Nearly 2,000 MBBS Seats Still Empty After NEET UG 2026 Counselling: High Fees Keep Students Away

Nearly 2,000 MBBS seats are lying empty across India even after round after round of NEET UG 2026 counselling. Seats were available, students had qualified, and still the seats did not fill. The reason, in a large number of cases, is simple: the fees were too high.

Reports published on October 30 put the national figure at close to 2,000 vacant MBBS seats. The vacancy lists released by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) showed more than 800 seats unfilled after the final round of central counselling. State counselling rounds added hundreds more to that count, with Karnataka, Telangana, West Bengal and Rajasthan each reporting more than 100 vacant seats.

824 empty seats in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry alone

Tamil Nadu and Puducherry account for the biggest chunk of the problem. As many as 824 MBBS seats across 14 deemed universities in the two regions stayed unallotted after the final central round.

The fee figures explain why. Annual tuition at these deemed universities ranges from Rs 23 lakh to Rs 35 lakh. Government-quota seats in private medical colleges can cost close to Rs 10 lakh a year, while management-quota fees can reach Rs 20 lakh a year. Hostel and mess charges come on top of all this, pushing the yearly bill even higher for families.

For many students, that maths did not work. They had cleared NEET UG, they had a seat in front of them, and they still walked away. Seats exist, qualified students exist, but the price keeps the two apart.

Karnataka: 191 seats empty after seven rounds

Karnataka tells a similar story on a smaller scale. The state reported 191 vacant MBBS seats even after conducting seven rounds of counselling. Reports note that this is the first time in five years that Karnataka has seen such a shortfall.

The state’s Directorate of Medical Education has now approached the National Medical Commission, asking for a reduction in qualifying marks to help fill the remaining seats. Some private medical colleges have also offered fee concessions to attract candidates. Neither step has filled the seats yet, and both show how worried colleges are about starting the academic year with empty classrooms.

The qualifying cut-off for NEET UG 2026 was 213 out of 720 marks for general and EWS candidates, and 177 for OBC, SC and ST candidates. Any change to that bar would need the NMC’s approval, and the regulator has not said yes so far.

Maharashtra filled 98.79 percent, but 138 seats still went begging

Maharashtra closed its NEET UG counselling with a far better record, and still could not fill everything. The State CET Cell said 11,293 students secured admission to MBBS and BDS courses out of 11,431 seats across 99 medical colleges. That is a fill rate of 98.79 percent. MBBS admissions reached 99.04 percent, while BDS stood at 97.93 percent.

Even so, 138 seats remained vacant after the final round. This year Maharashtra changed its system: the state government ended institution-level counselling, so colleges could no longer fill leftover seats on their own. The CET Cell ran six rounds in all, three rounds of the Centralised Admission Process and three stray vacancy rounds.

A private medical college went to the Bombay High Court asking for permission to run its own institution-level round for the leftover MBBS seats. The court refused. The judges kept the new system in place, so those seats stay empty unless another round is ordered.

Seats were available, students had qualified, and still the seats did not fill. The price of a medical degree is now deciding who becomes a doctor.

What happens next depends on the NMC

State governments and medical colleges have asked the National Medical Commission for permission to conduct an additional mop-up round. The NMC’s decision will decide whether any of the remaining seats can still be filled this academic year.

For students, the honest picture is this: no extra round has been announced yet. Anyone telling you a new round is confirmed, or offering a seat for a payment, is not speaking from an official notice. The NEET UG counselling process runs through official portals only, and any fresh round will appear there first.

Students who are still hoping for a seat should keep a few things ready:

• Keep your NEET UG scorecard, rank letter and documents in one folder, so you can act fast if a round opens.
• Check the MCC official portal and your state counselling website every day, not just once a week.
• Do not pay any agent or middleman who promises a seat in a mop-up round.
• Read the fee structure of a college before you lock a choice, including hostel and mess charges.

The vacant-seat story also connects to other counselling troubles this season. Candidates in NEET PG 2026 counselling reported that they could not even complete joining because college offices were unreachable, while Bihar NEET UG stray vacancy allotment showed how the last rounds played out in one state. The pattern is the same across these stories: the system works on paper, but students hit real problems at the last step.

Whether the NMC allows one more round or lets the seats lapse, the fee question will not go away. Until private and deemed university fees come within reach of middle-class families, the same headline will return every year: seats empty, students waiting.

Frequently asked questions

How many MBBS seats are vacant after NEET UG 2026 counselling?

Nearly 2,000 MBBS seats are still vacant across India after multiple rounds of counselling. The Medical Counselling Committee lists show more than 800 seats unfilled after the final central round, and state rounds have added several hundred more.

Why did so many MBBS seats stay empty this year?

High fees are the main reason. Annual tuition at deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry runs from Rs 23 lakh to Rs 35 lakh, and hostel and mess charges sit on top of that. Many NEET-qualified students simply decided they could not afford the seat.

Will there be another round to fill the vacant MBBS seats?

State governments and medical colleges have asked the National Medical Commission for permission to hold an additional mop-up round. The NMC has not announced a decision yet, so nothing is confirmed.

Where can I check official NEET UG counselling updates?

Check the Medical Counselling Committee portal at mcc.nic.in for central counselling, and your state counselling authority website for state quota seats. Do not trust WhatsApp forwards or paid agents claiming to confirm a seat.