NEET 2026: Notification Out, Exam Date, Registration, Eligibility, Exam Pattern, Syllabus

NEET 2026: The National Testing Agency (NTA) has released the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate level) Notification 2026 on February 8, 2026. Along with the NEET UG 2026 notification, the NTA has also started the NEET UG registration 2026. The last day to submit the NEET application form is March 8, 2026. The NEET Undergraduate exam will be held on May 3, 2026, as per the official notifictaion.

NTA has issued an advisory for the NEET UG applications 2026. As per the official notice released on January 5, 2026, candidates are advised to ensure that their Aadhaar Card, UDID card and Category certificate are accurate, valid and duly updated before the NEET UG application 2026. 

The NEET UG 2026 exam is a national entrance exam for MBBS, BDS, and other undergraduate medical courses in India, conducted by the National Testing Agency under the National Medical Commission (NMC). The application process for the NEET Undergraduate-level exams is conducted online. Before filling out the NEET application form, candidates are advised to check the NEET UG 2026 eligibility criteria.

After the NEET UG 2026 registration, candidates will be eligible to receive their NEET admit cards for the exam. Candidates appearing for the exam are advised to go through the NEET syllabus to prepare well. The syllabus is available on the official website neet.nta.nic.in. The NTA releases the NEET result after the conclusion of the examination. Qualifying candidates will be eligible to appear for the NEET counselling process, which will be conducted by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC).

NEET UG 2026: Advisory on Application Form

The NTA has issued instructions on January 5, 2026, on the updation of the Aadhaar Card, UDID Card, and Category Certificate (EWS/SC/ST/OBC-NCL) before filling the online application form for NEET UG 2026. Candidates must ensure that the following documents are updated well in advance before applying for NEET UG 2026 to avoid any discrepancies, grievances or rejection at a later stage.

Aadhaar Card: All candidates appearing for the NEET UG 2026 exam are advised to ensure that their Aadhaar Card is accurate, valid and duly updated in all respects. The Aadhaar details must correctly reflect the following information of the candidate:

Candidates requiring any correction or update in their Aadhaar details may do so by following the UIDAI guidelines. For Aadhaar update-related services, candidates may visit the official UIDAI website (uidai.gov.in or myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in).

UDID Card (for Persons with Disabilities): Candidates must ensure that the UDID Card is valid, updated and renewed, as required.
Category Certificate: Candidates must check that their category certificates (EWS/SC/ST/OBC-NCL) are updated and valid.

For more information, it is advisable to visit the official websites, nta.ac.in and neet.nta.nic.in, for updates, instructions, or notices regarding NEET UG 2026.

NEET Exam 2026: Highlights

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test or NEET UG exam is for those students who wish to take admission to MBBS and BDS courses in India. The NEET UG exam takes place once a year in offline mode for a duration of three hours. The NEET exam is conducted in 13 languages across the country. Check highlights below.

Courses such as MBBS, BDS, BSc Nursing, BAMS, Veterinary, and other medical/paramedical courses are offered through NEET UG. Last year (2025), over 22 lakh students appeared in the NEET UG examination, out of which 12.3 lakh candidates qualified. In 2024, more than 24 lakh students appeared for the NEET examination.

NEET UG 2026 Official Notification

The National Testing Agency has released the NEET UG official notification for the year 2026. The NEET UG 2026 official notification aligns with historical trends. The exam conducting body released the official notification on February 8, 2026. The registartion window closes on March 8, 2026. The exam conducting body will conduct the NEET UG exam on May 3, 2026.

Last year, the authorities released the application form on February 7, 2025. Candidates were allowed to register online till March 7, 2025. Last year, the exam was conducted on May 4, 2025.

NEET Eligibility 2026

Candidates interested in appearing for the NEET exam must check the eligibility requirements before registering online. The NEET UG eligibility consists of factors including nationality, age limit, and educational qualification. 

Nationality: 

Candidates appearing for the NEET exam should belong to the following nationalities to be eligible for the exam:

• Indian Nationals
• Non-Resident Indians (NRIs)
• Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)
• Persons of Indian Origin (PIO)
• Foreign Nationals

Age Limit:

• Candidates appearing for NEET should have a minimum age of as of December 31, 2024, and should be 17 years.
• The NMC has removed the upper age  limit of 25 years for General category candidates and 30 years for reserved category candidates.

Minimum qualification:

• Candidates must have passed their class 12 or an equivalent from a recognised institute and Board
• Candidates who are appearing for their class 12 boards or equivalent in 2024 can also apply for NEET
• Candidates who have completed class 12 or equivalent from an open school are also eligible.

Subjects which are mandatory:

• Candidates are required to clear their Class 12 or equivalent with Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.
• Candidates having Biology as an additional subject in their Class 12 or equivalent are also eligible.

Eligibility for MBBS abroad:

Students interested in studying MBBS abroad can check eligibility requirements for various countries. Some of the most popular countries for MBBS include Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Bangladesh and China. To apply for MBBS in these countries, candidates are required to be qualified in NEET UG examination. Candidates are required to have studied physics, chemistry, and biology in their class 12th. They also must have scored a minimum aggregate of 50% in class 12th to be eligible for studying MBBS abroad. Read more: NEET MBBS study abroad eligibility

NEET Registration 2026

NTA's notification, expected in the first week of February 2026, will detail the complete schedule for NEET UG 2026 application, including registration start and end dates. NEET UG 2026 registration will commence alongside or shortly after the notification, running until the first week of March 2026, with a correction window in mid-March. The exam is tentatively slated for May 2026, followed by results in June and counselling from July. The registration process for NEET 2026 will be done in online mode only. 

NEET Application Fee for UG Exam 2026

NEET UG 2026 application fees follow the standard category-wise structure set by the NTA. Check the application fee for NEET UG registration in the table given below.

These non-refundable fees are paid online during registration at neet.nta.nic.in.

NEET Admit Card 2026

The NEET admit card will be released by the National Testing Agency on the official website. Only the candidates who register for NEET online will be eligible to download their hall tickets. Candidates are required to carry the hard copy of their NEET UG admit cards along with them to the exam centre. Without the hall tickets, candidates will not be allowed to enter the examination hall. 

NTA will likely release the NEET hall tickets 3 days before the date of exam. The admit cards will be released in online mode only. Candidates are advised to download their hall tickets and check all the details mentioned carefully. In case of any discrepancy or error found, candidates must report it to the NTA authorities immediately.

NEET Syllabus 2026 

NEET syllabus consists of three subjects – Physics, Chemistry, and Biology (Botany and Zoology). Candidates must have good knowledge of these three subjects from class 10 to class 12, as questions in the exam will come from these subjects. Candidates are advised to go through the NEET syllabus thoroughly before starting their preparation.

NEET Exam Pattern 2026

NEET 2026 exam pattern is designed by the National Testing Agency (NTA). As per the NEET exam pattern, the question paper consists of 200 multiple-choice objective-type questions from different subjects including Physics, Chemistry, and Biology (further divided into Botany and Zoology).

Each question carries four marks under the NEET UG test marking structure, and one mark is subtracted for each incorrect response. A total of 720 marks will be awarded for the NEET exam 2026. 

Minimum Marks Required to Qualify for NEET UG

• General category: 50 per cent
• PWD category: 45 per cent
• SC/ST/OBC: 40 per cent

NEET Result 2026 

Result for NEET UG exam will be released after the examination is concluded. Candidates will be able to check the NEET result from the official website. In order to download the scorecard, candidates need to visit the NEET login page and use their credentials to login. 

Along with the results, the NTA also announces names of toppers, marks scored by them and the NEET category-wise cut off marks. Further, the scorecard includes details about the student, such as name, roll number, overall percentile, All India Rank, qualifying status, and cutoff scores.

NEET Cut Off 2026

The cut off for NEET UG 2026 will be prepared based on the performance of the candidates, and number of candidates appearing for the exam. Check the previous year’s NEET UG cut off provided below: 

NEET UG Counselling 2026

NEET counselling is conducted by the Medical Counselling Committee every year. After the completion of the NEET exam, those candidates who qualify will be allowed to participate in the NEET counselling 2026. The counselling process consists of  4 rounds including Round 1, 2, 3 and Stray Vacancy round.

While MCC will conduct the NEET counselling process for the 15 per cent All India Quota (AIQ) seats, the State Counselling Authorities will conduct the NEET counselling for the specific 85% state quota seats.

NEET UG 2026: Courses Offered

Candidates can take a look at the following courses which they can pursue after qualifying the NEET UG exam.

• MBBS
• BDS
• Ayurvedic Medicine
• Homoeopathy Medicine
• Unani Medicine
• Siddha Medicine
• Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry
• BSc (Hons) Nursing
• Bachelor of Physiotherapy
• Bachelor of Occupational Therapy
• Bachelor of Audiology, Speech and Language Pathology
• Bachelor of Prosthetics and Orthotics.

NEET Exam 2026: Foreign Exam Cities

As per the NEET UG notification released by NTA last year, candidates are now able to apply for 14 new foreign exam cities for the exam. A centre change option is available for the candidates who already registered for the examination. The following international cities have been added to the NEET UG examination centre list: