UP NEET PG Counselling 2026: Round 1 from 21 October

Uttar Pradesh opens its PG counselling tomorrow — here is the Round 1 timetable

Uttar Pradesh begins its NEET PG 2026 state counselling tomorrow. The Directorate General of Medical Education and Training, Uttar Pradesh (DGME UP) opens Round 1 registration on 21 October 2026 at 2 PM, for admission to MD, MS, Diploma and DNB seats in the state's government and private medical colleges on the basis of NEET PG 2026 rank. The round is compressed — registration, payment, merit list, choice filling, allotment and admission all complete by mid-November — so this article lays out the timetable in full, with one honesty note up front: the schedule below was reported identically by three independent counselling trackers within a day of the announcement, and the UP NEET portal was confirmed live on 20 October, but candidates must re-confirm each deadline on upneet.gov.in itself before acting, because the portal's notice is the only version that binds.

The Round 1 timetable, step by step

Read the sequencing carefully, because three deadlines fall on the same day. Registration closes at 11 AM on 26 October, but payment of the registration fee and security money remains open till 2 PM the same day — a grace built for candidates who register at the end of the window. The merit list is published on 26 October itself, and choice filling opens the same evening at 5 PM, running to 5 PM on 30 October. There is no breathing room between the merit list and choice filling: if you intend to participate, your preference list should be drafted before 26 October, not after you see your state merit position.

Fees: what you pay, and when

Registration carries a non-refundable registration fee of ₹3,000, payable in the registration window, together with the security money prescribed for the seat types you intend to compete for — both must be paid by 2 PM on 26 October 2026 for your registration to count. Treat the two payments as separate obligations: a completed registration form without completed payment is an incomplete application, and the merit list is drawn from completed applications. Keep the payment receipts; they are your proof if a transaction dispute arises at the merit-list stage.

The size of the UP pool

Uttar Pradesh is one of India's largest PG counselling pools. As counselling-guide data puts it, the state pool spans more than 60 colleges, with approximately 2,618 government seats and 3,021 private seats across MD/MS, Diploma and DNB courses. Treat those figures as orientation, not as the Round 1 matrix: the seats actually available in Round 1 are those DGME publishes in its seat matrix on the portal, net of the All India Quota share and any seats withheld or added by notice. Build your choice list from the published matrix, and use the guide figures only to understand the scale of the competition — a large government pool at state-quota fees, and an even larger private pool whose fee structures vary sharply by college and course.

PMHS candidates: separate document lists apply

Candidates in the PMHS (Provincial Medical and Health Services) category should note that the portal carries separate eligible-candidate document lists for MD/MS and for DNB. If you are a PMHS in-service candidate, download the list that matches your course type and verify your name and documents against it before choice filling — a PMHS candidate who follows the general document checklist can reach admission (12–13 November) with the wrong set. This is the single most category-specific instruction in the round, and it is easy to miss because it sits on the portal as its own notice rather than inside the main schedule.

How UP Round 1 runs alongside MCC Round 1

The timing is not a coincidence: MCC's NEET PG 2026 Round 1 reporting runs 26 October to 2 November 2026, overlapping UP's choice filling and allotment almost exactly. Many candidates will be active in both processes at once. Three practical consequences follow. First, watch both calendars together — a decision deadline in one process (joining an MCC seat, for instance) can fall inside the other's choice-filling window. Second, an allotment in one process interacts with the other under the respective joining, resignation and security-money rules; read both rule sets before you join anything. Third, do not let the UP merit list's same-day turnaround (26 October) catch you unprepared while you are travelling for MCC reporting — draft your UP preferences this week.

Your action checklist

1. 21 October, 2 PM:register on upneet.gov.in as soon as the window opens; do not wait for the final morning.
2. By 26 October, 11 AM:complete registration. By 2 PM: complete the ₹3,000 registration fee and security money payment.
3. 26 October:check the merit list, verify your state rank and category details, and report any discrepancy through the portal's channel the same day.
4. 26 October, 5 PM – 30 October, 5 PM:fill and lock choices from the published seat matrix, ranked in true order of preference.
5. PMHS candidates:verify your documents against the separate MD/MS or DNB eligible-candidate list on the portal.
6. 2 November:check the allotment. 3–7 November: download the allotment letter. 12–13 November: complete admission at the allotted college with original documents.
7. Throughout:re-confirm every date on upneet.gov.in — portal notices override this summary if any figure differs.

Official links

• UP NEET portal (DGME Uttar Pradesh): https://upneet.gov.in/
• Directorate General of Medical Education and Training, Uttar Pradesh: https://dgme.up.gov.in/

Related guides on StudyDesk