The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has maintained that its fee structure has remained unchanged since 2018 to protect candidates from exploitation. This stance comes despite grievances from operators regarding the ₦700 registration service charge. The Board recently announced the remittance of ₦1,570,671,200 to accredited centres for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination registration exercise.

A breakdown of the fees shows that JAMB charges ₦7,200 for UTME only and ₦8,700 for UTME with mock. The components include an Application Fee of ₦3,500, Reading Text at ₦1,000, CBT Centre Registration Service Charge at ₦700, CBT Centre UTME Service Charge at ₦1,500, and Bank Charges of ₦500.

In a bulletin signed by Public Communication Advisor Fabian Benjamin, the Board highlighted the success of its "No View, No Pay" policy. It stated that this mechanism ensures centres are only paid for valid registrations monitored from the headquarters in Abuja. "This monitoring mechanism forms part of the Board’s broader technological innovations aimed at ensuring transparency, accountability and strict adherence to registration guidelines," the bulletin read.

However, the Computer Based Test Centres Proprietors Association of Nigeria has described the ₦700 charge as "grossly inadequate". President of the association, Austin Ohaekelem, argued that the fee ignores the harsh economic reality. He noted that equipment and operational costs have risen over the last decade, while the fee has stagnated.

"The cost of registering a candidate as of 2016, when I joined the CBT programme, was ₦700. Ten years later, it is still ₦700," Ohaekelem stated.

He lamented the reimbursement process where centres pay JAMB first before receiving weekly refunds. "What JAMB does is refund the money every week. It’s not like we collect it ourselves. The candidate registers, we pay JAMB, and then we get reimbursed," he explained.

Ohaekelem added that the high cost of diesel, rent, and equipment maintenance makes the current model unsustainable. He urged the authorities to treat centre proprietors as partners rather than a pressure group.