Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking - Complete Marking Scheme Explained

Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking - Complete Marking Scheme Explained

RanjeetaUpdated on 24 Dec 2025, 03:43 PM IST

Does GATE have negative marking? Yes, IIT Guwahati has announced that GATE 2026 has negative marking for its MCQ questions. As per the GATE 2026 exam pattern, there will be a negative marking of 1/3rd and 2/3rd for an incorrect answer to a 1-mark and a 2-mark question, respectively. Note that the negative marking scheme is only for the MCQ questions; no negative marking scheme will be applied to the MSQ (multiple selection questions) and NAT (numerical answer type) questions. Having a better understanding of the GATE 2026 marking scheme will provide students with a better chance in preparation for the exam. IIT Guwahati is conducting the GATE exam for all 30 papers on February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026. The GATE exam will be conducted in an online mode.

LiveGATE Admit Card 2026 (OUT) LIVE: IIT Guwahati issues hall ticket for MTech, MS, PhD at gate2026.iitg.ac.inJan 13, 2026 | 3:52 PM IST

The GATE 2026 cut-off is determined by the institute’s admission committee. The decision is based on factors such as the number of available seats, total applications received, exam difficulty, past cut-off trends across disciplines and categories, and the candidate’s category.

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This Story also Contains

  1. Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking?
  2. Does MSQ/NAT have negative marking in GATE 2026?
  3. GATE 2026 Marking Scheme: Distribution of Marks
Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking - Complete Marking Scheme Explained
Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking

Further, students can also check the GATE 2026 college predictor to find out the best colleges to get into based on their expected GATE scores. Find more details on the GATE marking scheme 2026 in the article below.

Does GATE 2026 have Negative Marking?

Negative marking in GATE 2026 is the method to deduct marks for every wrong answer. It is implemented to discourage random guessing while answering and providing only the accurate answer. As per the GATE 2025 marking scheme, negative marking is only applicable for the Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ). The MCQ will have a choice of four answers, out of which only one answer is correct. A negative mark is awarded for a wrong answer chosen from the answer options. Tabulated below is the GATE 2026 negative marking scheme for MCQ.

Negative Marking in GATE 2026 MCQ

Type of Question

Correct

Incorrect

MCQ – 1 mark question

+1

-1/3

MCQ – 2 marks question

+2

-2/3

Does MSQ/NAT have negative marking in GATE 2026?

No, MSQ (Multiple Select Questions) and NAT (Numerical Answer Type) questions in GATE 2026 have no negative marking schemes. There will be no deduction of marks for an incorrect answer in MSQ and NAT questions. Find below more details on the MSQ/NAT questions marking scheme.

MSQ questions marking scheme

  • The MSQ questions will have a choice of four answers.

  • Out of the four choices, one or more than one choice(s) is/are correct.

  • The candidate must select the correct combination of answers from the choices.

  • Candidates will be awarded zero marks if the answer is partly correct.

  • Therefore, to secure full marks, candidates must get the entire answer combination correct.

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NAT Questions marking scheme

  • The NAT question doesn't have multiple choices; candidates must enter a numerical value using a virtual keypad.

  • Each NAT question carries 1 or 2 marks.

  • The answer may be in decimals as well, for example,10.1 (one decimal) or 10.01 (two decimals) or -10.001 (three decimals).

  • Only correct answers are awarded full marks, while unanswered questions is given zero marks.

  • No partial credit is applicable for NAT questions.

GATE Previous Year Question Paper's
Download GATE previous year question papers to understand exam pattern and difficulty level. Practice with these papers to boost your preparation and improve your score.
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GATE 2026 Marking Scheme: Distribution of Marks

The GATE 2026 test paper will consist of 65 questions carrying a total of 100 marks, out of which 10 questions will have a total of 15 marks on General Aptitude (GA), and 55 subject-specific questions.

Find below the distribution of marks in various test papers for GATE 2026.

Distribution of Marks under GATE 2026

Paper Code

Marks

General Aptitude (GA)

Subject: Compulsory (A) and optional (B)

Total Marks (TM/ Total Time (TT)

AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, TF (incl. Engg Math 13 marks)

GA:15

Subject:85

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

CY, DA, EY, MA, PH, ST

GA:15

Subject:85

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

AR (A compulsory; B1/B2 optional)

GA:15

Subject - A:60, B:25

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

GE (A compulsory; B1/B2 optional)

GA:15,

Subject- A:55, B:30

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

GG (A compulsory; B1/B2 chosen at application)

GA:15

Subject- A:25, B:60

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

XE (A compulsory; any TWO other sections)

GA:15

Subject- A:15, 2x35:70

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

XH (B1 compulsory; ONE other section)

GA:15,

Subject- A::25, B:60

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

XL (P compulsory; any TWO other sections)

GA:15,

Subject - A:25, B: 2x30

TM- 100

TT- 180 min

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: How are marks deducted under the GATE 2026 negative marking schemes?
A:

Under the GATE 2026 negative marking schemes, 1/3 mark is deducted for an incorrect answer to 1 marks question. In the same way, 2/3 marks will be deducted for every incorrect 2-mark question.

Q: Is there negative marking for MSQ/NAT-type questions in GATE 2026?
A:

No, there is no negative marking for MSQ/NAT-type questions in GATE 2026. 

Q: Is there negative marking in GATE 2026?
A:

Yes, there will be negative marking for GATE 2026 for the MCQ questions.

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Questions related to GATE

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to GATE ?

Hello,

Yes, you can get admission in M.Tech CSE without GATE .

  1. Through university entrance exams
    Many universities conduct their own M.Tech entrance exams. You have to qualify the test and sometimes attend an interview.

  2. Through JET for M.Tech
    JET (JAIN Entrance Test) is conducted by Jain University.
    It is

Hii

No  you cannot get admission to IIT for M Tech if your B Tech is not completed at the time of admission, even if you clear the GATE cutoff but Yes, you can appear for GATE 2028 in your 3rd year of B Tech even if your degree is

Hello,

The link to the question paper is attached here. You can access the question papers along with the answer key on the careers360 website. Careers360 also provides students with preparation tips that will help them in preparing and the mock test and analyse their in-depth performance.

https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/last-15-years-gate-papers-solutions

Thank you.

Hello aspirant,

If you missed the correction window for GATE 2026, the portal will not allow changes right now. Usually, IIT opens a correction period only once. Since you need to change your surname, the best option is to contact the GATE organizing institute through their official support email or