1.2 Registration, Eligibility, and Fees

Who must take the NMAT

The NMAT is required for those who intend to enroll in a medical degree program in the Philippines. CEM’s Bulletin of Information frames eligibility around applicants who need an official NMAT result for MD admission—not around recreational test-taking.

CEM lists groups for whom registration is appropriate, including:

1. College graduates
2. Graduating college students at the end of the current school year
3. Students in specified accelerated tracks (for example, second-year UP College of Medicine INTARMED or UST LEAPMed / BS Basic Human Studies pathways, as described in the BOI)
4. Prior examinees who did not reach the minimum cut-off they need
5. Examinees with still-valid eligibility who want to improve scores

Best practical recommendation: sit when you have already covered the college subjects that feed Part 2—biology, chemistry, physics, and social science foundations—so content review is consolidation rather than first exposure. Foreign applicants have additional entry and stay rules under executive and CHED issuances; if that is your path, read the foreign-student guidance referenced on the official NMAT site before you treat fee payment as the only hurdle.

Why eligibility is not the same as school admission

Passing CEM’s registration checklist only gets you a seat on a test date. Admission still depends on each medical school’s full process: grades, interviews, document authentication, and—critically—the percentile rank your NMAT produces relative to that school’s cutoff. Treat registration as step one of a multi-step pipeline, not as proof you are already “in.”

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Validity window and the two-year rule

Under CHED Memorandum Order No. 18 series of 2016, the NMAT used for admission must be taken not more than two (2) years from the time of admission to medical school, with a percentile score equal to or higher than the cutoff prescribed by the school or by the Commission (often cited as the 40th percentile rank), whichever is higher.

Planning implications

Build your calendar backward from intended matriculation, not only from “when review center batches start.”

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Documents and identity materials to prepare before you click Register

Before online registration, CEM expects you to have the following ready (high-level checklist from official requirements):

1. Valid working email

All critical traffic—payment confirmations, registration form, test invitation, results notices—goes here. Use an address you will still control months later. Check inbox and spam throughout the cycle.

2. Unretouched digital photo

Your photo appears on NMAT forms and the Examinee Report Form (ERF). Typical official specifications include:

• Taken within one year of application
• Clear, face-and-shoulders passport-style framing on a white background
• 2" × 2", colored, JPG, square aspect ratio, minimum about 600 × 600 pixels, file size ≤ 2 MB
• Not a scan of an old ID photo; no selfies or improper poses
• Appearance should match how you will look on test day (for example, with or without beard)

A rejected or low-quality photo can delay clean documentation on your printed ERF. Update promptly if CEM emails you about photo quality.

3. Academic PDF evidence

Provide a PDF of one of the accepted academic proofs, such as:

• Transcript of Records (graduates)
• Certificate to Graduate (graduating applicants)
• Certificate of enrollment / school registration form
• True copy of grades

Email submission of the scanned requirement to the address CEM designates (the BOI lists nmatrequirements@cem-inc.org.ph) before registration closes, or notify the Secretariat through the official contact form if submission will be delayed.

4. Physical valid ID for test day

You must present a physical school or government-issued ID that CEM accepts (passport is particularly important for foreign candidates; Philippine examples in the BOI include driver’s license, PhilID/ePhilID, UMID, PRC license, school ID, and other listed government IDs). The name on your NMAT account must match the ID you will show during identity verification.

5. Philippine mailing address

Official printed results are mailed to a Philippine address (or Philippine P.O. box) indicated on your registration. If you live abroad, arrange a reliable Philippine receiving address early.

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High-level registration procedure

Exact screens can change, but the BOI procedure pattern is stable enough to plan around:

1. Confirm connectivity — Prefer a stable connection; CEM notes the site works better in Google Chrome.
2. Create / verify an account — Enter your legal name exactly as it appears on the ID you will present. Duplicate accounts can block progress.
3. Complete registration and choose payment method — Applicants registering from abroad are typically limited to credit card payment.
4. Pay through official channels only — Follow the emailed payment instructions and deadlines. Cut-off windows can be short (some online channels measured in minutes; some over-the-counter windows about 48 hours).
5. Confirm payment and retrieve your NMAT Registration Form — Expect Dragonpay/partner confirmations and, within a few business days after successful payment, your registration form with application number.
6. Edit only within allowed windows — Biographical corrections after the registration period may be restricted; name and birthdate corrections often require Secretariat action via the official contact form.

Critical payment caution

Payments not made through CEM’s official channels (for example, informal direct deposits or review-center “collection” schemes) are described by CEM as non-refundable and not traceable to your application—you may have to pay again. Review centers are not authorized to collect NMAT testing fees on CEM’s behalf.

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Fees: Philippines vs International

What the components cover (per CEM’s fee description):

• Registration fee — online registration system development/maintenance, downloadable forms and practice resources
• Test fee — test development, application processing, administration, scoring, printing and delivery of results

Dragonpay and deadlines

For safety and traceability, payments are channeled through Dragonpay options such as online banking, over-the-counter channels, mobile, and credit card, with service fees on top of the NMAT amounts. If you miss the payment cut-off for your reserved date, the reservation can be cancelled even if money later leaves your account. Real-time methods confirm quickly; some OTC bank deposits take about three business days for confirmation email.

Your payment is valid only for the test date on your registration. Moving to a later date or retaking requires a request to the NMAT Secretariat within the registration period (subject to approval) and must not reuse a prior application number as if it were a free open ticket.

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Refunds and cancellations (overview — verify official policy)

Always read the current Payment & Refund Policy and BOI before you pay; details can be updated. At a high level from CEM’s July 2025 BOI:

• You may cancel within five (5) working days from registration.
• The registration fee is strictly non-refundable.
• You may be eligible for a 90% refund of the testing fee if the refund request is filed within that five-day window (banks may deduct transfer fees).
• Requests after five working days are not eligible under that rule.
• Many situations are automatically non-refundable, including absence on test day, disqualification, score invalidation for policy violations, voluntary waiver, and payments outside official channels.
• If CEM cancels a sitting for force majeure (for example, extreme weather or civil unrest), CEM describes providing notice and either a full testing-fee refund (bank fees possible) or transfer to a future date.

Do not invent edge-case refund outcomes from social media. Use the official Contact Us form and published policy for your registration date.

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Exam scenario: building a registration timeline

Maya plans to enter medical school in August of next year. She maps backward:

1. Identify target schools’ historical NMAT cutoffs (often above 40 PR for competitive programs).
2. Choose an NMAT cycle early enough to receive electronic results (~20 CEM business days after the cycle’s last admin date) and printed ERF (~six weeks) before school deadlines, with buffer for a possible retake.
3. Assemble photo + TOR PDF + ID one week before registration opens for her chosen date.
4. Budget Php1,900 + Dragonpay fees (or USD60 international) and pay only through the emailed official channel within the payment window.
5. Confirm the registration form, application number, and later the test invitation email (BOI notes invitations are sent a few days before the cycle’s first test date).

If Maya registers too late relative to her admission year, even a strong percentile can become unusable under the two-year rule—or she may rush a retake without adequate review.

Action checklist

• Confirm you need NMAT for a Philippine MD application path
• Align intended admission year with the 2-year validity rule (CMO 18 s. 2016)
• Prepare email, photo, academic PDF, ID, and Philippine mailing address
• Register on the CEM NMAT site; match legal name to ID
• Pay Php1,900 or USD60 via official Dragonpay/card flow only
• Download/save registration form and application number
• Submit required academic PDF before close of registration
• Re-read current refund rules before paying if your plans are still unstable