Class 1 admission to require six years of age from 2030-31 in Maharashtra
Pune, 16th October 2026: Children will have to complete six years of age to secure admission to Class 1 in Maharashtra from the academic year 2030-31. The state government has announced new age criteria for admission to nursery, junior kindergarten (Jr KG), senior kindergarten (Sr KG) and Class 1, which will be introduced in phases from 2027-28.
Under the new rules, June 30 will be the cut-off date for calculating a child’s age instead of December 31. The school education department issued a government resolution outlining the revised age criteria in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
According to the new rules, children must have completed three years of age for admission to nursery from the academic year 2027-28. The minimum age for admission to Jr KG will be four years from 2028-29, while children must have completed five years of age for admission to Sr KG from 2029-30. The requirement of completing six years of age for admission to Class 1 will apply from 2030-31.
The government has introduced the changes to bring uniformity in admission rules across schools. Earlier, schools affiliated with the state board, CBSE, ICSE and IB followed different age criteria and cut-off dates. There was also no uniform minimum age requirement for admission to pre-primary classes.
Under the existing rules, the minimum age for admission to Class 1 was six years, but children who had completed five years were also eligible.
The new criteria will not apply to students already enrolled in nursery to Class 1 during the academic year 2026-27. Students who have passed their previous class from any recognised school will also be exempt from the new age rules when seeking admission to the next class.
The government has allowed school heads to grant a relaxation of 15 days in the minimum and maximum age limits for admission from nursery to Class 1.
The Directorate of Primary Education will issue further instructions and guidelines for implementing the revised admission criteria, the government resolution stated.
