Leaving an INI-CET seat: the ₹3 lakh and each institute’s penalty

Last updated 3 Oct 2026 · Reviewed by Dr. Rajiv Marechal
Based on AIIMS New Delhi’s July 2026 result notifications, its seat allocation brochures and each institute’s July 2026 Part-B prospectus (listed under Sources). Always check aiimsexams.ac.in before you pay or lock anything. FindMyBranch is not part of AIIMS.

AIIMS’s own words are that the option to refuse an allotted seat is not available. Money is at stake at four points: when you report (the ₹3 lakh draft, if you do not hand over your originals), when you do not join a seat you were given (a ₹3 lakh penalty), when you enter the Open Round (a ₹3 lakh deposit), and when you leave after joining (each institute’s own penalty). Here is each one, in plain words.

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Round by round

Round	What you must do	What it costs if you do not
Round 1	Log in and choose Option 1 (accept and stop) or Option 2 (accept and stay in Round 2) by the deadline. Then report in person, whichever you chose.	Choose nothing and the seat is forfeited, along with Round 2. Not joining the Round 1 seat, or the seat you are moved up to, carries a ₹3 lakh penalty.
Round 2	Accept the seat online and report to the institute by the deadline. With Option 2, a better seat from your list must be taken; the Round 1 seat is released.	If you held a Round 1 seat with Option 2 and do not report: a ₹3 lakh draft you paid is forfeited, or, if you deposited originals, you get them back only after paying ₹3 lakh. A first seat given in Round 2 and not reported to is cancelled. Either way, only the Open Round is left.
Open Round	Deposit ₹3 lakh online to take part. Accept the seat and report by the deadline.	Not joining forfeits the ₹3 lakh, plus the penalties in that round’s brochure. A seat you already held is treated as resigned, and that institute’s penalty for leaving applies.

The ₹3 lakh draft at reporting

When you report in Round 1 or 2, you hand over your original certificates with one set of self-attested copies, or self-attested copies with a ₹3 lakh demand draft in the name of “AIIMS MAIN GRANT ACCOUNT”.
The draft is returned when you deposit the originals within five days.
If you do not, the admission is cancelled and the ₹3 lakh is forfeited.

Once a seat is confirmed, AIIMS keeps your originals until the course ends, unless you deposit ₹3 lakh, whether or not you join. JIPMER also keeps them until you finish or are relieved.

What the documents do not say

The Round 1 notice says that choosing no option forfeits the seat and Round 2. Separately, it says that not joining the Round 1 seat or the upgraded seat costs ₹3 lakh. It does not say whether a candidate who takes no action at all is also charged. Do not count on it either way: ask AIIMS through the query section of your MyPage before you let a seat lapse.

After you join: each institute’s penalty

From each institute’s July 2026 Part-B prospectus:

Institute	Penalty for leaving after joining
AIIMS (all 19)	₹3 lakh if you leave within six months of joining, ₹5 lakh after six months. The salary for the month your resignation takes effect is also forfeited.
AIIMS Jodhpur, in addition	₹3 lakh if you leave during counselling; ₹5 lakh after the last date of joining of the last (open) round.
JIPMER Puducherry	₹3 lakh from the day you deposit your originals until you join; ₹3 lakh within six months of joining; ₹5 lakh after six months. On top of that, one month’s notice or one month’s pay, and the salary of the month you resign. Fees are not refunded.
PGIMER Chandigarh	₹3 lakh within six months of joining, ₹5 lakh after six months, plus the salary of the month you resign. Not for sponsored candidates. Fees and the security are not refunded if you leave midway.
NIMHANS Bengaluru	₹3 lakh in the first month, ₹5 lakh from one to six months, ₹7 lakh after six months (the table is for candidates in its institute stipendiary category). It applies from the date of joining. No pay for the month you leave, and fees are not refunded.
SCTIMST Thiruvananthapuram	A ₹50 lakh bond, from everyone except sponsored candidates. It is payable if you leave from the day after the last date of the INI-CET admission process, which SCTIMST announces.

JIPMER also says this plainly: if you were admitted in Round 1 or 2 and then take a seat at any institute in the Open Round, you pay its penalty for leaving. NIMHANS asks for a Course Completion Agreement Bond too, whose terms it shares after the result.

Moving up has a catch

If you upgrade to a better seat in a later round, the Open Round included, you must complete the course at the new institute. Time at the earlier seat does not count towards it.

Fees

Fees paid at admission are not refunded at AIIMS New Delhi, PGIMER, JIPMER or NIMHANS. AIIMS New Delhi does refund the caution money to candidates who do not join.

Holding a NEET-PG seat too?

MCC and the states have their own deposit rules, and your originals can only be in one place. See INI-CET seat or NEET-PG seat.

Only list seats you would really join. See which AIIMS, JIPMER, PGIMER, NIMHANS and SCTIMST seats your INI-CET rank has actually reached.

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Sources

Round rules are from the July 2026 session; penalties are from the July 2026 Part-B prospectus of each institute. Amounts can change each session.