GATE 2027 registration is closed. IIT Madras is checking submitted forms. Applicants whose form has a scrutiny defect can correct it in GOAPS until 31 October 2026. The separate data-correction dates are not out yet.

Indian applicants use DigiLocker for registration and provide a live facial image. You can apply for one paper or an approved pair in one application. The late fee for a single paper is INR 1,500 for female/SC/ST/PwD applicants and INR 2,500 for other applicants.

GATE 2027 Registration Dates

The examination is spread across three weekends. Your assigned paper, session and centre will appear on the admit card. 4 January is the exam-city notification date, not the admit-card release date.

Who Can Apply for GATE 2027?

Students in the third or a later year of an approved undergraduate programme, and graduates, can apply. GATE covers Engineering, Technology, Architecture, Science, Commerce, Arts and Humanities. There is no upper age limit or limit on attempts.

These are common options, not the entire eligibility list. GATE eligibility covers more degree types than the entry requirements of any one MTech programme. A department may require a particular qualifying degree and GATE paper even when you are eligible to sit the examination.

DigiLocker Registration and Identity Details

A verified DigiLocker account has completed e-KYC. IIT Madras also permits an unverified DigiLocker account, but may ask for additional documents during scrutiny; the corresponding originals must be produced at the exam centre. If your mobile number is linked to both a verified and an unverified account, choose the verified one.

Name, date of birth, email, mobile number and address are fetched through DigiLocker. Choose a verified identity document with the correct name and date of birth. The documents offered can include Aadhaar, PAN, driving licence or APAAR ID. Date of birth cannot be edited during the application process.

Keep the DigiLocker account used for the paid application. Do not delete it or restart through another account after submission and payment. GATE communications remain tied to the original account.

The photograph on Aadhaar or DigiLocker is not used as the application photograph. GOAPS takes your live image and the recent photograph you upload. Foreign nationals use their separate registration process and must select an examination city in India.

GATE 2027 Application Fee

The PwD concession applies to benchmark disability of 40% or more. OBC-NCL and EWS status alone does not reduce the application fee; female candidates in these categories receive the female-candidate concession.

Fee for Two Papers

For two papers, the regular fees are INR 2,000 and INR 4,000 for these two groups. The late-fee total is inconsistent across the official sources: as per the application fee page, INR 2,500 and INR 4,500, while the brochure says twice the single-paper fee, which comes to INR 3,000 and INR 5,000. The payable amount appears in GOAPS before payment; an applicant whose amount differs can contact the GATE helpdesk at 044-22578200.

Bank or payment-processing charges are additional. The application fee is non-refundable when an applicant withdraws. Extra payments for the same application are treated separately from withdrawal refunds.

Documents, Photograph and Signature

Use a colour photograph taken within the last three months, with a white background and the face covering 60-70% of the image. For the live capture, use a webcam or a phone with a front camera of at least 5 MP. Sign in black or dark-blue ink; the signature should occupy 70-80% of the cropped image.

Files in the GATE2027 DigiLocker Folder

General, OBC-NCL and EWS applicants do not need to place category certificates in this folder. Class 10, Class 12, UG and PG marksheets are not required in DigiLocker for GATE registration. Degree details are still entered in the application.

Scribe and Compensatory Time

Applicants seeking a scribe or extra time must select the facility during application. Blindness, locomotor disability affecting both arms and cerebral palsy have the specified disability-certificate/UDID option. Other specified disabilities require certification of a functional limitation in writing in Appendix B1. Dyslexic applicants need the applicable dyslexia and functional-limitation certificates.

GATE normally arranges the scribe; an applicant-provided scribe is allowed only if GATE cannot arrange one, with the required Appendix B2 details. Eligible applicants may request compensatory time even without using a scribe. An on-the-spot request for extra time at the centre is not accepted.

Choosing One or Two GATE Papers

Select your primary paper first. A second paper must come from the combination list for that primary paper. For example, CS permits DA, EC, GE, MA, ME, PH, RA or ST; CE permits AE, AG, AR, ES, GE, NM or XE. These are examples from the 2027 list, not all permitted combinations.

The optional sections inside XE, XH or XL are different from taking two GATE papers. For instance, selecting two XE sections still counts as one XE test paper.

Textile Engineering and Fibre Science is now XE9, not a separate TF paper. XE includes compulsory Mathematics and two optional sections. A second GATE paper must be added to the original application, not entered through another enrolment ID.

How to Fill the GATE Application Form

1. Open the GATE 2027 application portal from the IIT Madras exam website. Indian applicants sign in through DigiLocker; foreign applicants use the separate registration process with name, email, mobile number and password.
2. Allow access to the required DigiLocker information. Review the fetched name, date of birth, contact details and address. Enter parent/guardian and degree details, including the college name and PIN code.
3. Select one paper or an allowed pair. Enter the GG or XH section choice where applicable, and six preferred exam cities from the same zone.
4. Capture the live face image, upload the recent photograph and signature, and provide the applicable category or disability documents. Request scribe/compensatory-time facilities in the form if needed.
5. Use Save and View Application to review the entries before Submit and Proceed to Payment. Pay through an available electronic mode and return to GOAPS to confirm receipt.
6. Download the submitted application and follow its scrutiny status. Correct a notified defect within its deadline; no printed application needs to be posted to IIT Madras.

Choose six cities within the same zone. If you take two papers, their centres can differ within the same allotted city. GATE 2027 has no examination centres outside India.

Application Status, Payment and Corrections

A bank debit by itself does not establish that GOAPS received the payment. After an interrupted transaction, sign in again and check the portal status. If GATE has not received it, the brochure directs applicants to make a fresh payment within the deadline. Duplicate or unacknowledged debits are returned to the same account, usually within 15 working days.

The rectification window is 14-21 October. Paper, city, category, additional-paper and permitted personal-detail changes are handled during the notified window; an additional charge may apply. Editing the completed form is not continuously available after submission.

Common Registration Problems

The account-reset and consent-reset instructions in the registration issue guide are not recommended for applicants who have already paid. A paid applicant facing an email/account or consent problem should contact helpdesk@gate.iitm.ac.in or 044-22578200 rather than create another application.

For a missing folder, use the same DigiLocker account on both sides: the account connected to GOAPS and the account containing the certificate. A correctly named file in another account will not resolve the error.