The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has extended the deadline to November 30, 2026, for candidates with outstanding admission offers from the 2021 to 2025 exercises to accept or reject the offers.
The extension, contained in a statement signed by the Acting Director of Public Affairs and Protocol (PAP), Fabian Benjamin, PhD, and made available to ASHENEWS on Wednesday, follows the temporary unavailability of the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) for about 96 hours, giving affected candidates a final opportunity to update their admission records.
JAMB had previously set September 30, 2026, as the deadline for candidates offered admission between 2021 and 2025 to indicate whether they wanted to accept or reject their offers.
However, following the disruption to the CAPS platform, the Board approved November 30 as the final deadline for candidates in this category.
JAMB warned that candidates who fail to act by the new deadline will no longer be allowed to accept or reject the outstanding offers within the current window.
According to the Board, any subsequent request to update an admission record relating to the affected years will attract the applicable penalty fee, noting that the offers have remained outstanding for several years and candidates have had ample opportunity to take action.
The intervention is particularly important for candidates whose admissions are not reflected on the national matriculation list.
JAMB said candidates whose admissions are not properly documented may encounter difficulties accessing benefits associated with valid admissions, including participation in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme.
The Board therefore advised all affected candidates to take immediate action rather than wait until the deadline.
Candidates who accept their outstanding offers will be able to proceed to print their admission letters.
Those who reject their offers will have their dashboards reverted to “Not Admitted”, allowing JAMB to update its records and ensure that the national admission database reflects their current status.
JAMB also clarified that candidates who are no longer studying at the institution where they were previously offered admission, or who are now pursuing a programme different from the one for which the earlier admission was granted, may accept the outstanding admission and subsequently apply for the appropriate correction or deletion of the previous admission, where applicable.
The process, the Board said, will enable it to properly update the candidates’ admission status and records.
Similarly, candidates currently pursuing a second degree but who still have an unaccepted admission offer from an earlier admission exercise may reject the outstanding offer and continue with their current programme.
For candidates who have received admission in the 2026 exercise but still have an outstanding offer from an earlier year, JAMB said there is no cause for concern.
Such candidates may reject the previous admission offer without affecting their 2026 admission.
The Board said the extension was designed not only to compensate for the period during which CAPS was unavailable but also to provide affected candidates with a final opportunity to clearly indicate their decisions.
It added that the exercise would help maintain accurate, current and reliable national admission records.
JAMB reiterated that November 30, 2026, is the final deadline for accepting or rejecting outstanding admissions from the 2021 to 2025 admission exercises.
At the expiration of the deadline, all outstanding offers from those admission years that have neither been accepted nor rejected will automatically revert to “Not Admitted” status on the Board’s records.
“All affected candidates are, therefore, advised to take immediate action,” the Board said.
JAMB also reminded candidates that failure to accept an admission offer within the stipulated period may render the offer invalid.
