NEET PG 2026: state quota counselling round 1 runs 21 October to 2 November, under the national calendar
A combined calendar from the Medical Counselling Committee sets the dates by which states must run their 50% quota MD/MS rounds. State round 1 runs from 21 October to 2 November, round 2 from 14 to 23 November and round 3 from 4 to 12 December. Every stray round must be joined by 31 December.
Most postgraduate medical seats are filled in two parallel streams. The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) runs the all-India quota and deemed and central universities, and each state runs its own 50% quota. On 8 October 2026, MCC posted the combined NEET PG 2026 schedule that keeps the two in step. It is the first document to set dates for state rounds.
The joint calendar
| Round | All-India / deemed / central | Join AIQ seat by | State counselling | Join state seat by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 12 to 24 Oct | 2 Nov | 21 Oct to 2 Nov | 10 Nov |
| Round 2 | 6 to 14 Nov | 23 Nov | 14 to 23 Nov | 30 Nov |
| Round 3 | 26 Nov to 4 Dec | 12 Dec | 4 to 12 Dec | 18 Dec |
| Stray vacancy | 16 to 24 Dec | 31 Dec | 22 to 25 Dec | 31 Dec |
The PG academic session is set to begin on 20 November 2026. Medical colleges have been told to treat Saturdays, Sundays and gazetted holidays as working days to keep to the timeline.
Why the overlap matters
- The two streams overlap. State round 1 opens on 21 October, three days before MCC's round-1 result (due 24 October), and closes on 2 November, the last day to join an AIQ round-1 seat. Expect to register for your state while the national round is still running.
- Joined candidates are shared. MCC sends lists of candidates who joined AIQ seats to the states (by 3 November for round 1). The states send theirs back (by 11 November). This is how a seat you take in one stream is removed from the other.
- Know each authority's exit rules. MCC's information bulletin lets you resign a round-1 seat freely but forfeits the deposit after round 2 and blocks resignation of round-3 seats. State rules differ. Read both before you join anything in round 2 or later.
What to do this week
MCC's round 1 registration opens on 12 October. Your state's directorate of medical education (or its admission committee) will issue its own notice within the window above. Watch that site as well as MCC's, because state registration is separate and often needs a domicile certificate.
CareerBox News Desk — reporting on the Medical Counselling Committee’s combined NEET-PG 2026 schedule for all-India quota, deemed and central universities and state quota, posted on 8 October 2026. Official portal: mcc.nic.in/pg-medical-counselling/. Dates and eligibility change; confirm them on the official portal before you act.