The federal government, through the Federal Ministry of Education, has given approval for the National Examinations Council, NECO and the West African Examinations Council, WAEC, to increase the registration fee for their Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, SSCE, to N50,000 per candidate beginning from 2027.
The approval will see the NECO SSCE registration fee rise from ₦30,000 to ₦50,000, while the WAEC fee will increase from ₦27,000 to the same amount.
WAEC concluded its 2026 Senior School Certificate Examination a few weeks ago, while the NECO examination is currently underway.
The development was disclosed in a memo dated June 18, 2026, signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education at the Federal Ministry of Education, Adeniji Ibrahim, on behalf of the Minister of Education.
According to the memo, the fee adjustment followed a policy decision reached during a meeting between the Minister of Education and examination bodies on March 31, 2026, where both WAEC and NECO were directed to adopt a uniform registration fee for their internal SSCE examinations.
“The West African Examinations Council has requested an upward review of the examination fees for the Senior School Certificate Examination for school candidates, with effect from 2027.
“You may recall that at a meeting of examination bodies held with the Honourable Minister of Education on 31st March, 2026, where the need for upward review of examination fee was discussed, the Honourable Minister of Education directed that the West African Examinations Council and the National Examinations Council should adopt a uniform fee for the conduct of WAEC and NECO SSCE.
“Consequently, I am directed to convey the Honourable Minister of Education’s approval of the sum of Fifty Thousand Naira (₦50,000) only, as the new examination fee for candidates with effect from NECO SSCE Internal 2027.
“You are to bring the content of this letter to all stakeholders”, the memo reads.
Meanwhile, the new fee is expected to place additional financial pressure on several state governments that sponsor candidates for the examinations, with concerns that outstanding debts owed to both examination bodies could rise further.
