The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has resumed choice filling for NEET PG 2026 Round 1. Qualified candidates can register until 12 noon on October 21, pay the counselling fee until 3 PM the same day and submit choices until 10 AM on October 22, according to the official All India Quota schedule.

Round 1 covers the 50% All India Quota, 100% seats in deemed and central universities, DNB seats and AFMS registration. MCC is scheduled to publish the Round 1 allotment result on October 24. Candidates allotted a seat will have to complete the applicable joining process between October 26 and November 2.

NEET PG 2026 Round 1 counselling dates

All times are based on MCC server time. Registration and payment have different closing times, while choice filling continues into the morning of October 22. Candidates should not treat the payment deadline as an extension of the registration deadline.

Who can participate in MCC NEET PG counselling?

Candidates must have qualified NEET PG 2026 and meet the eligibility conditions for the seats they select. The open, domicile-free pool includes 50% All India Quota seats contributed by states, 100% DNB seats, 100% deemed-university seats and the applicable shares of central universities and institutes.

State-quota and private-college seats managed by state authorities are outside MCC's 50% AIQ process. Candidates seeking institutional or internal-quota seats must check the concerned university's eligibility conditions before adding those choices.

For the 50% AIQ pool, the bulletin lists 15% reservation for SC, 7.5% for ST, 27% for OBC-NCL on the Central OBC list, 10% for EWS and 5% horizontal reservation for candidates with benchmark disabilities under the applicable NMC rules.

NEET PG 2026 counselling fees

The amount paid at registration has two parts: a non-refundable registration fee and a refundable security deposit. The security deposit is returned only to the account from which it was paid, subject to the MCC refund and forfeiture rules.

A candidate selecting both AIQ and deemed-university seats pays only the higher deemed-university amount: Rs 5,000 as registration fee and Rs 2 lakh as security deposit. These are counselling payments, not the tuition or admission fee charged by a college.

How to register and fill NEET PG choices

1. Open the PG Medical Counselling section at mcc.nic.in and use the New Registration for NEET PG Counselling 2026 link.
2. Register using the details linked to the NEET PG application and create the counselling password.
3. Confirm personal, category and eligibility details before submitting the form. MCC permits only one counselling registration form per candidate.
4. Pay the applicable registration fee and security deposit through the portal. A candidate becomes eligible for later steps only after full payment.
5. Add course and institute choices in genuine order of preference. There is no official numerical cap on choices.
6. Review and lock choices during the locking window. If saved choices are not manually locked, the system locks them at the deadline, after which they cannot be changed.

Freeze and Float options introduced for 2026

The 2026 bulletin separates allotted candidates into Freeze and Float categories. A Freeze candidate accepts the allotted seat without seeking an upgrade and must physically report to the allotted institute to complete admission.

A Float candidate seeks an upgrade in the next round. The candidate gives willingness online and uploads clear copies of the required documents for online verification by the allotted institute. If the institute finds blurred, missing or mismatched documents, it can raise a query and the candidate must upload corrected records within the reporting schedule. A provisional admission letter does not remove the later physical-reporting requirement when the applicable stage is reached.

Round 1 has a free-exit provision. From Round 2 onward, non-joining or surrender can trigger forfeiture under the round-specific rules. A Round 3 allottee must join; the bulletin says resignation from a Round 3 allotted seat is not allowed.

Documents to keep ready after allotment

The institute verifies admission documents, and an allotment remains provisional until that verification is complete. The MCC bulletin identifies the following among the essential records:

• MCC allotment letter;
• NEET PG admit card and result or rank letter issued by NBE;
• MBBS degree or provisional certificate;
• internship-completion certificate meeting the applicable 2026 cut-off;
• permanent or provisional medical-registration certificate;
• Class 10 or birth certificate for date-of-birth proof; and
• category, EWS or PwD certificate where the claimed reservation requires it.

Candidates using the PwD category need an eligibility certificate generated online by a designated Medical Assessment Board. Those seeking NRI seats must follow the separate NRI document-verification process and select the applicable NRI category during MCC registration.

What happens after the Round 1 result?

MCC will process choices on October 22 and 23 and publish the Round 1 result on October 24. Candidates should read the allotment status, select the appropriate Freeze or Float route and complete document submission and joining steps within the October 26 to November 2 reporting window.

Round 2 registration is scheduled for November 6 to 11, followed by the Round 2 result on November 14. Round 3 registration is scheduled for November 26 to December 1, and the online stray-vacancy round registration is scheduled for December 16 to 21. Each round has separate rules, so candidates should use the live MCC schedule rather than carrying Round 1 exit or joining assumptions into a later round.