The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has warned candidates against misuse of their National Identification Numbers (NINs) ahead of the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) registration exercise.
The Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, issued the warning during an interactive meeting with the Board’s management in preparation for the sale of application forms and registration for the 2026 UTME and Direct Entry (DE) exams. The statement was contained in a weekly bulletin released on the Board’s website on Monday.
“Multiple/double registrations coupled with the use of multiple National Identification Numbers (NINs) by a single candidate for the purpose of double registration, impersonation, or any form of identity manipulation is strictly prohibited and will be severely sanctioned,” Prof. Oloyede said.
He also cautioned candidates against impersonation, extortion, image blending, group registration, inappropriate movement of routers, donating fingerprints, and other irregularities that undermine the integrity of the examination. He specifically warned against “donating to or accepting fingers from others in order to accelerate biometric capturing,” stressing that such actions attract severe sanctions. Candidates were advised to ensure that only their own ten fingers are captured individually and correctly at the Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres.
Prof. Oloyede reaffirmed JAMB’s commitment to its cashless registration system, designed to prevent exploitation of candidates. He noted that centralised collection of all third-party fees would continue, with remittances made to beneficiaries on a weekly basis.
In addition, all administrators and tellers from partnering financial institutions, including banks, microfinance institutions, and mobile money operators, have been mandated to register their NINs with JAMB to safeguard accountability in the e-PIN vending process.
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The Registrar also provided details on the timelines and costs for the exercise. The cost of DE application documents remains N5,700, while UTME without Mock is N7,200 and UTME with Mock is N8,700.
According to Prof. Oloyede, UTME candidates will register before Direct Entry candidates. The sale of UTME application documents, beginning with the creation of profiles by prospective candidates, will start on 19th January and end on 26th February 2026. The actual UTME registration period will run from 26th January to 28th February 2026 at all approved CBT centres, with the close of Mock Selection scheduled for 16th February 2026.
Direct Entry registration and e-PIN vending will commence on 2nd March and close on 25th April 2026. DE registration will be available only at JAMB offices.