The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has announced that the MDCAT 2025 exam for admission to medical and dental colleges will now be conducted strictly on a domicile basis. Students will only be allowed to appear in their respective provincial centers, linked to the domicile they hold.
This decision comes after weeks of uncertainty, as the exam was earlier postponed due to the devastating floods across Pakistan. Originally scheduled for October 5, the test will now take place on Sunday, October 26, 2025, following directives from Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal.
According to PMDC, exam centers have been allocated across provinces and Islamabad, including IBA Sukkur, Bolan University of Medical and Health Sciences Quetta, and Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU) Islamabad. A special test center in Islamabad will also accommodate candidates from Sindh and Balochistan, while students from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will appear at their provincial universities.
| Region | Exam Center(s) |
| Sindh | IBA Sukkur (with special facility at SZABMU Islamabad) |
| Balochistan | Bolan University of Medical & Health Sciences, Quetta (and SZABMU Islamabad) |
| Punjab | Designated provincial universities |
| Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | Designated provincial universities |
| AJK & GB | SZABMU Islamabad (seats as per quota) |
PMDC has made it mandatory for candidates to present a valid domicile of the concerned province at the time of admission. Seats will also remain reserved for students from Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan under dedicated quotas.
With thousands of students set to appear, the domicile-based system is seen as an attempt to ensure fairness, transparency, and equal representation across all regions.