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Choice locking is the moment your saved list of colleges becomes final for that round. In the Medical Counselling Committee's NEET-UG counselling (All India Quota, deemed and central institutions), saved choices can be changed until they are locked, and locked choices "cannot be unlocked even by MCC", says the MCC NEET-UG Counselling 2026 information bulletin. State quota counselling has its own rules. The rules below are from 2026; check the new bulletin on the MCC UG counselling page each year.
What is choice locking in NEET counselling?
On the MCC portal you add institute-and-course options to a list, in your order of preference. The 2026 bulletin's FAQ sets out the rules:
There is no limit on how many choices you can fill, but they must be in your order of preference.
If you do not lock your saved choices, they are locked automatically as per the schedule.
Once locked, they cannot be changed even if you have made a mistake, which can mean a seat you never wanted.
The portal itself warns that "early locking does not mean early allotment or first claim on the seat" and that allotment "is strictly based on Rank Lists", according to MCC's Candidate User Guide for 2026. Locking on day one does not move you ahead.
How should you order your colleges?
Order by where you would rather study, not by where you guess you can get in. The user guide says seats are allotted on the order of preferences you lock.
Do not pad the list either. The same guide advises filling "only those choices which you would indeed like to accept and join, if offered". That matters because, under the 2026 bulletin, Round 1 has a free exit, but a candidate allotted a seat in Round 2 or later who does not join forfeits the security deposit.
A simple way to sort the list is three tiers:
Would join without a second thought.
Would join, accepting a trade-off such as distance or a higher fee.
Would join only if the alternative is a drop year. Decide this tier as a family before you lock.
Anything you would refuse stays off the list. For a rough sense of where your rank may land, the bulletin points to previous years' opening and closing ranks on the MCC website, and says they are indicative only, with no guarantee for the current year.
Which fees and bonds should you check before locking?
The 2026 bulletin says stipend, fee structure, bond amount and rural service conditions are supplied by the colleges, that MCC takes no responsibility for them, and that you should check the college website or contact the college before filling choices. It singles out deemed universities, and notes some seats may be permitted but not yet recognised.
For each college on your list, write down:
First-year total fee, including hostel, from the college's own website.
Whether a service bond applies to your quota, its amount and its years of service.
The internship stipend.
Whether the seat is recognised.
The registration money also differs. For 2026, the bulletin set deemed university registration at Rs 5,000 non-refundable plus a Rs 2,00,000 refundable security deposit, and All India Quota and central university registration at Rs 1,000 plus Rs 10,000 for UR/EWS candidates (Rs 500 plus Rs 5,000 for SC/ST/OBC/PwD). The deposit is refunded only to the account it was paid from, so keep that account open. Our guide to deemed university MBBS counselling, fees and deposit goes further.
How do you lock choices and save a copy?
The Candidate User Guide walks through these steps:
Add choices and click Save and Continue, which saves them without submitting.
Open View Filled Choice(s), print the list of unlocked choices and read it line by line with a parent.
Open Choice Locking, review the institute-type summary and the full list, select "I agree to lock my choice(s)", enter your password, then the OTP, and click Lock Choices.
Check that the dashboard status now reads Locked.
Open Print Locked Choice(s) and download the Locked Choices Letter. It shows the locking status, IP, date and time, code and round number.
Save the PDF to your phone and email, and print a copy. OTPs go to the mobile and email you used for NTA registration, says the bulletin, so keep that phone with you, and its FAQ warns against waiting till the last minute. Aim to lock a day early. See also keeping your counselling login and password safe.
If you are also in state counselling, see how to manage multiple counselling rounds without losing fees. Once your seat is settled, the Fermi Concept Library has every concept in physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics and computing, each with its own lesson, if you want to revisit Class 12 biology before classes begin.
