Dentists hoping for a state quota MDS seat in Uttar Pradesh have a short window this week. The Directorate General of Medical Education and Training (DGME), Uttar Pradesh, opened registration for the third round of UP NEET MDS 2026 online counselling at 11 am on Tuesday, 6 October, and it closes at 11 am on Thursday, 8 October.
The round covers state quota MDS seats in government and private dental colleges and universities in the state. The time-table, issued from Lucknow under No. ME-3/2026 and dated 5 October 2026, says it follows the schedule of the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) for NEET MDS. It is posted on the UP NEET counselling website.
The third round calendar
The registration fee and security money can be deposited from 11 am on 6 October till 2 pm on 8 October, three hours after registration closes. The state merit list for the round is to be declared on 8 October.
Choice filling opens at 5 pm on 8 October and runs till 11 am on Monday, 12 October. The seat allotment result is due the same day. Candidates then have from 13 to 17 October to download allotment letters and complete admission.
The directorate has listed five helpline numbers for the counselling: 8189011696, 8189011697, 8189011698, 8189011699 and 8189011700. All updates, it says, will be posted on upneet.gov.in and dgme.up.gov.in.
What the round 3 rules say
A separate set of 16 instructions for the third round, dated 4 October, explains who must pay again and what can be lost. Seats will be allotted on the basis of the third round merit list.
Candidates who were not allotted a seat in the first two rounds, and those who were allotted one but did not join, do not have to deposit security money again. The exception is anyone allotted a seat in the second round who did not take admission, or who joined and later resigned. Their entire security deposit is forfeited, and they can enter the third round only after depositing it afresh.
During choice filling, seats left vacant, not reported or resigned after round 2 will appear as clear vacancies. Candidates will also see an option called Seat Against Cancellation (SAC). The directorate describes these as virtual vacancies: if an admitted candidate is upgraded, the seat they leave goes to the next person in merit who chose it.
Locking choices is compulsory. A candidate who fills choices but does not lock them will be left out of the allotment.
Upgrades, forfeiture and fees
For candidates who already hold a seat, the notice is precise. If they are re-allotted a seat of their choice, the old seat is released automatically. If no upgrade comes through, they keep the seat they hold. The directorate warns, though, that the list of choices should not include the seat a candidate already holds. If that same seat is allotted again, the candidate has to appear at the nodal centre and complete the admission process once more.
Joining is compulsory for any seat allotted in this round. In government dental colleges, a candidate admitted in round 1 or 2 who is upgraded but does not join the new seat loses the full security deposit and all fees paid. In private colleges the penalty is the full security deposit plus 50 per cent of the tuition fee paid.
Candidates allotted government college seats complete admission at the dental college or university concerned. Those allotted private college seats complete it at the nodal centre, where the tuition fee must be paid by a CTS bank draft in favour of "Director General Medical Education & Training U.P payable at Lucknow". Without the draft, the admission will be treated as cancelled. A medical examination by the board at the college or nodal centre is compulsory, and every admitted candidate must then report to the dental college.
The resignation window has closed
A third notice, also dated 5 October, gave candidates admitted in the first or second round a chance to resign their seats in person at the nodal centre by 5 pm on 6 October. That deadline has passed, so a candidate still holding a seat now enters round 3 as an upgrade seeker under the rules above.
The state rounds run under a government policy order dated 23 July 2026 and the UP NEET MDS 2026 information brochure, and candidates are told to read both before taking part. The all India process has its own calendar, set out in MCC's NEET MDS round 3 registration notice. The pool of eligible candidates also widened this year after the qualifying percentile for NEET MDS 2026 was lowered by 10.
For anyone registering on Wednesday or Thursday morning, the order of work is simple: register before 11 am on 8 October, pay the fee and security before 2 pm, check the merit list that evening, and lock choices before 11 am on 12 October.
