Announcements
NEET UG 2026 Counselling: MCC Extends Round 1 Choice Filling Deadline to August 18
Published on
18 August 2026
The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) extended the choice-filling deadline for Round 1 of NEET UG 2026 counselling, giving registered candidates additional time to finalise their preferred medical and dental colleges.
According to an official MCC notice issued on August 17, candidates could submit their Round 1 choices until 11:59 PM on August 18, 2026. The choice-locking facility began at 5:30 PM on August 17.
The extension gave students additional time to review their MBBS and BDS preferences before the Round 1 seat-allocation process.
MCC had previously scheduled an earlier closure of the choice-filling process. The latest notice extended the deadline until the end of August 18.
| Activity | Revised Timeline |
|---|---|
| Choice Locking Started | August 17, 5:30 PM |
| Choice Filling Deadline | August 18, 11:59 PM |
| Choice Locking | Within revised Round 1 timeline |
MCC advised registered candidates to complete and lock their choices within the revised deadline.
Since the August 18 deadline has now passed, candidates should follow the latest MCC notices for subsequent Round 1 allotment developments rather than attempting to make further changes to their preference lists.
The extension provided candidates with more time to finalise their preferred medical and dental colleges and courses before seat allocation.
For NEET aspirants, choice filling is one of the most important stages of counselling because the preference order submitted by a candidate plays a major role in determining the seat that may eventually be allotted.
Candidates were therefore advised to use the additional time to carefully review and lock their selections.
MCC activated the Round 1 choice-locking facility at 5:30 PM on August 17.
Candidates who had already entered their preferred colleges could review their choices and complete the locking process within the revised timeline.
Before locking preferences, candidates needed to ensure that colleges were arranged according to their actual order of preference.
Important factors to consider included:
NEET counselling does not simply consider which colleges candidates include in their choice list. The order in which those choices are arranged is also important.
A candidate should generally place the college they most wants to join above less-preferred options, subject to their own admission strategy.
For example, students should not place a lower-preference college above their preferred institution merely because they believe its cut-off is easier to achieve.
The allotment process considers factors including the candidate's NEET rank, category, submitted preferences and available seats.
Once choice filling and locking are complete, MCC proceeds with the seat-allotment process according to the updated counselling schedule.
Candidates should monitor the official counselling portal for:
Students should avoid relying on older counselling schedules because MCC has already revised the Round 1 timeline.
While waiting for the next Round 1 update, candidates should organise the documents they may need during college reporting.
These commonly include:
Candidates should verify the final document list against official MCC and college instructions.
As the revised August 18, 11:59 PM choice-filling deadline has passed, candidates who participated in Round 1 should now focus on the seat-allotment stage.
They should regularly check the official MCC counselling portal and ensure their registered contact details remain accessible for admission-related communication.
Candidates should also keep admission documents ready so they can act quickly once the Round 1 allotment outcome and reporting instructions are issued.
