CLAT 1st Merit List 2026 (Out Soon): Date, Counselling Process, College Wise Expected Ranks

CLAT 1st Merit List 2026 is an important document for lakhs of aspirants who appeared for the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT). Released by the Consortium of National Law Universities (NLUs), this list marks the commencement of the multi-round centralised counselling and seat allotment process for admission to the prestigious 5-year integrated LLB and LLM programmes. 

The first merit list, often referred to as the First Provisional Allotment List, is crucial because it contains the names, ranks, and categories of the highest-scoring candidates who have been provisionally allotted a seat at one of the participating National Law Universities (NLUs) based on their rank and college preferences.

Aspiring law students waiting for the CLAT 1st Merit List 2026 can find all details regarding the official release dates, the step-by-step seat allotment and counselling process, and a college-wise breakdown of the expected and previous year's closing ranks below.

CLAT 2026 Merit List Dates (Tentative)

Consortium of NLUs will publish the CLAT 2026 first merit list on its official website, consortiumofnlus.ac.in, following the completion of the CLAT 2026 counselling registration. Candidates must note that these dates are expected or tentative based on previous year trends and are subject to change upon official notification from the Consortium. The CLAT 2026 examination was conducted on December 7, 2025. Based on the schedule, the expected dates for the release of the first merit list and the subsequent allotment rounds are provided below:

CLAT First Allotment List 2026

CLAT First Allotment List is the initial and arguably the most competitive list released by the Consortium. It serves as the basis for the first round of admissions to all participating NLUs.

Details Included in Merit List

When candidates download the merit list (usually a PDF), they can search for their admission status based on the following details:

• Candidate's CLAT 2026 All India Rank (AIR).

• Candidate's CLAT 2026 Admit Card Number.

• Allotted National Law University (NLU).

• Reservation Category (Vertical/Horizontal).

• Admission Status (Provisional/Pending).

How Merit List Prepared?

The seat allocation in the CLAT 1st Merit List 2026 is based on a merit-cum-preference system, ensuring a fair and transparent procedure.

1. CLAT Rank: The candidate with the higher CLAT 2026 All India Rank gets priority in the seat allocation process.

2. NLU Preference: The preference list of NLUs provided by the candidate during the counselling registration process is strictly followed.

3. Category: Reservation policies for different categories (General, OBC, SC, ST, EWS, and PwD) are applied.

4. Seat Availability: The final allocation depends on the availability of seats in the respective NLU and category at that moment.

What to do After CLAT 1st Merit List Release?

Candidates whose names appear on the first merit list must log in to the CLAT consortium portal and complete the necessary steps by the specified deadline. There are three main options available to candidates: 

CLAT 2026 College-Wise Expected Cut-offs

The cut-off in the CLAT 2026 First Merit List- College Wise is the closing rank, the rank of the last candidate admitted to a particular NLU and category. Round 1 generally has the highest and toughest cut-offs for all NLUs, especially for top institutions like NLSIU, NALSAR, and NUJS. Based on the trends and competition from previous years, here is the expected CLAT 2026 cut-off (closing rank) for the top National Law Universities (NLUs) for the General category:

CLAT 2025 College Wise Closing Ranks

Reviewing the previous year's cut-offs helps candidates understand the level of competition and the rank they need to target for their preferred NLU. The table below provides the actual closing ranks for the initial allotment round of CLAT 2025 for reference.