XAT 2027 registration is open until 6 December; exam on 3 January 2027

Registration for XAT 2027, conducted by XLRI Jamshedpur, opened on 15 July 2026 and closes on 6 December 2026.

The exam will be held on 3 January 2027 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Admit card download is expected from 20 December 2026 (tentative).

XAT scores are accepted by more than 250 business schools, and the test is conducted in over 100 cities. XLRI has stated that admissions to its programmes are purely merit-based and involve no management or NRI quota — ignore anyone claiming otherwise.

One practical note before you register: make sure your email ID and mobile number are correct, because these details cannot be changed after registration.

XAT is held in January, which gives you an extra month of preparation after CAT. Apart from the decision-making section, which is unique to XAT, the preparation overlaps heavily with other MBA entrance exams — so if you are already preparing for CAT, the marginal effort is small.