INI-CET Eligibility Criteria — Degree, Internship, Marks and Age

Last verified: 30 September 2026 against the AIIMS INI-CET Prospectus Part A and Part B (January 2027 session).

Who can write INI-CET?

AIIMS New Delhi runs INI-CET for all participating institutes, and Prospectus Part A sets the rules for applying and sitting the exam. Admission rules for each institute sit in its own Part B, so a candidate can be eligible to write the exam and still be eligible for only some institutes. For Indian nationals, Part A asks for:

Source: AIIMS New Delhi, INI-CET Prospectus Part A, January 2027 session, Section IV and Section IX — aiimsexams.ac.in. AIIMS can revise any of this by notice, so check the site before you act on it.

How does the internship cut-off date work?

INI-CET is held twice a year, and each session sets its own internship deadline. For the January 2027 session, the prospectus fixes it at 31 January 2027 for every participating institute. If your internship ends after that date you cannot register for this session — plan for the next one instead.

AIIMS does not check certificates before the exam. You are allowed to write it provisionally, and your internship completion is verified when you report to the institute that allots you a seat. The prospectus is blunt about misuse: a candidate who gives a false internship date just to sit the exam loses the candidature and can be debarred from future INI-CETs.

What minimum MBBS or BDS marks do you need?

Enter the aggregate of all professional exams, not just final year — AIIMS flags this as a common form error. If you cleared a subject in a supplementary exam, use the marks from the attempt you passed.

Is there an age limit for INI-CET?

There is no age limit to write the exam. Two institutes set upper age limits for admission in their Part B, and the seat-allocation software applies them when you choose those courses:

Source: AIIMS New Delhi, INI-CET Prospectus Part B (SCTIMST and NIMHANS), January 2027 session — aiimsexams.ac.in. AIIMS can revise any of this by notice, so check the site before you act on it.

Which institutes take admissions through INI-CET?

For the January 2027 session, Part A lists 23 Institutes of National Importance:

• 19 AIIMS campuses: New Delhi, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Nagpur, Patna, Raipur, Rishikesh, Bibinagar, Bathinda, Deoghar, Mangalagiri, Raebareli, Kalyani, Bilaspur, Gorakhpur, Guwahati, Rajkot, Jammu.
• JIPMER Puducherry — jipmer.edu.in
• NIMHANS Bengaluru — nimhans.ac.in
• PGIMER Chandigarh — pgimer.edu.in
• SCTIMST Thiruvananthapuram — sctimst.ac.in

Courses are MD, MS, DM (6-year), MCh (6-year), MDS and MD (Hospital Administration). Institute-only categories — rural-area service at PGIMER, Karnataka domicile at NIMHANS, institutional preference at AIIMS and JIPMER — need the certificates listed in that institute's Part B.

What are the rules for foreign nationals, OCI and sponsored candidates?

• Foreign nationals need 55% aggregate and a No Objection Certificate from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, submitted by 30 October 2026. An NOC from the Ministry of External Affairs alone is not accepted.
• OCI/PIO card holders born before, and holding the card before, 4 March 2021 are treated as Indian nationals for unreserved seats only. Other OCI/PIO holders are treated as foreign nationals. Upload the earliest valid OCI card by the registration deadline.
• Sponsored candidates must be employees of the sponsoring authority with 3 years of service as on 31 January 2027 (all AIIMS, SCTIMST, NIMHANS) or 31 December 2026 (JIPMER, PGIMER), and upload the sponsorship certificate by 30 October 2026.
• Sponsored and foreign-national candidates compete only for their own seats, not general seats — and vice versa.

Source: AIIMS New Delhi, INI-CET Prospectus Part A, January 2027 session, Sections IV–VI and Important Dates — aiimsexams.ac.in. AIIMS can revise any of this by notice, so check the site before you act on it.

What does it cost to apply, and which certificates are needed?

The fee is not refundable. SC/ST/OBC-NCL/EWS/PwBD certificates must be uploaded with the registration, before 5:00 pm on 13 October 2026. OBC-NCL and EWS certificates must be in the central-government format and issued between 1 April 2026 and the registration close date (financial year 2026-27). A reserved-category claim without a valid certificate is moved to the unreserved list. PwBD needs a benchmark disability of 40% or more.