NEET Age Limit 2025 For OBC, SC, General & EWS Category

NEET Age Limit 2025 For OBC, SC, General & EWS Category

Shamshad Ali DarUpdated on 08 Feb 2025, 03:20 PM IST

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is the single largest entrance examination held for admissions in undergraduate medical courses. The National Testing Agency (NTA) formulates the NEET age limit 2025. Candidates who wish to appear in NEET UG 2025 must meet specific eligibility criteria rules set by the conducting body.

NEET Age Limit 2025 For OBC, SC, General & EWS Category
NEET Age Limit 2025

NEET age limit criteria went through many changes over the years. Earlier, there was a strict age cap for the NEET aspirants. Later, NMC removed the restrictions on the maximum age limit for the NEET exam. The minimum age requirement for medical students to appear in NEET UG is 17 years or above. Read this article to know more about the NEET 2025 age limit, NEET 2025 eligibility criteria by NMC, NEET exam pattern and many more.

NEET age limit 2025- Category-wise

The age limit of NEET 2025 specifies the minimum and maximum age requirement which a student must have before applying for the entrance test. The NTA releases the NEET 2025 information bulletin with all information about the NEET age criteria, category-wise age limit, upper age limit, education qualification and others. Aspirants who fulfil the age requirements will be eligible to take the NEET exam. The category-wise age limit criteria for appearing in the NEET 2025 exam are:

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NEET UG 2025 age limit- Category-wise(OBC, SC, General & EWS)

NEET age limit for General, EWS: A candidate should be 17 years of age at the time of admission on or before December 31 of the same year in which he/she is taking the admission.

NEET age limit for SC/ST/OBC: The minimum age limit for reserved categories is also 17 years of age at the time of admission or by December 31, 2025.

NEET maximum age limit

There is no upper age limit for NEET aspirants. Candidates who are 17 years of age by the time of admission have attained this age on or before December 31 of the same year they are seeking admission are eligible.

NEET 2025 age limit restrictions

NEET does not have any upper age limit. Candidates who attain the age of 17 years by the time of admission can appear in the NEET UG 2025. Earlier, upper age limit was introduced for NEET along with the maximum NEET attempt limit in 2017. The upper exam age limit for general candidates was set at 25 years and 30 years for reserved category candidates. However, the age criteria was removed by NMC on March 9, 2022.

NEET attempt limit

There is no restriction on the number of NEET attempts. Candidates can take the NEET UG exam as many times as they wish. Medical aspirants who fulfil the eligibility criteria can appear in the medical entrance test. In 2017, NTA limited the number of attempts for NEET by allowing only 3 permissible attempts. Aspirants who exhausted their 3 attempts were not able to take NEET. Later, the attempt limit rule was scrapped and restrictions were lifted from the number of NEET attempts.

NEET eligibility for NRI candidates

Candidates belonging to NRI category must fulfill the below mentioned eligibility criteria:

  • Educational Qualifications: Must have completed Class 12 or equivalent with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English.

  • Age Criteria:

    • Minimum age: 17 years as of December 31 of the admission year.
    • No upper age limit.
  • Nationality and NRI Status:
    • Must hold a valid passport.
    • Need proof of NRI status, like an NRI certificate or documents from the Indian Embassy/Consulate.
  • They must have passed both the theory and practical components of these subjects in their qualifying examination. Proficiency in English is required, and they should have successfully cleared it as part of the same examination.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: How many NEET attempts are allowed?
A:

There is no limit on the number of attempts for the NEET exam.

Q: Does NEET have any age limit?
A:

Yes, the minimum age limit to appear in NEET is 17 years at the time of admission or by December 31, 2025. 

Q: What is the age limit for NEET?
A:

A candidate must be 17 years of age at the time of admission as on or before December 31 of the same year. 

Q: Can I pursue MBBS at the age of 40?
A:

Yes, candidates can pursue MBBS at the age of 40. However, they must have qualified NEET UG. 

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Questions related to NEET

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to NEET ?

firstly, for NEET the main requirements are ur own details.. ur name, ur dob, photo, signature and identity proof.. if ur mother's name is slightly different on ur 10th marksheet and her aadhar card, it usually doesnt create any issue during NEET admission or registration as well.. however if there is a major difference then u should consider getting the aadhar updated to avoid confusion during counselling or document verification

If you are not prepared for NEET with only a month left, skip this attempt and plan calmly for next year or explore other PCB(PHYSICS, CHEMISTRY, BIOLOGY) options like pharmacy, nursing, biotech or psychology. Think about which subjects you will enjoy and what kind of work suitable for you like patient-care, lab work, lab research. If you explore these areas, it will help you to find your real interest.

Hello,

Cracking Neet in 5 months is tough, but not impossible. You must revise the subjects daily, practice lots of PYQ and work on your weak areas. At lastly keep confidence and believe in yourself.

Thank you.

Hello aspirant,

The sample paper PDF can help NEET 2026 candidates better prepare.  These NEET 2026 sample papers, which cover questions from physics, chemistry, and biology, adhere to the most recent exam format.  Students can learn about question kinds, chapter-wise weighting, and difficulty level by solving the question paper, which also provides them with exam-like practice.

To get the sample papers, you can visit our site through following link:

https://medicine.careers360.com/articles/neet-sample-paper

Thank you