Document Checklist for KEA Karnataka Counselling 2026 (KCET Engineering)

By CollegeAndFees Editors ·

KEA Karnataka counselling document verification is the gate to your seat allotment. Missing any single original document at the verification window can disqualify you. This checklist gives you the complete required document list with required formats and where to obtain each.

Identity Documents (mandatory): - Aadhaar Card (original + 2 photocopies). Aadhaar is mandatory for KCET candidature and authentication. - KCET 2026 admit card (printout) - KCET 2026 score card (downloaded from cetonline.karnataka.gov.in) - Recent passport-size colour photographs — 6 copies (with white background, name printed below)

Academic Documents (mandatory): - Class 10 marks card (original + 2 photocopies). Confirms your basic eligibility and date of birth. - Class 12 / PUC II marks card (original + 2 photocopies). Confirms your science stream and qualifying marks. - Class 12 / PUC II passing certificate (provisional acceptable if final certificate not yet issued). - Study certificate. This is a certificate from your high school principal stating that you studied Class 8 to Class 12 in Karnataka — required for Karnataka domicile classification. The format is prescribed by KEA and downloadable from cetonline.karnataka.gov.in. - Conduct certificate from the college you completed Class 12 at.

Domicile and Eligibility Certificates: - Karnataka domicile certificate (original + 2 photocopies). Issued by the local Tahsildar office. This is critical — without it, you do not qualify for the Karnataka state quota at private colleges and your KCET counselling status defaults to Other-State which has tighter cutoffs. - Kannada language qualifying certificate. Required for some seats reserved under Article 371-J Hyderabad-Karnataka quota. If you studied Kannada as one of your languages in Class 8 to Class 12, your study certificate will reflect this.

Reservation Documents (if applicable): - Caste certificate (SC, ST, OBC). Issued by the local Tahsildar office, with the caste-specific income certificate (Validity period — caste certificates are typically valid 5 years, income certificates 1 year). - EWS certificate. Issued by the local Tahsildar office for Economically Weaker Section reservation under the central 10 percent EWS quota. - Income certificate for fee waiver / scholarship (if applicable). Some Karnataka government quota seats have income-based fee waivers.

Special Category Documents (if applicable): - Hyderabad-Karnataka quota certificate (Article 371-J). Issued for residents of Bidar, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Raichur, Koppal, Ballari, Vijayanagara districts. - Defence services certificate. For children of Indian armed forces personnel. - NCC, NSS, sports quota certificates. For respective category-specific seat reservation. - Physical disability certificate. For PwD reservation, issued by the District Disability Officer.

KEA Application Documents: - KEA application fee receipt (paid online during KCET registration in March-April 2026). - KEA original receipt of counselling registration (paid separately at counselling time, approximately 1,500 for general).

Certificate Originals — Critical Reminder: KEA verification window requires ORIGINAL documents physically produced. Photocopies, scans or attested duplicates are not accepted. Plan ahead — collect all originals from your school, home, and government offices at least 2 weeks before the verification window opens. Caste certificates and domicile certificates from Tahsildar offices typically take 7 to 15 working days to issue if you do not already have them.

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