Overview
The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is a national-level entrance exam conducted by the Consortium of National Law Universities for admission to undergraduate (five-year integrated law) and postgraduate (LLM) programmes at 26 participating National Law Universities and other institutions such as IIULER Goa. Each CLAT cycle is named after the year in which the admitted batch begins, and the exam itself is held in December of the preceding year — for example, CLAT 2027 (for the batch starting in 2027) is held in December 2026, while CLAT 2026 was held in December 2025.
Who can apply
For the CLAT 2027 UG cycle, candidates must have passed the Class 12 (10+2) examination, or an equivalent, with at least 45% marks (40% for SC, ST and PwD candidates). There is no upper age limit for the UG programme.
Exam pattern
CLAT UG is an offline, pen-and-paper test of passage-based multiple-choice questions.
| Subject | Approx. share of questions |
|---|---|
| English Language | ~20% |
| Current Affairs, including General Knowledge | ~25% |
| Legal Reasoning | ~25% |
| Logical Reasoning | ~20% |
| Quantitative Techniques | ~10% |
The paper has 120 questions worth 120 marks, to be completed in 2 hours. Each correct answer earns 1 mark, and 0.25 marks are deducted for every wrong answer.
Syllabus
Questions are passage-based across all five sections: comprehension passages for English and Current Affairs, fact situations for Legal and Logical Reasoning, and short data sets or passages for Quantitative Techniques, rather than direct recall-based questions.
Marking and results
Scores are compiled into an All India Rank, which the Consortium publishes along with the result. This rank is the basis for the subsequent counselling and seat allocation process.
Important dates
For the CLAT 2027 cycle, registration opened on 3 August 2026 and closes on 31 October 2026, the exam is scheduled for 6 December 2026 (2 pm to 4 pm), and the admit card is expected roughly three weeks before the exam. Counselling for shortlisted candidates is expected to begin in the last week of December 2026. Each cycle's exact dates are announced afresh by the Consortium.
How to apply
Applications are submitted online at consortiumofnlus.ac.in during the registration window, where candidates fill in personal and academic details, upload photograph and signature, and pay the application fee.
After the exam
Admission to the participating NLUs is through online counselling conducted directly by the Consortium of NLUs — not through JoSAA or a state CET cell. Candidates rank-order their preferred NLUs, and seats are offered in rounds based on All India Rank, category and preferences; each NLU also reserves a share of seats for candidates domiciled in its home state.
Preparation tips
Because every section is passage- or fact-based rather than pure recall, regular reading of newspapers and legal/current-affairs digests helps with both the Current Affairs and Legal Reasoning sections. Since there is negative marking, practising full-length mock papers under the 2-hour limit is important to build the judgement of when to skip a question rather than guess.
Is CLAT the same exam every year, or does the year in the name matter?
The year in "CLAT 2027" (for example) refers to the admission batch, not the calendar year of the exam — the exam itself is held in December of the previous year.
Is there negative marking in CLAT?
Yes. 0.25 marks are deducted for each wrong answer in the UG exam.
Is CLAT held online or offline?
CLAT UG is conducted offline, as a pen-and-paper test.
Who conducts CLAT counselling?
The Consortium of NLUs itself conducts online counselling and seat allocation after the result, rather than a separate central counselling body.