The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that there will be no extension for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) registration deadline.
Candidates have been advised to complete their registration before February 26, 2026, to avoid missing the examination.
In a notice released on Tuesday, JAMB stated that the sale of e-PINs, which is required for registration, will end at midnight on Thursday, February 26, 2026.
The board also explained that candidates who have already purchased their e-PINs will still be able to complete their registration at accredited Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres until Saturday, February 28, 2026.
As of February 17, more than 1.5 million candidates had successfully registered across the country. However, JAMB expressed concern that many eligible candidates have not yet registered. It noted that registration centres nationwide are operating at only about 30 percent of their daily capacity.
According to the board, it has the ability to register up to 100,000 candidates per day, which is much higher than the current turnout.
“The Board wishes to clearly state that there will be no extension of the registration deadline,” the statement said.
JAMB explained that its examination timetable is part of a national schedule agreed upon by all examination bodies in Nigeria. It added that the UTME registration period was carefully planned to allow other public examinations to follow smoothly.
“Consequently, there is no available window for any extension, even if the Board were inclined to consider one,” the board stated.
JAMB warned that candidates who wait until the last minute may face avoidable problems and stressed that no appeals will be accepted after the deadline passes.
The board described the announcement as an early warning to ensure that serious candidates are not left out due to procrastination.
With only a few days left before the e-PIN deadline, prospective candidates have been urged to act quickly.
“All prospective candidates are urged to act now,” the statement concluded.
The 2026 UTME is expected to attract millions of candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions across Nigeria, making it important for applicants to follow the registration timeline strictly.
