The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has confirmed a temporary disruption to its Central Admissions Processing System, popularly known as CAPS, leaving candidates and tertiary institutions unable to access the platform.
The examination and admissions body announced the development on Thursday, September 24, 2026, explaining that the problem was connected to technical difficulties involving the system’s hosting arrangements.
The outage comes at an important point in Nigeria’s 2026 tertiary admission exercise, when universities, polytechnics and colleges of education are processing admission offers while prospective students are checking their admission status.
JAMB begins efforts to restore CAPS
JAMB said it had immediately opened discussions with the organisation responsible for hosting the platform in an effort to identify the source of the problem and restore access.
The Board did not announce a definite time for the return of the service but said technical teams were working to bring the system back online as quickly as possible.
The agency also apologised to candidates, institutions and other users affected by the disruption.
According to JAMB, the timing of the incident is particularly significant because CAPS serves as the main digital system through which admission processes are coordinated across the country’s tertiary institutions.
Candidates report difficulties accessing portal
The announcement followed complaints from candidates who had experienced problems using the platform.
Reports indicated that some users were unable to load the CAPS portal, while others encountered error messages or were redirected when attempting to access their accounts.
Some candidates also turned to social media to seek clarification from JAMB, particularly those who needed to check whether they had received admission offers or complete other admission-related actions.
The disruption has generated concern because candidates often rely on CAPS during the admission period to monitor their admission progress and respond to offers made by institutions.
What JAMB CAPS does
CAPS is JAMB’s centralised admissions platform and plays a key role in coordinating admission processing between the examination body and tertiary institutions.
Through the system, institutions submit admission recommendations while candidates can monitor their admission status and take decisions concerning offers, including accepting or rejecting provisional admission.
The platform was introduced to bring greater coordination and transparency to the admission process and reduce irregularities associated with admissions handled outside the approved system.
Because of its role, any prolonged interruption could affect institutions that are actively processing admissions and candidates waiting for decisions.
JAMB promises further updates
JAMB has asked affected users to remain patient while its technical teams work with the hosting organisation to resolve the issue.
The Board said it would communicate further developments as efforts to restore the platform continue.
It also indicated that the circumstances surrounding the disruption would be reviewed after the immediate problem has been resolved. The review is expected to help identify measures that could reduce the likelihood of similar interruptions occurring in the future.
For candidates, the immediate concern remains access to their admission information, particularly as institutions continue with the 2026 admission process.
JAMB has not indicated that the outage has cancelled or suspended the wider admission exercise. Instead, the Board’s current position is that CAPS is temporarily unavailable while efforts are made to restore the service.
Candidates and institutions will therefore have to await further communication from JAMB as the technical team works to return the admissions platform to normal operation.
The Board’s next update is expected to provide more information on the progress of the restoration and when candidates can resume using CAPS normally.
