Proposal to NMC: Percentile to Percentage-based Eligibility for NEET 2026

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), is scheduled for May 3rd, 2026. Every year, the eligibility of candidates for the counselling and admission processes was considered based on the percentile. A proposal has been submitted to the National Medical Commission (NMC) for conversion from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026. This article provides an overview of the NEET UG exam, information about the submitted proposal to convert from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026, and other vital information.

Overview of the NEET UG 2026 Exam

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is scheduled to be conducted on May 3rd, 2026, by the National Testing Agency (NTA). The exam will be conducted offline (pen-and-paper mode) from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (3 hours). There are 39 days left for the NEET UG 2026 exam, as of 25th March, 2026. Candidates are advised to strictly adhere to all vital deadlines for obtaining the NEET UG 2026 admit card and other required documents and prepare themselves for the exam.

 

Candidates can obtain a maximum of 720 marks from 180 questions in the NEET UG 2026 exam. Of the 180 questions, 45 will be from Physics, 45 from Chemistry, and 90 from Biology. +4 marks will be granted for a correct answer and -1 for a wrong answer. No marks will be added or reduced for unattempted questions. Candidates must ensure they cover the entire NEET 2026 syllabus while they prepare for the exam.

 

Every year, nearly half of the appearing candidates qualify the NEET UG exam and become eligible for the counselling process based on the percentile ranking system. 12,36,531 candidates qualified the NEET UG 2025 exam out of the 22,09,318 candidates who appeared for the same. This displays the intense competition for the available 1,28,976 MBBS seats across 819 medical colleges.

 

 

Also Read How many students qualify NEET UG every year?

Conversion from Percentile to Percentage-based Eligibility for NEET 2026

A proposal was recently submitted to the National Medical Commission (NMC) regarding changes to the consideration for the NEET UG 2026 counselling and admission processes. Here’s an explanation of the submitted proposal to change from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026:

 

The submitted proposal to change from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026 aims to consider candidates with a fixed percentage to be eligible for the counselling and admission processes. The percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026 focuses on quality and ensures that candidates are conceptually strong, rather than the traditional marking system (where those with even low marks are given opportunities). The submitted proposal differs from the current candidate qualification process for admission that uses the percentile system.

 

Also Read How many students will appear for NEET UG 2026?

Actual Difference Between Percentage and Percentile-based Eligibility Systems

Both terms, percentile and percentage, can be confusing for candidates because they sound similar; however, they are different. Here’s the actual difference between the percentile and percentage-based eligibility systems:

 

• Percentile-based Eligibility: This type of eligibility means that candidates who perform better than a certain percentage of candidates will be eligible for the counselling and admission processes. This qualifying system gives opportunities to candidates with low marks to participate in the counselling and admission processes. This eligibility system is currently in use for the NEET UG admission process. For 2025, the qualifying NEET UG percentile was 50th for candidates under the General UR and General PH categories. For OBC, SC, and ST category candidates, the qualifying percentile for NEET UG 2025 was 40th.
  
  
• Percentage-based Eligibility: The conversion from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026 is the submitted proposal for considering the admission of candidates to medical colleges across India. According to this proposal, candidates must reach a specific percentage fixed by the examination authority to be eligible for the counselling and admission processes. Merely clearing the NEET UG exam will not deem them eligible for the admission process. Candidates must aim higher to reach the percentage set by the authority.

Pros and Cons of Percentile and Percentage-based Systems

Both percentile and percentage-based systems have pros and cons. Here are some of the pros and cons of the percentile and percentage-based systems:

 

• Percentile-based Qualifying System
  Candidates have a chance of admission to medical colleges despite scoring low marks in the NEET UG exam. They simply need to have scores higher than those of a certain group of candidates to be eligible for admission. The major con of this system is that a majority of candidates qualify, resulting in increased competition for limited seats. 
  
  
• Percentage-based Qualifying System
  This system has a fixed score or percentage that candidates must achieve to qualify for admission to medical colleges. The percentage-based qualifying system emphasizes more on quality than on the number of candidates qualifying the exam. This drives candidates and coaching institutes to change their preparation methods and aim for higher exam scores. The competition for seats will be less intense compared to the percentile-based qualifying system as lesser candidates qualify for the counselling process. The major con of this system is that many candidates from weaker backgrounds may not get opportunities due to higher score requirements. Furthermore, this also increases the pressure for candidates.

 

Also Read Medical College Seat Distribution and Total MBBS Seats in India in 2025

 

The percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026 has been set as a proposal to the National Medical Commission and has not been approved yet. The changes for percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026 will apply only if approved. Candidates can reach out to Hello Mentor for further clarification on the conversion from percentile to percentage-based eligibility for NEET 2026. They can also access the company’s information portal for free to view and understand the previous years’ NEET trends.