Where things stand
- Navodaya, Class 6: the test is on Saturday 28 November 2026. Admit cards are out on the NVS portal. Registration closed in the summer.
- Sainik Schools: NTA’s calendar puts the entrance test on 31 January 2027, but forms are not open yet. Last year they opened on 10 October, so this year is late. Any site taking a 2027 form before NTA posts a notice is not official.
- Kendriya Vidyalaya: nothing for 2027–28 yet. Last year the notice came on 18 March and online forms ran from 20 March to 2 April.
Kendriya Vidyalaya
KVs are open to every family, not only central government staff. Who gets a seat is decided by a priority order, then a lottery.
| Class | Age on 31 March |
|---|---|
| Balvatika 1 | 3 to 4 |
| Balvatika 2 | 4 to 5 |
| Balvatika 3 | 5 to 6 |
| Class 1 | 6 to under 8 (a child born on 1 April also counts) |
- Priority in civil and defence KVs: first central government employees and ex-servicemen, then central autonomous bodies and PSUs, then state government employees, then state bodies, then everyone else. Within each group, more transfers in the last seven years rank higher. Many explainers still list six groups. The 2026 guidelines have five.
- Reserved seats: SC 15%, ST 7.5%, OBC non-creamy layer 27%, and 3% for children with special needs.
- RTE seats: 10 of every 40 Class 1 seats go by lottery to children from SC, ST, EWS, BPL, OBC non-creamy-layer and special-needs families living within 5 km in a city. The income limit is the state’s.
- How: Balvatika and Class 1 forms are online at admission.kvs.gov.in, with a lottery for each KV. Class 2 onwards is an offline form at the KV, only where seats are free. No admission test until Class 9.
- Papers: a birth certificate from the authority that registers births, category certificates (a parent’s is accepted first, the child’s within three months), a service certificate showing transfers for the priority groups, and proof of residence. The address you give is final.
- Forms are free.
KVS warned last year that it had cancelled admissions over fake documents and wrong ages, and that a seat won on a wrong address is cancelled with no appeal.
Navodaya (JNVST)
Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas are free residential schools, one per district, mostly for children from rural areas.
- Class 6, 2027: for children born from 1 May 2015 to 31 July 2017, studying Class 5 in 2026–27 in the district where they live.
- At least 75% of seats in a district go to children who studied Classes 3, 4 and 5 in rural schools. A single day in an urban school makes a child urban. At least a third of seats go to girls.
- The test has 80 questions for 100 marks in two hours: mental ability, arithmetic and language. Delhi and Haryana centres offer it in English and Hindi.
- Delhi has five JNVs: Mungeshpur, Jaffarpur Kalan, East Delhi, Shahdara and North Delhi. New Delhi and Central Delhi districts have none.
- Results are expected by the end of March 2027.
- Class 9 forms closed on 22 October 2026. News reports give 10 April 2027 for the Class 9 test. We haven’t seen that on an official notice yet.
Sainik Schools (AISSEE)
- One NTA form covers both the old Sainik Schools and the new ones run with partners.
- Last year’s ages for Class 6 were 10 to 12 on 31 March. For Class 9 they were 13 to 15, and the child had to have passed Class 8 by admission. Girls can apply for both. The 2027 ages will be in the new bulletin.
- In the old Sainik Schools, two-thirds of seats go to children from the state where the school is. Delhi has no Sainik School, so Delhi children compete for the other third everywhere. Haryana children count as home state at Kunjpura and Rewari.
- The test is pen and paper, multiple choice, with no negative marking. Class 6 is 125 questions for 300 marks, Class 9 is 150 questions for 400.
- Last year’s fee was Rs 850, or Rs 700 for SC and ST.
- After the result, seats are given through online counselling run by the Sainik Schools Society, then a medical check.
Last year the form window was three weeks, extended to a month. With the test on 31 January, this year’s may be shorter. Check nta.ac.in every few days through November.
Last year’s dates
| Step | Last cycle |
|---|---|
| Sainik School forms | 10 October to 9 November 2025 (extended) |
| Sainik School test | 18 January 2026 |
| Sainik School result | 27 February 2026 |
| KV notice | 18 March 2026 |
| KV online forms (Balvatika, Class 1) | 20 March to 2 April 2026 |
| KV first lottery | 8 April (Balvatika) and 9 April 2026 (Class 1) |
| KV last date of admission | 30 June 2026 |
Help
For the Sainik School test, the NTA help desk is 011-40759000 or 011-69227700. Navodaya registration is free, and every JNV has a help desk that fills the form at no charge. KVs give no helpline. Contact the principal of the KV concerned.
Official links
- Navodaya Class 6 portal, for admit cards and results
- JNVST 2027 prospectus
- NTA Sainik School page
- NTA exam calendar (16 September 2026)
- KVS admissions and the online form