The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has extended to November 30, 2026, the deadline for candidates with outstanding admission offers from the 2021 to 2025 admission exercises to either accept or reject the offers.

The Board said the extension followed the temporary unavailability of its Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) for approximately 96 hours, giving affected candidates an additional and final opportunity to update their admission records.

JAMB had earlier set September 30, 2026, as the deadline for candidates with outstanding admissions from the 2021–2025 admission exercises to indicate whether they would accept or reject their offers.

In a statement signed by Fabian Benjamin, Ph.D., Ag. Director, Public Affairs and Protocol, the Board said Management had approved November 30 as the final deadline following the recent disruption to the CAPS platform.

JAMB warned that candidates who fail to act before the 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 previous years will attract the applicable penalty fee, noting that the offers had remained outstanding for several years.

The Board also advised candidates whose admissions are not reflected on the matriculation list to take immediate action, warning that failure to properly document an admission could affect access to benefits associated with recognised admissions, including participation in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme.

Candidates who accept their outstanding offers will be able to proceed to print their admission letters, while those who reject them will have their dashboards reverted to “Not Admitted.”

JAMB explained that this would enable it to update its records and ensure that the national admission database accurately reflects candidates’ current admission status.

The Board further clarified that candidates who are no longer studying at the institution where the previous admission was offered, or who are currently enrolled in a different programme, may accept the outstanding admission and subsequently apply for the appropriate correction or deletion of the previous admission, where applicable.

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.

JAMB also reassured candidates who have received admission in the 2026 admission exercise but still have an outstanding offer from an earlier year that rejecting the previous admission will not affect their 2026 admission.

The Board said the extension was intended not only to compensate for the period during which CAPS was unavailable but also to provide a final opportunity for affected candidates to clearly indicate their preferred status.

JAMB stressed that at the expiration of the November 30 deadline, all outstanding admission offers from the 2021–2025 admission exercises that have neither been accepted nor rejected will automatically revert to “Not Admitted” on its records.

The Board therefore urged all affected candidates to take immediate action and warned that failure to accept an admission offer within the stipulated period may render the offer invalid.