NEET PG 2026 counselling: NBEMS clarifies fee rules, joining process for AIQ seats

The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) has issued an advisory providing fresh instructions for candidates allotted postgraduate medical seats through NEET PG 2026 All India Quota (AIQ) counselling. These instructions clarify fee rules and the joining process for candidates. Concurrently, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has released the NEET PG counselling 2026 schedule, with Round 1 reporting currently underway.

These clarifications aim to speed up procedures for reporting, joining, fee payment, seat upgradation, and the commencement of training for NEET PG 2026 AIQ seats. The MCC counselling process covers 50% AIQ seats in postgraduate medical courses, including MD and MS programmes, along with eligible seats in central universities, deemed universities, and Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) institutions. Approximately 16,000 to 17,000 seats are allotted through MCC NEET PG counselling, out of a total of 25,000 to 26,000 AIQ seats.

Joining and Reporting Procedures for Institutions

NBEMS has directed hospitals allotted candidates to update their reporting and joining status on the Intra-MCC portal within the prescribed deadline. Failure to update this status could result in the allotted seat being treated as vacant and carried forward to the next round of counselling. NBEMS-accredited hospitals are also mandated to verify candidates’ original documents at the time of joining and ensure they meet the eligibility criteria specified in the NEET PG 2026 information bulletin.

Candidates under reserved categories must possess valid category certificates. Institutions that knowingly or negligently accept false documents may face action, including a monetary penalty of Rs 1 lakh per candidate. NBEMS has stated it will not intervene in the counselling process conducted by MCC, emphasizing that candidates must begin NBEMS training within the reporting and joining window notified by MCC. No extension of the prescribed reporting or joining date will be permitted under general joining instructions.

Fee Payment Guidelines for ‘Freeze’ and ‘Float’ Options

The NBEMS advisory clarifies fee payment rules based on a candidate’s choice during counselling. Candidates who choose the ‘Freeze’ option, indicating their acceptance of the allotted seat, must pay the first-year annual course fee directly to the NBEMS-accredited hospital. Conversely, candidates opting for ‘Float’, who are awaiting an upgraded allotment in subsequent rounds, are not required to pay the first-year course fee at their initially allotted institution.

For ‘Float’ candidates, the fee will be paid directly to the institute where they ultimately join after exercising the ‘Freeze’ option on an upgraded seat. Participating institutions have been directed not to collect the first-year annual course fee from candidates who have opted for ‘Float’. If a candidate receives an upgraded seat, the training period will be counted from the date of reporting and joining at the upgraded institution. If a seat is not upgraded, the candidate must report to and join the already allotted seat within the prescribed reporting window.

NEET PG 2026 Round 1 Counselling Schedule and Fees

The MCC has released the schedule for NEET PG 2026 Round 1 counselling. Registration for Round 1 began on October 12, 2026, and concluded on October 21, 2026. Choice filling for Round 1 was open from October 13, 2026, to October 22, 2026. The seat allotment result for Round 1 was released on October 24, 2026. Candidates allotted seats in Round 1 are required to report to their respective institutions from October 26 to November 2, 2026. The verification of joined candidates’ data for Round 1 is scheduled for November 3, 2026.

The application fee for NEET PG 2026 varies by category, with General/OBC candidates paying Rs 3,500 and SC/ST/PwD candidates paying Rs 2,500. The counselling process also involves non-refundable registration fees and refundable security deposits. For AIQ seats, the non-refundable registration fee is Rs 1,000 for Unreserved/EWS categories and Rs 500 for Reserved sections. The refundable security deposit for AIQ seats is Rs 25,000 for Unreserved/EWS and Rs 10,000 for Reserved sections. For Deemed Universities, the non-refundable registration fee is Rs 5,000 for all categories, with a refundable security deposit of Rs 2,00,000 for all categories.

Further reading

• Kerala NEET PG provisional merit list released, submit complaints by October 29
• Tamil Nadu NEET PG merit list out: download PDF for 4,654+ MD/MS/Diploma seats
• NEET PG cutoff: previous closing ranks and marks Next step
• INI-CET Jan 2027: Download admit card today, Oct 26
• FMGE October 2026: Download admit card by October 27; exam on October 31
• NEET UG 2026: Apply for private MBBS seats now; fees slashed up to 40% Applications open

Written by Nishit Kumar

Nishit Kumar is a senior EdTech industry leader with over a decade of experience in building and scaling education platforms, shaping their product, content, and growth strategy. At FindMyCollege, Nishit oversees content and editorial strategy, guiding topic selection and content frameworks to ensure accuracy, relevance, and student-first value across the website.

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