MCC NEET UG Counselling 2026

MCC NEET UG Counselling 2026

What NEET UG counselling actually is

NEET UG counselling is the process through which qualified candidates are allotted MBBS and BDS seats. The Medical Counselling Committee conducts it for All India Quota, deemed and central universities. Qualifying NEET does not get you a seat. Counselling does.

Round 1 is open right now

Registration and payment run 5 to 12 August 2026, until 3 PM, with payment open until 6 PM. Choice filling runs 6 to 13 August, closing at 11 AM. Choice locking is open from 4 PM on 12 August until 11 AM on 13 August.

When you find out

Seat allotment is processed 13 to 16 August 2026 and the Round 1 result is declared on 17 August 2026. Reporting and joining runs 18 to 22 August 2026. Counselling then continues through Round 2, Round 3 and a Stray Vacancy Round. Miss a reporting window and the seat is forfeited.

New rule one: upgradation stops after Round 3

Upgradation is available only up to Round 3 in 2026. In earlier cycles students treated upgradation as an open-ended safety net. It now closes after Round 3, which changes how aggressively your first two rounds of choices should be filled.

New rule two: no exit from a Round 3 seat

Candidates allotted a seat in Round 3 cannot resign or exit that seat. This is the most consequential change this year. Accepting a Round 3 seat is final, so the choice list you submit in Round 3 has to be one you can live with for five and a half years.

What it costs to take part

UR and EWS candidates pay Rs 1,000 plus a Rs 10,000 refundable deposit. SC, ST, OBC and PwD candidates pay Rs 500 plus Rs 5,000. Deemed universities cost Rs 5,000 plus Rs 2,00,000. MCC has also reminded NRI quota applicants to confirm they meet the Supreme Court eligibility criteria.

The numbers behind your strategy

Qualifying bands this year run 715 to 213 for UR and EWS, and 212 to 177 for OBC, SC and ST. But 11.21 lakh candidates qualified against 63,296 government seats, roughly 5.6 per 100 qualifiers. A plan B needs to exist before Round 3, not after it.

Understand the path before you choose one.

Read the full counselling breakdown, the seat matrix, and the honest assessment of what happens if the seat does not come, with every figure sourced.