Be honest about what's confirmed and what isn't: PMDC hasn't announced an exact admit card release date for MDCAT 2026 yet — that's normal this far out from an August 16 exam. The times and rules below come from official UHS documents for recent cycles and have been consistent year over year, but treat your own admit card as the final word once it's issued, since exact reporting times can vary slightly by centre.
Downloading Your Admit Card
Your admit card (also called a roll number slip — same document, two names) is issued by whichever university conducts MDCAT in your region, not by a single national portal:
To download it, you'll generally need your CNIC, B-Form, or Passport number plus your full name as registered. Print it on plain white A4 paper — a photocopy or low-quality printout can cause problems at the gate, so use a clear printer rather than a phone screen.
What to Bring
✅ Bring
- Printed admit card / roll number slip
- Original CNIC, B-Form, NICOP, or Passport (no photocopies)
- Two blue or black ballpoint pens
- A simple, clear clipboard if your centre allows one
🚫 Leave at Home
- Mobile phones, smartwatches, headphones, Bluetooth devices
- Calculators, books, or notes of any kind
- Bags
- Metallic pens
This isn't a "don't use it" rule — it's a "don't bring it" rule. Based on official UHS instructions, simply having a prohibited item on you, even unused, can lead to removal from the centre and cancellation of your test. Don't assume you can carry a phone switched off "just in case." Leave it with whoever drops you, or at home.
Timing: The Part People Get Wrong
Your reporting time on the admit card is not the same as the test start time, and the gap between them matters more than people expect:
Arriving "on time" for a 10 AM start is already too late if the centre seals at 9 AM. Plan to arrive with a real buffer — not just enough time to walk in, but enough to find the right building, get through ID checks, and be seated before the seal time, not as it happens.
What Happens If...
If You're Also Sitting NUMS MDCAT
NUMS has its own, somewhat different rules — most notably, NUMS requires you to reach the centre at least three hours before the test starts (not one), and bans pencils and gel pens in addition to the items above, allowing only plain blue or black ballpoints. See our full NUMS vs PMDC MDCAT comparison for the rest of the differences between the two exams.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will the MDCAT 2026 admit card be released?
Not yet announced. Past cycles suggest somewhere between one and three weeks before the exam, but the exact 2026 date will come from your test-conducting university directly.
What if I arrive after the gate closes?
You won't be allowed in. Treat the sealing time, not the test start time, as your real deadline.
What's banned from the exam centre?
Phones, smartwatches, calculators, books/notes, bags, and metallic pens — simply having them on you can get your test cancelled.