Last updated on: February 27, 2026
Yuvika Rathi
College Student
The registration for the NEET UG 2026 started from February 8 and will be open till March 8 . But this isn't just another year of NEET. The neet ug2026 notification introduces strict verification steps that every student must follow to avoid application rejection. The National Testing Agency has fundamentally overhauled the registration process — and students who treat this like NEET 2025 are walking into avoidable rejections.
The NEET UG 2026 exam will be held on May 3, 2026, which gives you exactly 75 days from registration close to exam day. But before you can sit for the exam, you need to clear the new verification barriers NTA just erected.
Change 1: Aadhaar-Based eKYC Is Now Mandatory
NEET UG 2026 registration now requires Aadhaar‑based eKYC (electronic Know Your Customer). Candidates must link and verify details such as name, date of birth, and photo with their Aadhaar data when registering. This isn't optional document verification — it's a digital authentication gate. Your mobile number must be linked to your Aadhaar card for OTP verification.
Here's the trap thousands of students are falling into: If your Aadhaar details (Name/DOB) don't match your school certificates, update them before the NEET UG notification window closes. A spelling mismatch between your Class 10 certificate and your Aadhaar card — even something as minor as "Kumar" vs "Kumarr" — can trigger rejection. Reliance on accurate Aadhaar details is crucial — any mismatch with school records can cause verification issues or rejection.
Change 2: Live Photograph Capture During Registration
During the online form submission, a live photograph will be captured directly through the application platform. You cannot simply upload an old gallery photo. You must use a webcam or scan a QR code to capture a real-time live photograph.
Your face must cover 80% of the frame. No caps, spectacles, or masks are allowed. This live photo will be cross-referenced with your Aadhaar data to prevent impersonation IBEF. Students attempting to use photos from their phone gallery or editing software will find the upload blocked entirely. This is biometric-level identity verification, not a document formality.
Change 3: City Selection Now Restricted by Address
For NEET UG 2026, aspirants must choose exam cities based on their present or permanent address, meaning the selections are limited to closer nearby cities only fundaspring. You can no longer strategically pick a distant city because you heard its centers were better. Candidates will be assigned NEET UG exam centres based on their permanent/present address Finlandwayschools.
This change was introduced to reduce long-distance travel chaos and prevent center-gaming, but it has real implications for students whose Aadhaar address is in a tier-3 town with limited testing infrastructure.
The NTA has clearly stated that each candidate should submit only one application form. Submitting multiple applications will lead to cancellation of all forms with no reconsideration fundaspring. In previous years, students sometimes submitted duplicate forms "just to be safe" if they weren't sure the first one went through. That strategy now results in automatic disqualification from NEET 2026 entirely.
The exam structure, syllabus, and fees remain identical to 2025. General: INR 1,700. General-EWS / OBC-NCL: INR 1,600. SC / ST / PwBD / Third Gender: INR 1,000. The National Medical Commission (NMC) has confirmed that the NEET UG 2026 syllabus remains unchanged.
The exam will consist of 180 questions, with each question carrying four marks, and the duration of the examination will be 180 minutes (3 hours) from 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM (IST). The correction window will open from 10–12 March 2026 to fix limited errors— but "limited" is the operative word. You cannot change major fields like name, date of birth, or category during corrections.
NEET 2026 registration isn't harder — it's stricter. Applicants must pay the application fee before 11:50 pm on 8 March 2026, which gives you exactly 28 days from today. The changes aren't designed to exclude students; they're designed to eliminate impersonation and fraud. But if your Aadhaar details don't match your school records, if your mobile number isn't linked to Aadhaar, or if you're planning to use an old photo instead of live capture, you will be rejected — not because you're unqualified, but because you didn't adapt to the new system.