- CAT 2026 is valid until 31 December 2027. A GMAT Focus score is valid for 5 years, MAT for one year, NMAT for one application cycle and SNAP only for 2027-28 admissions.
- XAT and CMAT bulletins state no separate validity period. The MAH-CET percentile is valid only for that cycle's academic year.
- A test body's validity is a ceiling. Colleges add their own score windows, and several list GMAT scores only up to a January 2027 date.
- Treat CAT 2026 as covering the 2027 admission season. A repeater needs a fresh CAT for 2028.
MBA entrance exam score validity differs by test. CAT 2026 is valid until 31 December 2027, a GMAT Focus score for 5 years, MAT for one year, NMAT for one application cycle and SNAP only for admission in 2027-28. XAT and CMAT state no separate validity in the bulletins we checked.
Validity decides whether one attempt can serve more than one admission season, which matters if you are planning a gap year or a repeat. Below is each exam, a note on what is not stated, and a one-table summary as of 6 November 2026.
Why validity matters when you plan a gap year
If you sit an exam this year and do not get the admission you want, a long-validity score can be carried forward and a short-validity one cannot. That changes how many attempts you need to budget for, and how much you spend.
CAT 2026 is on 29 November 2026 and its score is valid until 31 December 2027. That is 397 days, just over 13 months. Remember that this is the test body's rule. A college can also set its own window for which test dates it will read, and the narrower rule applies to your application.
CAT 2026: valid until 31 December 2027
The CAT 2026 bulletin states the score is valid until 31 December 2027. Results are likely in the first week of January 2027. Each registered candidate has one sitting, and appearing more than once is treated as fraud, so there is no best-of-several for CAT.
In practice the score serves the 2027 season. IIFT, for example, uses the CAT 2026 score for its 2027-29 batch. A batch that selects after December 2027 will normally ask for the next CAT, but each college sets its own rule, so check the college page. The CAT exam page keeps the current dates.
GMAT Focus: five years
GMAC states a GMAT Focus score is valid for 5 years. You can take up to 5 attempts in a rolling 12 months, so a good score can last across several seasons.
But school windows are narrower. For the 2027-29 intake, FORE and Goa Institute of Management read scores taken from 1 January 2025. K J Somaiya starts from 1 January 2024. TAPMI and IMI New Delhi start from January 2022. Each of these windows also ends in January 2027. A score from February 2024 is inside GMAC's 5 years and inside the K J Somaiya window, but outside the FORE and Goa windows.
The GMAT Focus guide covers fees, attempts and pacing.
MAT: one year, best score
AIMA states that a MAT score is valid for one year. MAT is held four times a year, in February, May, September and December, and you can use your best score. AIMA's pages do not say whether the year runs from the exam date or the result date, so confirm that on AIMA's site.
The December 2026 sittings are on 20 December (paper-based) and 27 December (computer-based), with results due by the first week of January 2027. A December 2026 score will not serve a 2028 intake.
NMAT: one application cycle only
GMAC states that an NMAT score is valid for one application cycle only. You can attempt it up to three times in a testing year, with at least 15 days between attempts, but all of those scores belong to the same season.
Registration for the 2026-27 window closed on 10 October 2026, and tests are delivered between 2 November and 20 December 2026. A score from this window will not carry into the next season, so you would sit again in the next testing year.
SNAP: tied to the admission year
A SNAP score is valid only for admission to selected Symbiosis programmes for the academic year 2027-28. You can sit up to three tests, on 13, 19 and 26 December 2026, and the highest score is used. The result is due on 12 January 2027.
The score has no use outside Symbiosis, and no use for a later year. A candidate who misses a Symbiosis seat this year starts again with the next SNAP.
XAT, CMAT and MAH-CET: what is and is not stated
- XAT 2027: no validity period is stated. The bulletin gives only a score-card download window, from 31 January to 30 June 2027. Do not read that as validity.
- CMAT: the 2026 bulletin ties the score to admission for the 2026-27 session and states no separate validity period. The 2027 bulletin was not out on 6 November 2026.
- MAH-CET: the percentile is valid for the admission process of that cycle's academic year only. The 2026 test served A.Y. 2026-27.
Where nothing is stated, ask the college. Many colleges name the test year they will read, such as XAT 2027 or CMAT 2027.
MBA entrance exam score validity in one table
| Exam | Validity as stated | Plain reading for a repeater |
|---|---|---|
| CAT 2026 | Until 31 December 2027 | Serves the 2027 season. Sit the next CAT for 2028. |
| GMAT Focus | 5 years | Can carry forward, but check each school's window |
| MAT | One year | Sit again for a later season |
| NMAT | One application cycle only | Sit again in the next testing year |
| SNAP | Admission year 2027-28 only | Sit again next year |
| MAH-CET | That cycle's academic year only | Sit again in the next cycle |
| CMAT | No separate period stated | Ask the college |
| XAT | Not stated | Ask the college |
Put each exam's result date and application deadline into the MBA deadline tracker so a score is never used after its window ends.