MCC Round 3 Registration 2026: The Step by Step Guide

MCC Round 3 registration for NEET UG 2026 opened on 22 September 2026 and closes at 3:00 PM on 27 September 2026, with the payment window open until 6:00 PM the same day. Choice filling runs from 23 September to 12:00 noon on 28 September, and the result is declared on 30 September 2026.

Round 3 is not Round 1 with different dates. It is the round you cannot walk out of, and that changes how you should fill your choices.

Key Takeaways

• Registration and payment close on 27 September 2026, at 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM respectively, as per server time.

• A candidate who is allotted a seat in Round 3 cannot resign or exit it, and cannot take part in any counselling after joining.

• Upgradation is available up to Round 3 and stops there, so this is the last chance to move up.

• Deemed university registration costs Rs. 5,000 non-refundable plus a Rs. 2,00,000 refundable security deposit; the all India quota costs Rs. 1,000 plus Rs. 10,000 for unreserved and EWS candidates.

• Seat category conversion is carried out in Round 3, so branches that looked closed in earlier rounds can open up.

What is the MCC Round 3 schedule for 2026?

The Medical Counselling Committee published the schedule for Rounds 2, 3 and 4 on 14 September 2026. Every time below is server time, and the MCC has directed institutes to treat Saturdays, Sundays and gazetted holidays as working days.

Schedule from the MCC counselling schedule for Rounds 2, 3 and 4, dated 14 September 2026, covering the 15 per cent all India quota, deemed and central universities, AFMC, ESIC, all AIIMS and JIPMER for MBBS, BDS and BSc Nursing.

How to complete MCC Round 3 registration, step by step

Fresh candidates and candidates who did not join a seat in earlier rounds both register here. Work through it in this order, and do not leave payment to the last afternoon.

1. Open the MCC portal and register afresh for Round 3. Registration for an earlier round does not carry forward, so this step is compulsory even if you registered in Round 1 or Round 2.

2. Pay the registration fee and the security deposit for the stream you are entering, using an account in your own name. The security deposit is refunded only to the account it came from, and MCC will not refund to an NRI account.

3. Fill your choices from 23 September. Fill more choices than you think you need, in true preference order, because a short list is the most common reason a candidate is left unallotted.

4. Lock your choices between 7:00 PM on 27 September and 12:00 noon on 28 September. Choices that are not locked are auto-locked at the deadline, so lock them yourself and keep the confirmation.

5. Check the result on 30 September, then report at the allotted institute between 1 and 9 October with the original documents.

What does MCC Round 3 registration cost?

Two payments are taken at registration: a non-refundable registration fee and a refundable security deposit. The amounts depend on which counselling you are entering, not on the round.

Figures from the revised MCC undergraduate counselling information bulletin dated 20 August 2026. A candidate applying for both government and deemed seats pays both sets. The financial custodian is HLL Lifecare Limited, and the security deposit is refunded after all rounds close, without interest.

What makes Round 3 different from Rounds 1 and 2?

One rule, and it is the reason this page exists. A candidate allotted a seat in Round 3 cannot give it up.

The MCC bulletin states that candidates are advised to take an informed decision about continuing in the third round of all India quota, deemed or central university counselling, as they will not be permitted to resign from the third round, and will not be allowed to participate in any counselling after joining in the third round. The resignation section repeats it plainly: candidates cannot resign or exit Round 3 allotted seats.

There is a second consequence that catches families out. Data is shared between the centre and the states, and a candidate whose name appears on either allotment list is removed from the all India stray vacancy round. Holding a Round 3 seat closes the stray round too.

So the choice list you lock on 28 September is the list you are committing to. A college you would not actually attend should not be on it.

Is upgradation still available in Round 3?

Yes, and this is where it ends. The MCC states that the facility for upgradation will be available up to Round 3.

If you are already holding a seat from Round 1 or Round 2 and want to try for something better, you give willingness for upgradation as a float candidate. If the upgrade comes through, you move. If it does not, you keep the seat you have. After the Round 3 result is declared, reporting is mandatory for every candidate allotted in Round 3 and for float candidates from Rounds 1 and 2 who did not upgrade.

A freeze candidate, one who is satisfied with the seat already held, does not enter this at all.

Why more seats can appear in Round 3

Seat category conversion is carried out in Round 3, and only in Round 3, for the all India quota, deemed and central universities, AIIMS, JIPMER and BSc Nursing. Conversion happens when the eligible candidates in a reserved conversion category have been exhausted, and the seat then moves to another category under the MCC conversion algorithm.

This is why a branch or a college that looked unreachable after Round 2 can suddenly appear. It is also why filling a longer choice list in Round 3 is worth the extra half hour.

The four round structure itself comes from a Supreme Court order. The scheme was modified by the order dated 16 December 2021 in Nihila P.P. versus MCC and others, which approved four online rounds of all India quota counselling: Round 1, Round 2, Round 3 and the stray vacancy round. Because of that order, no seats are reverted to the participating states after Round 2 any more.

What happens after Round 3?

The online stray vacancy round follows, and the schedule for it is already published.

From the same MCC schedule dated 14 September 2026. Remember that joining a Round 3 seat removes a candidate from this round entirely.

What to do if Round 3 does not work out

If the stray vacancy round also closes without a seat, the realistic options are a state quota seat if any state round is still running, a management or NRI seat in a private college, a year of repeating NEET, or a medical degree abroad.

Each of those is a different kind of decision and they are not interchangeable. A private seat and a European university now cost broadly similar amounts, and the abroad route adds a screening examination and a further year of internship in India before registration. Both are covered in the pages below, with the official figures.

What to read next

• Private MBBS in India vs MBBS abroad puts the full cost of both routes side by side.

• Is private MBBS in India worth it covers the quota bands and what each one really costs.

• Is MBBS abroad worth it sets out the FMGE pass data country by country.

• NEET UG 2026 stray vacancy round covers the round that follows this one.

• Missed MCC Round 2 reporting explains where a candidate stands after a missed deadline.