WAEC Withholds 2026 WASSCE Results From Candidates in States That Owe Debt
- WAEC announced that candidates sponsored by states owing the council cannot access their 2026 WASSCE results until payment is made
- The council also withheld results of over 167,000 candidates linked to examination malpractice, a figure lower than the 2025 rate
- WAEC's head of the Nigeria National Office named cell phone use and organised cheating as key concerns during the 2026 exams
PAY ATTENTION: Find it fast with our new search feature at Legit.ng!
The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has confirmed that thousands of 2026 Computer-Based WASSCE candidates will be unable to view their results because the states that sponsored them have outstanding debts owed to the council.
Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut, Head of the WAEC Nigeria National Office, made the announcement on Wednesday.
Source: Getty Images
He said:
"I need not restate the fact that the results of candidates who are sponsored by States indebted to the Council will not be released now until payment is made. We appeal to the concerned to do so to enable the affected schools/candidates access their results." WAEC did not name the affected states.
Results Withheld Over Malpractice
Beyond the debt issue, WAEC also held back the results of 167,486 candidates, which represents 8.59% of those who sat the examination, due to confirmed cases of malpractice. That figure is 1.11% lower than the 9.7% recorded in 2025.
Dr. Dangut pointed to the persistent use of mobile phones inside examination halls, despite an existing ban, as well as coordinated cheating in certain schools. He added that supervisors and invigilators found to have assisted candidates in cheating have been apprehended.
The 2026 WASSCE was held from April 24 to June 19, 2026, with 102,708 examiners working across 88 marking venues. A total of 1,213 candidates with special needs participated, among them 137 with visual impairments and 491 with hearing difficulties.
How to Check Your 2026 WAEC Results
Candidates whose results have been released can access them online within 12 hours at waecdirect.org. WAEC has also launched a dedicated portal through which candidates can generate their e-PINs directly.
Digital certificates will be available 48 hours after a candidate checks their result, while physical hard copy certificates are expected to be ready within 90 days.
FG introduces measures to tackle WAEC, NECO malpractice
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the federal government rolled out fresh measures aimed at tackling examination malpractice in the Senior School Certificate Examination, a key requirement for admission into tertiary institutions across the country.
The new steps apply to examinations conducted by the West African Examination Council, the National Examination Council and the National Business and Technical Examinations Board.
Source: Legit.ng
