specific seat pools
• Previous years' cutoff trends
• Preferred institute and branch combinations

Candidates should note that JoSAA does not charge any fee for registration or choice filling, making the entire choice submission process free of cost.

Candidates should be careful while filling and arranging their choices during JoSAA counselling. Once the choices are locked, they cannot be changed in later rounds. So, candidates must review their selected institutes and courses before final submission. The direct link to the JoSAA 2026 choice filling portal is given below:

• JoSAA 2026 counselling choice filling link

JoSAA counselling process is conducted completely online. Candidates must complete registration, choice filling, and choice locking within the prescribed deadline to participate in seat allotment rounds. Check below the JoSAA Choice Filling 2026 highlights:

JoSAA 2026 counselling schedule outlines key dates for seat allocation, reporting, fee payment, and document verification across multiple rounds. Candidates must carefully follow each deadline to ensure successful admission into participating institutes through the centralized counselling process.

JoSAA choice filling is the process where candidates fill their preferences of colleges and courses for admissions into colleges like IITs, NITs, IIITs, and GFTIs. Before choosing, candidates must look at the previous year cutoff ranks so that they can know about the colleges and courses that they can take up as per their JEE Mains and JEE Advanced rank. Candidates have a huge list of college and course choices to be selected. They just need to choose and arrange them as per their preferences. When seats are allotted, JoSAA first looks at the top preference of the candidate. If it finds a match in terms of rank, it provides the candidate with the seat. Otherwise, the second preference is looked at and so on. Choice filling facility is provided during the registration period itself and candidates must choose wisely while locking their choices. Though there is no restriction on the number of choices that can be selected, it is better that candidates don’t go in for choices randomly.

Candidates can follow the step-by-step process below to complete JoSAA 2026 choice filling successfully:

Step 1: Login to the JoSAA Portal

Visit the official JoSAA website and log in using your JEE Main 2026 application number and password.

Step 2: Access the Choice Filling Section

After logging in, click on the Choice Filling link available on the dashboard. Candidates may be required to verify their identity using an OTP sent to their registered mobile number.

Step 3: Select and Add Choices

Once verification is complete, candidates can view:

• The complete list of available institutes and programs

• Total number of choices available

• Search and filter options for colleges and courses

• Selected choices panel

To add a preference, click the "Add" button next to the desired institute and course combination. The selected choice will appear in the choice list.

Step 4: Arrange Choices in Order of Preference

Candidates can either add choices directly in their preferred order or rearrange them later. The choice list displays the institute name, program name, and preference number.

The following options are available for managing choices:

Candidates can modify and reorder their preferences any number of times before the choice locking deadline.

Step 5: Save the Choices

It is important to save the choice list regularly. Unsaved changes may be lost if the session expires or the page is refreshed.

Step 6: Lock the Choices

After carefully reviewing all preferences and their order, candidates should lock their choices before the deadline. Once locked, the choices cannot be modified.

Step 7: Download and Print the Choice List

After locking the choices, candidates should download and print the final choice list for future reference during the counselling and seat allotment process.

Proper choice filling and preference ordering are crucial, as JoSAA seat allotment is based on the choices submitted by candidates along with their rank, category, and seat availability.

After filling up their choices, candidates can change and manage their list of choices until the choice filling deadline. In this duration, candidates can perform operations such as adding, deleting, arranging, or reordering their institute and course choices as many times as they like. Candidates have the option to change the preference level of any choice by changing the preference level of that choice. Candidates may also interchange the positions of the choices or delete them in one go.

Choice management remains available only until the last date specified in the JoSAA schedule. After candidates have locked their choices, they cannot make changes to them in any phase of the counseling process. The subsequent seat allocations will be done on the basis of their locked choices.

What Happens If You Do Not Lock Your Choices?

Candidates who do not manually lock their choices before the deadline need not worry. JoSAA automatically locks the last saved preferences after the choice filling window closes. These automatically locked choices are treated as the candidate's final preferences and will be used for seat allocation in all subsequent counselling rounds. Therefore, candidates should ensure that their saved choices are accurate and arranged in the desired order before the deadline.

Once the process of JoSAA choice filling and locking has been successfully completed, the authorities issue online seat allotment results on a round-by-round basis. Those candidates who have been allotted seats will need to follow certain steps by their deadline. Check below the steps after JoSAA choice filling:

• Verify seat allotment result
• Receive allotment letter
• Choose Freeze/Float/Slide options
• Submit necessary documents
• Submit seat acceptance fee
• Report online

After allotment of seats, the candidate has to decide on whether to choose to freeze, float, or slide.

The above choices enable students to participate in several rounds of counseling.

JoSAA releases two mock allocations prior to the final locking of choice process. It is helpful for applicants to gauge their possible chances of getting admission based on the current rank of preferences. 

Benefits of JoSAA Mock Allotment

• Understand probable seat allotment
  
• Modify choice order strategically
  
• Improve admission chances
  
• Add safe college options

Candidates can revise choices after mock allotment before the final locking deadline.

Candidates must be very careful while filling the JoSAA choices because the allocation of seats depends on the candidate's rank and preferences. Check below the JoSAA choice filling tips:

• Start with your dream colleges
• Select realistic and safe colleges too
• Refer previous year cut-off ranks
• Make as many choices as possible
• Don't choose preferences randoml
• Confirm your choices before deadline
• Keep a copy of locked choices

Candidate needs to upload important documents in online counseling verification process. Check below the important documents required:

• JEE Main Admit Card
• JEE Advanced Admit Card
• JEE Rank Card
• Class 10 Marks Sheet
• Class 12 Marks Sheet
• Category Certificate (if any)
• PwD Certificate (if any)
• Passport Sized Photograph
• Valid Photo ID

JoSAA counselling is conducted for admission into premier engineering institutes across India.