If you’ve been refreshing mcc.nic.in every hour waiting for good news, here it is: the National Medical Commission (NMC) has just released the seat matrix for 2026-27, confirming 1,36,939 MBBS seats across 823 medical colleges in India. That’s the highest seat count India has ever had — and it directly affects how the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) will run this year’s NEET UG counselling.
But because the original NEET UG 2026 exam was cancelled after paper-leak allegations and a Re-NEET was conducted, this year’s counselling calendar looks different from a normal year. In this guide, you’ll learn exactly what’s confirmed, what’s still tentative, how to check your eligibility, what the cutoffs look like, and how to prepare so you don’t lose a single day once registration opens.
What’s Confirmed So Far
The NEET UG 2026 exam originally scheduled for May 3 was cancelled following paper-leak allegations. NTA conducted a Re-NEET on June 21, 2026, with over 22 lakh candidates appearing, and results with category-wise cutoffs have since been declared. Because of this two-month shift, MCC counselling 2026 is expected to begin roughly one to two weeks after results — most projections point to a late July to August 2026 start for AIQ Round 1.
Keep in mind: every date floating around right now is a projection based on past patterns, not an official MCC notification. Only mcc.nic.in has the final word.
NMC’s 1.36 Lakh Seat Matrix Explained
This is the real headline. According to the Medical Assessment & Rating Board (MARB), the total seat count for 2026-27 breaks down like this:
- Total MBBS seats: 1,36,939 across 823 colleges (excluding AIIMS, JIPMER, PGIMER)
- Government colleges: 63,296 seats across 441 colleges
- Private colleges: 73,643 seats across 382 colleges
- New seats added this year: 9,911 (from 25 newly approved colleges)
- Renewed seats: 1,27,028 carried forward from last year
That’s roughly an 8% jump from around 1.27 lakh seats in 2025 — a meaningful expansion that should ease competition slightly, especially in states with the biggest gains.
States with the largest seat increases:
- Karnataka: +1,300 seats (now 15,395 total — the highest in India)
- West Bengal: +825 seats (now 7,200)
- Telangana: +810 seats (now 10,250)
- Uttar Pradesh: +800 seats (now 14,000)
- Bihar: +740 seats (now 4,160)
- Maharashtra: +400 seats (now 13,099)
One important caveat: MARB clarified this matrix is based on approvals as of July 13, 2026, and may still be revised if the Appeal Committee or courts intervene — which happens almost every year, so don’t be surprised if the number shifts slightly before Round 1 closes.
MCC NEET Counselling 2026 — Expected Dates
MCC conducts counselling for the 15% All India Quota (AIQ) seats, deemed/central universities, AIIMS, JIPMER, and other specified institutes in four rounds:
| Round | Expected Timeline (2026) |
|---|---|
| Seat Matrix Release | Already released (July 14, 2026) |
| Round 1 Registration & Choice Filling | Late July – early August 2026 |
| Round 1 Allotment & Reporting | August 2026 |
| Round 2 | Mid-to-late August 2026 |
| Round 3 (Mop-Up) | September 2026 |
| Stray Vacancy Round | September–October 2026 |
The remaining 85% state quota seats are handled separately by each state’s counselling authority, on a different (often overlapping) schedule.
Real-world tip: AIQ Round 1 almost always opens before state Round 1. Candidates who wait for their state’s notification while ignoring MCC’s window often lose their AIQ chance entirely. Track both simultaneously.
Eligibility Criteria
To register for MCC NEET Counselling 2026, you must:
- Have a valid, qualifying NEET UG 2026 score card
- Be at least 17 years old by December 31, 2026
- Be an Indian citizen, NRI, OCI, or eligible foreign national (as per NMC rules)
- Have completed 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology, and English
- Meet the category-wise qualifying percentile in NEET (see below)
Reserved-category candidates must also hold valid caste/category certificates issued by a competent authority, and PwBD candidates need a disability certificate from an authorized medical board.
NEET 2026 Cutoff Marks (Category-Wise)
The qualifying percentile never changes year to year — only the corresponding marks shift based on difficulty and performance. For NEET 2026:
- General/EWS: 50th percentile → marks range 715–213
- OBC/SC/ST: 40th percentile → marks range 212–177
- UR-PwBD: 45th percentile
- OBC/SC/ST-PwBD: 40th percentile
No candidate scored the perfect 720 this year; the top score of 715 was shared by two candidates.
Important distinction: the qualifying cutoff just makes you eligible to sit in counselling — it doesn’t guarantee a seat. The admission cutoff (the actual rank/marks needed to get into a specific college) is far higher and varies by college, category, and round. A general-category student scoring 213 marks qualifies for NEET but has virtually no realistic shot at a government MBBS seat — that’s the gap many first-time aspirants misunderstand.
Registration Guide
- Visit the official MCC website — mcc.nic.in
- Click on “New Registration 2026”
- Enter your NEET roll number, date of birth, and security code
- Set your password; login credentials go to your registered email/mobile
- Fill in personal, educational, and category details; upload photograph and signature
- Pay the registration/security fee (varies by category, non-refundable in most cases)
- Fill choices — list colleges/courses in genuine order of preference
- Lock your choices before the deadline (no changes allowed after locking)
- Check seat allotment result on the scheduled date
- If allotted, report to the college within the given window with original documents
Documents You’ll Need
Keep these ready in both physical and scanned form well before Round 1 opens:
- NEET 2026 admit card and scorecard
- Class 10 and 12 mark sheets & certificates
- Category certificate (OBC/SC/ST/EWS), if applicable
- Domicile/residence certificate (for state quota)
- PwBD certificate, if applicable
- Passport-size photographs (same as used in NEET application)
- Valid photo ID (Aadhaar/passport)
- Provisional allotment letter (after allotment)
Tips & Best Practices
- Fill more choices, not fewer. Locking only 5–10 colleges drastically limits your options; serious candidates often list 50–100+.
- Order choices by genuine preference, not just “safe” options — the algorithm allots the highest-preference seat you’re eligible for.
- Don’t skip a round hoping for a better one. If you’re allotted a seat and don’t report or don’t exercise a valid exit option, you risk forfeiting your security deposit or facing a debarment in later rounds.
- Track your state counselling body too — many candidates get a state seat and lose their AIQ opportunity simply because they weren’t monitoring both.
- Use official rank predictors cautiously — they’re estimates, not guarantees.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Missing the choice-locking deadline (unlocked choices may not be considered)
- Uploading blurry or mismatched documents
- Assuming the qualifying cutoff is the same as the admission cutoff
- Not reading the college-wise fee structure before locking a private/deemed college choice
- Ignoring email/SMS alerts from MCC — resend requests and corrections are time-bound
- Waiting till the last day to pay the registration fee (payment gateways slow down under heavy traffic)
Latest Trends & Updates
- The 2026-27 seat matrix reflects the largest one-year addition in recent memory, continuing a multi-year expansion trend (1,17,750 in 2024 → 1,29,026 in 2025 → 1,36,939 in 2026).
- NMC has explicitly warned colleges against admitting beyond the approved intake — a response to past disputes over “excess admissions.”
- Because of the Re-NEET delay, the entire 2026 counselling cycle is compressed, which may mean shorter windows between rounds this year — reason enough to prepare documents in advance.
Key Takeaways
- NMC has approved 1,36,939 MBBS seats across 823 colleges for 2026-27 — up ~8% from last year.
- MCC NEET Counselling 2026 is expected to start late July/August 2026, following the delayed Re-NEET result.
- NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff: 50th percentile (General/EWS), 40th percentile (OBC/SC/ST).
- Qualifying NEET doesn’t guarantee a seat — admission cutoffs are significantly higher and vary by college.
- Always monitor both MCC (AIQ) and your state counselling authority simultaneously.
Conclusion
This year’s NEET counselling cycle has been anything but ordinary — a cancelled exam, a Re-NEET, and a compressed timeline. But the silver lining is real: 1.36 lakh MBBS seats is the highest capacity India has ever offered, giving aspirants genuinely better odds than in previous years. The best move right now is to keep your documents ready, watch mcc.nic.in for the official notification, and avoid relying on unverified “leaked” dates circulating on social media. When MCC drops the official schedule, you’ll want to be ready to register within hours, not days.