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Nigeria’s university entrance body, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has fixed January 26 to February 28 as the registration window for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), to be conducted at accredited Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres across the country.
JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, disclosed this on Saturday in Lagos during a meeting with Commissioners for Education ahead of the 2026 UTME and Direct Entry (DE) exercises. He explained that the sale of UTME application documents would begin before registration commenced.
According to him, the sale of the UTME application document, known as the ePIN, will run from January 19 to February 26, while the actual registration period will be from January 26 to February 28 at approved CBT centres.
“The sale of UTME application document which is the ePIN, will start earlier than commencement of actual registration which is January 19 to February 26.
“Actual UTME registration period is between January 26 to Febuary 28 at all approved CBT Centres.”
Oloyede also said the selection for the mock examination would close on February 16, adding that the sale of Direct Entry application documents and ePIN vending would begin on March 2 and end on April 25.
He noted that, unlike previous years, the UTME results of underage candidates would only be released after the completion of the full evaluation process to ensure proper assessment of candidates seeking age waivers.
On monitoring, the registrar said all CBT centres involved in the UTME registration would be observed live from JAMB headquarters, warning that centres whose activities cannot be monitored would not be paid and may have their registrations invalidated.
Oloyede revealed that 924 centres had been screened and provisionally listed, stressing that they would still undergo a final test before full accreditation.
He also clarified that candidates are not required to pay any service charges to CBT centres, emphasizing that only the registration fees approved by the board are applicable.
Addressing concerns over distant examination postings, the registrar said JAMB does not assign candidates to towns outside those selected during registration, advising candidates to register early to avoid limited options.
Oloyede further warned candidates to declare any previous registration or admission history with the board, noting that failure to do so constitutes an offence.
He added that running more than one undergraduate programme simultaneously is a criminal offence and would attract sanctions.
On age eligibility, he stated that candidates must be at least 16 years old by September 30, 2026, to be considered for admission. However, underage candidates may be granted waivers following a rigorous evaluation process.
He further explained that underage candidates must score at least 80 percent in each of UTME or A’Level, Post-UTME, SSCE, and the exceptional candidate assessment to qualify for consideration.
