KEA UGNEET-26 Stray Vacancy Round: Schedule, Eligibility & Caution Deposit Guidelines

UGNEET-26: The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) under the guidance of its Executive Director, H. Prasanna, IAS, has formally declared the process timeline and norms related to UGNEET-26 Stray Vacancy Round for admissions into Medical and Dental disciplines. Those eligible candidates who have not yet registered themselves with KEA are required to complete new registrations between October 13 and October 16. After successful payment of fee, candidates need to download their Verification Slip and pay the requisite Caution Deposit before moving to the next step of Option Entry, which is from October 16 to October 19. 

Participation in the process is highly contingent upon the candidate paying requisite caution deposits in one of the three slabs that exist: 1 lakh rupees will give access to Government Medical seats and all dental categories, while 12,00,117 is the fee for the Government (G) and Private (P) Medical seats, and 25,00,000 will open all categories of seats, which include Private, NRI, and Management. The eligibility is restricted to those who have not been allotted any seats in the previous KEA rounds, along with Dental seat holders who wish to get upgraded to Medical seat.

KEA UGNEET-26: Schedule Overview

The aspirants involved in Stray Vacancies Round should comply with the schedule issued by KEA:

• New Registration Window: October 13, 2026 – October 16, 2026

• Those who are eligible for UGNEET-26 but have not registered themselves with KEA can apply anew within this period.

• Option Entry Window: October 16, 2026 – October 19, 2026

• The candidates who have already registered themselves with KEA can lock their options for vacant medical and dental seats.

KEA UGNEET-26: Deposit Structure

For the purposes of guaranteeing meaningful participation and ensuring effective allocation of vacant seats, KEA has ensured that the eligibility of candidates for different seats is directly tied to caution deposits:

Also Read: NEET PG Counselling 2026 Round 1 Registrations Begin on October 12, NRI Admission Details, List of Documents Required by NRI Candidates