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    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026 (Released) - Check here List of Reserved Categories

    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026 (Released) - Check here List of Reserved Categories

    #TNEA Counselling
    K Guna SahitiUpdated on 16 Jun 2026, 11:30 AM IST

    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026 – The Directorate of Technical Education (DoTE), Tamil Nadu, has released the TNEA 2026 reservation policy on its official website, tneaonline.org. Candidates seeking admission through Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions (TNEA) 2026 can check the category-wise reservation details to understand the seat allocation process. As per the reservation norms, 31% of seats are reserved for the Open Category (OC), 15% for Scheduled Castes (SC), and 1% for Scheduled Tribes (ST), along with reservations for BC, BCM, MBC, DNC, and SCA categories. Candidates applying for BTech and BArch admissions through TNEA 2026 are advised to review the reservation criteria and seat distribution carefully before participating in the TNEA 2026 counselling process.

    This Story also Contains

    1. TNEA 2026 Reservation Criteria
    2. TNEA Reservation 2026 - Community Certificates Issuing Authority
    3. TNEA 2026 Special Category Reservation
    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026 (Released) - Check here List of Reserved Categories
    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026

    TNEA 2026 Reservation Criteria

    The authority has specified the percentage of seats reserved during the TNEA counselling 2026 through the reservation criteria. Below is the TNEA reservation criteria for candidates from Tamil Nadu and other states. The reservation criteria are distributed into 7 categories, i.e., OC, BC, BCM (BC Muslim), MBC & DNC, SC, SCA, and ST.

    TNEA Reservation Criteria 2026

    Category of CandidatesPercentage of TNEA Reservation

    General

    31%

    Backward Classes (BC)

    26.50%

    Backward Class Muslim

    3.50%

    Most Backward Class & Denotified Communities

    20%

    Scheduled Castes

    15%

    Scheduled Caste (Arunthathiyars)

    3%

    Scheduled Tribes

    1%

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    TNEA Reservation 2026 - Community Certificates Issuing Authority

    Candidates belonging to reserved communities as per TNEA 2026 reservation criteria will have to produce relevant certificates for admissions. The table below shows the community and authorized entity to issue such community certificate.

    Reserved CommunityCertificate Issuing Authority

    Scheduled Tribe

    Revenue Divisional Officer / Sub Collector of their native place (except Chennai) or P.A. (General) to Collector of Chennai. The Community Certificate card issued by Tahsildars up to 11.11.1989 is valid.

    Scheduled Caste / Scheduled Caste (Arunthathiyars)

    Tahsildar of Native Taluk of the candidate

    Backward Class / Backward Class (Muslim) / Most Backward Class / Denotified Communities.

    Headquarters Deputy Tahsildar / Zonal Deputy Tahsildar / Deputy Tahsildar (Certificates)

    TNEA 2026 Special Category Reservation

    The authorities have also specified special reservations under the TNEA reservation criteria 2026. It may be noted that only candidates belonging to the state of Tamil Nadu are eligible to apply under a special category reservation of TNEA 2026.

    TNEA Special Category Reservation

    CategoryNumber of Seats



    University Departments and Colleges

    Govt. & Govt. Aided Colleges

    self-financing Colleges

    TOTAL

    Sons / Daughter of Ex-Servicemen

    8

    34

    108

    150

    Persons with benchmark disabilities

    5%


    University Departments

    University Colleges / Govt. / Aided and Self-Financing Colleges


    Eminent Sports Persons

    12

    488

    500

    TNEA Reservation 2026 - Eligibility Criteria for Various Categories of Differently Abled Persons

    Candidates should refer to the TNEA eligibility criteria for various categories of differently-abled persons mentioned below-

    DisabilityNorms followed

    Visual Impairment

    Candidates with a low vision of 40% or above will be eligible to claim reservations. “Blindness” means a person having a total absence of sight or visual acuity less than 3/60 or less than 10/200. "Low-vision" means visual acuity not exceeding 6/18 or less than 20/60 up to 3/60 or up to 10/200 (Snellen) in the better eye with the best possible corrections

    Hearing Impairment

    Candidates with 40 db and above hearing ability only in the better ear with a speech discrimination score of 50 % and above will only be eligible to claim reservation. "Deaf" means persons having 70 DB hearing loss in speech frequencies in both ears. "Hard of hearing" means a person having 60 DB to 70 DB hearing loss in speech frequencies in both ears.

    Locomotor Disability

    Candidates with permanent physical impairment of 40 % and above will be eligible for the reservation

    Multiple Disabilities

    Candidates with multiple disabilities with permanent physical impairment of 40 % and above will be eligible for reservation

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    Q: Is there any reservation followed for Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions?
    A:

    Yes, there will be reservations in TNEA 2026. The authority has released the TNEA reservation criteria 2026 in the official notification.

    Q: How many categories enjoy reservation as per TNEA 2026 reservation criteria?
    A:

    The authority has released the TNEA reservation 2026 online at the official website.

    Q: Is there any special reservation as well for TNEA 2026?
    A:

    All the details about the special reservation for TNEA have been released by the authority. 

    Q: When are TNEA reservation documents required to be produced before the officials?
    A:

    During the TNEA counselling 2026, the authorities will conduct a round of document verification. Candidates who apply under the reserved categories will have to produce the documents of reservation.

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