What changed in DASA 2026 versus last year
A clause-by-clause, counsellor-grade comparison of the official DASA 2025 and the latest DASA 2026 (UG) Information Brochure (Version 1.3, 17 Jun 2026) — every change in rounds, institutes, fees, eligibility and CIWG rules, verified against the source documents.
The big picture for 2026
Fees and the core CIWG framework are unchanged year-on-year, so the decisive shifts are structural: a leaner round structure, a wider and reshuffled institute pool, and an earlier, compressed timeline. Here is the at-a-glance read.
Fewer rounds
Brochure V1.3 confirms DASA 2026 "conducts a total of two rounds" — Round-III is dropped, and the CIWG vacancy reversion now happens at Round-II.
Bigger institute pool
Net +9 institutes: 5 new IIITs added and the GFTI/other list reshuffled (7 in, 3 out). NIT + IIEST count is unchanged at 31. Figures reflect Brochure V1.3 (17 Jun 2026).
Fees held flat
Registration US$300 + first-semester tuition US$4000 (or US$2000 with the SAARC 50% waiver) — identical to 2025. CIWG remains US$300 + ₹62,500.
Earlier & tighter
Registration opens 28 Jul 2026 (vs 30 Jul 2025) and the whole process wraps roughly a week earlier — with one round fewer to fit it in.
Age cut-off rolls on
Candidates must be born on or after 01 Oct 2001. Class XII must be 2025-26, with final results by 30 Sep 2026. Marks bar held at 75% / 7.5 CGPA.
CIWG intact
The 5%-within-15% (one-third of DASA seats) CIWG reservation and the 8 eligible Gulf countries are unchanged. Only the revert round and the parent-employment reference year move.
Seat-allocation rounds & schedule
The single most consequential change for applicants. DASA 2025 ran three rounds; DASA 2026 (Brochure V1.3, 17 Jun 2026) runs only two — meaning fewer chances to upgrade a seat and a faster decision window.
Rounds — side by side
| Item | DASA 2025 | DASA 2026 | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rounds in schedule | Round-I, II & III | Round-I & II only | One fewer |
| CIWG vacant-seat revert | Converted at Round-III | Converted at Round-II | Earlier |
| Round-I result | Sat, 09 Aug 2025 | Thu, 06 Aug 2026 | 3 days earlier |
| Round-II result | Thu, 14 Aug 2025 | Wed, 12 Aug 2026 (final round) | 2 days earlier |
| Round-III result | Tue, 19 Aug 2025 | — removed — | Dropped |
| Exit window | Up to 2nd round (before last) | Up to 2nd round (before last) | Same |
| Willingness options | Freeze · Slide · Float · Surrender · Withdraw · Exit | Freeze · Slide · Float · Surrender · Withdraw · Exit | Same |
Indicative timeline
| Milestone | DASA 2025 | DASA 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration / DEF / choice filling opens | 30 Jul 2025 | 28 Jul 2026 | 2 days earlier |
| Mock seat allocation | 03 Aug 2025 | 31 Jul 2026 | earlier |
| Registration / DEF ends | 03–04 Aug 2025 | 03 Aug 2026 | ~same |
| Choice locking ends | 08 Aug 2025 | 05 Aug 2026 | earlier |
| Physical reporting at institute | ~from 21 Aug 2025 | 13–18 Aug 2026 (tentative) | ~1 wk earlier |
Dates are reproduced from each brochure's Annexure 3 and are tentative; the institute's own website governs actual physical-reporting dates. Always confirm the live schedule on csab.nic.in.
Participating institutes — what's in and out
The 2026 pool grows to 86 institutes (Brochure V1.3). The headline is a five-IIIT expansion; alongside it, the "Other-GFTI / Technical Institutes" list was substantially reshuffled — seven institutes added and three removed, including some popular private and self-financed names.
Count by category
| Category | DASA 2025 | DASA 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| NITs + IIEST Shibpur | 31 | 31 | No change |
| IIITs | 13 | 18 | +5 |
| Other-GFTIs / Technical Institutes | 33 | 37 | +4 net |
| Total participating institutes | 77 | 86 | +9 |
Newly added in 2026
- IIIT Guwahati
- IIIT Tiruchirappalli
- IIIT Dharwad
- IIIT Bhagalpur
- IIIT Raichur, Karnataka
- Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Bilaspur School of Studies of Engg & Technology, Chhattisgarh
- NIFTEM, Kundli Nat'l Inst. of Food Tech. Entrepreneurship & Mgmt, Sonipat, Haryana
- Central University of Jammu
- Central University of Karnataka
- Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University
- Islamic University of Science & Technology, Kashmir
- NITTTR, Bhopal Nat'l Inst. of Technical Teachers' Training & Research, M.P.
Dropped from 2025
- Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Gandhinagar Gujarat — popular energy/engineering option now out
- Charotar University of Science & Technology (CHARUSAT) Gujarat
- Puducherry Technological University, Puducherry
Counsellor note: families targeting PDEU, CHARUSAT or PTU through DASA must re-plan their choice list for 2026. Manipal Institute of Technology and IGDTUW were briefly absent in earlier 2026 drafts (V1.1) but were reinstated in Brochure V1.3 — both remain in the pool.
How the seat pool reshaped
NIT + IIEST capacity is steady; the entire net growth comes from IIITs and a churned GFTI list.
Institutes by category
GFTI / Other list churn
Fees & DASA Enrolment Fee (DEF)
Good news for budgeting: the fee architecture is identical to 2025. No increase to registration, first-semester tuition, the SAARC waiver, the CIWG rupee component, or the NRI Non-CIWG opt-in amount.
DEF by candidate tag (unchanged)
| Candidate tag | Registration (non-refundable) | 1st-sem tuition | Total DEF |
|---|---|---|---|
| DASA-CIWG (Single Tag) | US$300 | ₹62,500 | US$300 + ₹62,500 |
| DASA (Non-SAARC) | US$300 | US$4,000 | US$4,300 |
| DASA (SAARC) — 50% waiver | US$300 | US$2,000 | US$2,300 |
| CIWG + Non-SAARC (Double Tag) | US$300 | US$4,000 | US$4,300 |
| NRI opting for Non-CIWG seats | US$300 | US$4,000 | US$4,300 |
What stayed identical
Registration fee remains non-refundable; full payment in one online transaction (card / net-banking / UPI / e-challan for INR); parents may pay in INR at the prevailing exchange rate; tuition-refund rules (Annexure 6) and the NRI CIWG-to-Non-CIWG refund mechanism are unchanged.
Eligibility & CIWG rules
The eligibility framework is stable. Changes are the routine year-roll of the age and academic-year references, plus one helpful clarification on how the 75% is computed.
Eligibility — line by line
| Criterion | DASA 2025 | DASA 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying exam | JEE (Main) 2025 | JEE (Main) 2026 | Year roll |
| Age — born on or after | 01 Oct 2000 | 01 Oct 2001 | +1 year |
| Class XII appearing year | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | Year roll |
| Final results latest by | 30 Sep 2025 | 30 Sep 2026 | Year roll |
| Minimum marks | 75% / 7.5 CGPA | 75% / 7.5 CGPA — "in aggregate in 5 subjects"; refer JoSAA 2026 Business Rule Annexure 2(b) | Clarified |
| Required subjects (B.E./B.Tech.) | Maths, Physics + 1 of Chem/Biotech/CS/Bio | Maths, Physics + 1 of Chem/Biotech/CS/Bio | Same |
| Residential requirement | 2 yrs (11th & 12th) abroad in last 8 yrs | 2 yrs (11th & 12th) abroad in last 8 yrs | Same |
CIWG (Children of Indian Workers in Gulf)
| Aspect | DASA 2025 | DASA 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reservation | 5% within 15% (≈ one-third of DASA seats) | 5% within 15% (≈ one-third of DASA seats) | Same |
| Eligible Gulf countries | UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia | UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia | 8, same |
| Parent worked / working "till any date of" | year 2025 | year 2026 | Year roll |
| Vacant CIWG seats convert at | Round-III | Round-II | Earlier |
| NRI option for Non-CIWG seats | Pay US$4,300 to be shown both seat types | Pay US$4,300 to be shown both seat types | Same |
Flags & advisory notes
Points that need a counsellor's judgement — including one internal inconsistency in the 2026 brochure that families should verify on the portal.
Confirmed: DASA 2026 runs two rounds (V1.3)
Earlier 2026 drafts (V1.1) contained a contradiction — the schedule showed two rounds while clause 55 still read "three rounds." Brochure V1.3 (17 Jun 2026) corrects this: it explicitly states DASA 2026 "conducts a total of two rounds," consistent with the two-round Annexure 3 schedule and the Round-II CIWG reversion. Plan for exactly two rounds.
The institute list moved between brochure versions — use V1.3
The participating-institute list changed across 2026 versions. V1.1 had dropped Manipal Institute of Technology and IGDTUW; V1.3 (titled "Inclusion of New Institutions") reinstated both, taking the total to 86. Always advise from the latest version and the live list on csab.nic.in.
Fewer rounds = front-load the choice list
With likely only two rounds, the cost of a poorly ordered choice list is higher — there are fewer opportunities to slide/float into a better seat. Lock a carefully ranked, realistic list before Round-I.
Re-plan if you were targeting a dropped institute
PDEU Gandhinagar, CHARUSAT and Puducherry Technological University are no longer in the DASA 2026 pool. Students must either secure them through the institute's own NRI/management route or substitute equivalent newly-added options.
Verify the 75% on the JoSAA 2026 basis
2026 explicitly anchors the 75% / 7.5 CGPA to "aggregate in 5 subjects" per JoSAA 2026 Business Rule Annexure 2(b). Re-compute borderline candidates' aggregates on the 5-subject basis before declaring eligibility.
Questions families are asking
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