In a decisive move to strengthen the integrity of Nigeria\u2019s tertiary admission process, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced a major policy shift for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Under this new rule, all UTME candidates will now be required to declare their current admission status<\/strong> \u2014 that is, whether they are already enrolled in any tertiary institution in Nigeria or abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to JAMB, this update is a response to the rising cases of impersonation and examination malpractice uncovered during the 2025 UTME cycle<\/strong>, where investigations revealed that over 90% of offenders were already students of other institutions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n JAMB\u2019s 2025 Infraction Report exposed an alarming trend: students who had already secured admission into higher institutions were returning to sit for UTME again \u2014 often to assist others, engage in impersonation, or manipulate the system for fraudulent admissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To tackle this, JAMB has directed all registration centers and departments to include a compulsory declaration field<\/strong> in the 2026 UTME registration template. This field will require candidates to truthfully indicate<\/strong> whether they are currently students of any tertiary institution before completing their registration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Board has also warned that candidates who fail to declare their true admission status<\/strong> or submit false information<\/strong> will face serious consequences. Offenders risk:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nWhy JAMB Introduced the New Rule<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Penalties for False Declarations<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n