New Delhi: The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday said the result of the re‑NEET UG 2026 will be published by July 20, and that the delay caused by the re‑examination will not push back the start of the MBBS academic year.
A senior NTA official, speaking to ANI, said the agency is working “on a war footing” to declare the results as soon as possible but would not commit to a specific date beyond the July 20 deadline.
The official noted that while results are normally released within 45 days of the exam, this cycle has been compressed because the retest was held 37 days after the cancelled May 3 paper, meaning “we will announce the results much earlier.”
Challenges Under Review
The provisional answer key for the June 21 re‑NEET had been published on June 25, with candidates permitted to file objections until June 28. The NTA said it received roughly 10,000 challenges and is examining each submission and its supporting evidence before finalising the answer key and preparing the result.
“We need to scan all the challenges one by one, examine the supporting evidence, and respond to each one of them,” the official said.
The agency also confirmed the ₹200 processing fee charged per question will be refunded if a challenge is upheld.
Counselling, Academic Year On Schedule
Although the counselling timetable remains unclear, the NTA official assured that the re‑exam will not delay commencement of the MBBS academic session. After results are released, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) publishes the schedule for the 15 per cent All India Quota (AIQ), AIIMS, JIPMER, central and deemed universities, while state authorities set their own timetables for the 85 per cent state quota.
For reference, the MCC issued the NEET‑UG 2025 counselling schedule on July 12–13, 2025, roughly a week after the result; Round 1 registration began on July 21, 2025, giving candidates about eight days to prepare. In a standard year, first‑year MBBS classes typically start in August or September, depending on how quickly counselling concludes. The official reiterated that this year’s session “will begin on time.”
The June 21 re‑examination followed the cancellation of the May 3 exam — which had been taken by more than 20 lakh candidates — after allegations of a question paper leak.
States are already taking preparatory steps: Tamil Nadu’s Medical Selection Committee, for example, has opened applications in anticipation of the NEET result.
