Nursery admission age fixed at minimum 3 years from 2027-28

The new age cut-offs will be implemented in phases for higher classes – children must be at least 4 years old for admission to Junior KG from 2028-29; 5 years old for Senior KG from 2029-30; and 6 years old for admission to Class 1 from 2030-31

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government has announced a new age-based school admission policy to be implemented in phases, mandating a minimum age of 3 years for admission to nursery from the 2027-28 academic year

Nursery admission age fixed at minimum 3 years from 2027-28

The new age cut-offs will be implemented in phases for higher classes – children must be at least 4 years old for admission to Junior KG from 2028-29; 5 years old for Senior KG from 2029-30; and 6 years old for admission to Class 1 from 2030-31.

Under the new rules, June 30 will be the cut-off date to determine age eligibility for students, the state school education department said on Thursday. The move aims to bring uniformity in admission rules across schools and end confusion over age eligibility.

Until now, schools affiliated to different school boards, including the state board, CBSE, ICSE and IB, had adopted different age criteria and cut-off dates for admission to Class 1.

The move aims to standardise admission rules across all schools boards and is in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the centre’s guidelines recommending that children entering Class 1 should be six years or older, said a senior official with the state education department.

The new age criteria will not apply to students already studying in nursery to Class 1 during the 2026-27 academic year. Regular students who have passed the previous class in a recognised school will also be exempt from the age criteria while moving to the next class.

The resolution also allows school heads to grant a relaxation of up to 15 days in the minimum and maximum age limits for admission from nursery to Class 1.