What is the NEET 2026 fee refund and who is eligible?

The NEET refund 2026 is a full return of the original registration fee paid by all candidates who registered for NEET UG 2026 before the May 3 examination, which NTA cancelled due to a confirmed paper leak, with the refund portal activated at neet.nta.nic.in on May 21, 2026, and the refund available to every registered candidate regardless of whether they plan to appear for the June 21 re-examination.

Both categories of candidates are eligible: those appearing for the June 21 re-exam, and those who choose not to. The re-exam fee is zero. The refund of the original registration fee is separate and applies to all 22.79 lakh registered candidates without exception.

Candidates who made payments through cyber cafes or someone else’s account may need to coordinate separately with the individual through whom the payment was made. NTA’s automated refund system transfers directly to the bank account submitted on the portal. If the original payment source was not your own account, the refund will return to that source unless you coordinate with NTA separately.

How much is your NEET refund 2026: category wise amounts

NTA has confirmed the category-wise refund amounts for NEET 2026. These are the exact original registration fees. The refund amount does not include payment gateway or bank charges that may have been deducted during the original transaction.

CategoryRefund AmountNote
GeneralRs 1,700Excludes gateway charges
OBC-NCL / EWSRs 1,600Excludes gateway charges
SC / ST / PwD / Third GenderRs 1,000Excludes gateway charges
NRI / InternationalRs 9,500Excludes gateway charges

How to claim your NEET 2026 refund at neet.nta.nic.in: step by step

Official NTA Refund Portal neet.nta.nic.in This is the only legitimate URL for the NEET 2026 refund. Do not use any other link.
  1. Go to neet.nta.nic.in. Do not use any other website, link or app claiming to process the refund.
  2. Log in using your NEET UG 2026 application number and date of birth.
  3. Click on the fee refund module once it appears on your dashboard.
  4. Enter your bank account holder name exactly as it appears on your bank records.
  5. Enter your bank account number, IFSC code, and bank name and branch.
  6. Submit and screenshot the confirmation page or save the acknowledgement number.

NTA has warned that incorrect details may lead to delays or failed transactions. Double-check the IFSC code specifically as it is the most common entry error. Your account holder name must match bank records exactly, including middle names if present.

What is the NEET 2026 refund timeline: when will you receive the money?

Refunds will be processed within 7 to 15 working days from the date of bank detail submission. Candidates who submit their details on May 21, 2026 can expect the amount in their accounts between June 3 and June 11, 2026, before the re-exam on June 21. The refund and the admit card are independent processes. A delayed refund does not affect re-exam eligibility.

The revised NEET UG 2026 admit cards are expected around one week before the re-exam, approximately June 14, 2026. Candidates should check neet.nta.nic.in regularly for both the refund confirmation and the admit card release.

What caused the NEET 2026 cancellation that triggered this refund?

Paper leak confirmed, CBI investigation underway

The May 3, 2026 NEET UG examination was cancelled by NTA after a confirmed paper leak, making it the second major NEET paper leak controversy in three years. The Centre handed the case to the CBI after withdrawing the original examination. Education Minister Pradhan held a high-level review meeting with security agencies and platforms including Meta, Google and Telegram, pushing for tighter vigilance against fake leak claims and misleading exam-related content circulating among the 22.79 lakh affected candidates.

The refund and re-exam process affects all 22.79 lakh candidates regardless of whether their specific exam centre was compromised. NTA’s position is that once a leak is confirmed anywhere in the system, the integrity of the entire examination is compromised. As TNT News Buzz has reported in its coverage of the institutional gaps in NTA’s re-exam policy for the Mahoba NEET survivor, the refund portal opening today covers only candidates who appeared on May 3, leaving unresolved the question of candidates prevented from appearing by circumstances outside their control.

NEET Refund 2026 Scam Alert: What NTA Is Warning You About Today

Scam Alert: Read Before You Open the Portal

The only legitimate platform for the NEET 2026 fee refund is neet.nta.nic.in. Do not submit your bank account number, IFSC code or UPI ID to any other website. Do not respond to calls, WhatsApp messages or emails claiming to process your refund faster or requesting a processing fee. NTA does not charge a processing fee for refunds. If you receive any such communication, report it to the cybercrime portal at cybercrime.gov.in. Scam portals replicating neet.nta.nic.in’s interface are active on refund announcement days.