Which B2 English Tests Are Accepted?

Where B2 Is the Required Level

B2 is not a single, universal requirement. It applies to specific routes:

• New Skilled Worker applications, in reading, writing, speaking and listening, since 8 January 2026. Switching to a Skilled Worker visa from a different visa also needs B2. Someone who held the visa before 8 January 2026 and is extending or updating it needs B1, and GOV.UK says they do not need to prove their English again.
• New High Potential Individual and Scale-up applications, from the same date.
• Study at degree level or above, where GOV.UK asks for the equivalent of CEFR level B2. Below degree level it is B1.
• Settlement, from 26 March 2027. Appendix KoLL of the Immigration Rules raises the level from B1 to B2 for applications made on or after that date.

Settlement today, and citizenship, ask for B1 in speaking and listening. GOV.UK lists a qualification at B1, B2, C1 or C2 as a way of proving knowledge of English for citizenship and settling, so a B2 result also meets a B1 requirement. See our B1 vs B2 comparison.

Why Only Specific Tests Are Accepted

The Home Office accepts only Secure English Language Tests, taken with an approved provider at an approved test location. GOV.UK sets three conditions for a result to be accepted: the test must be on the list of approved English language tests, must have been sat at an approved test location, and must have been awarded in the two years before the date of the application.

It adds that English for Speakers of Other Languages qualifications can only be used if they are on the approved list, and that other qualifications — GCSEs, A levels, National Vocational Qualifications — cannot be used as a Secure English Language Test. (Some UK school qualifications are accepted separately on the Skilled Worker and Student routes, but that is a different route to proving English, not a test.)

Standard versions of IELTS or PTE are therefore not accepted; the approved versions are IELTS for UKVI and PTE Academic UKVI. See our English language tests guide for the wider picture. The approved lists of tests and test centres are published on GOV.UK.

Who You Can Take a Test With

The approved providers differ by where you sit the test:

• Inside the UK: Trinity College London, the IELTS SELT Consortium, LANGUAGECERT, Pearson.
• Outside the UK: PSI Services (UK) Ltd, the IELTS SELT Consortium, LANGUAGECERT, Pearson.

So Trinity tests are only available inside the UK, and PSI's Skills for English only outside it. GOV.UK says a test taken in the UK can be used for applications made overseas, and a test taken overseas can be used for applications made in the UK, so where you sit it does not restrict where you can use it.

The Approved B2 Tests and Their Minimum Grades

These figures are from the Home Office lists of approved Secure English Language Tests. Every one of them is a per-component minimum: it has to be reached in each of listening, reading, writing and speaking, not averaged across them.

IELTS for UKVI

B2: 5.5 in each of listening, speaking, reading and writing. For context, the same list gives B1 as 4.0 in each component, C1 as 7.0 and C2 as 8.5. See our IELTS guide. Available inside and outside the UK; book through the official IELTS website.

Pearson: PTE Academic UKVI

B2: 59 in each of listening, reading, writing and speaking. The same list gives B1 as 43 in each component, C1 as 76 and C2 as 85. Available inside and outside the UK; details on the Pearson PTE website. Pearson's other approved test, PTE Home, covers speaking and listening only and is on the list at A1, A2 and B1, so it is not a B2 option.

LANGUAGECERT

LANGUAGECERT has three approved tests, and two levels of B2 entry:

• LANGUAGECERT Academic SELT: 60 in each of listening, speaking, reading and writing.
• LANGUAGECERT General SELT: 60 in each component.
• LANGUAGECERT International ESOL SELT B2 (four-skill): 33/50 in each component.

GOV.UK notes that from 6 July 2025 the LANGUAGECERT ESOL SELT four-skills test was replaced by the Academic SELT and General SELT tests, and that a LANGUAGECERT ESOL SELT four-skills result already held remains valid for 2 years.

Trinity College London (inside the UK only)

B2: Integrated Skills in English II, a pass in each of reading, listening, speaking and writing. The Integrated Skills in English series runs ISE I (B1), ISE II (B2), ISE III (C1) and ISE IV (C2). Trinity's other approved test, Graded Examinations in Spoken English, covers speaking and listening only and is on the list at Grade 2 (A1), Grade 3 (A2) and Grade 5 (B1), so it is not a B2 option.

PSI Services: Skills for English UKVI (outside the UK only)

B2: Skills for English UKVI B2 (4 component), a pass in each of listening, reading, writing and speaking. The same test is on the list at B1, C1 and C2 in its four-component form, and at A1, A2 and B1 in a two-component (speaking and listening) form.

Costs and Result Times

Test fees and turnaround times are set by the providers, not by the Home Office, and are not published on GOV.UK. Check them with the provider you intend to book with — they vary by test, by format and by location.

GOV.UK does publish one timing: "You should be able to take a test within 28 days of booking, but it may not always be at the location nearest to you." If there is no approved test location in your country, you have to travel to another country to take the test.

It also warns about third-party booking services: some claim to be affiliated with official Home Office partners when they are not. GOV.UK says to check that any third party is officially recognised by the test provider and that its fees are the same as, or lower than, the price on the provider's own website, and it recommends using official channels. See our English test booking guide.

Using a Degree Instead of a Test

A degree taught or researched in English can be used instead of a test on the Skilled Worker, Student and family routes, and for settlement and citizenship. A degree does not expire.

• A degree from a UK institution: counts if it was taught or researched in English and awarded by a UK institution, even if you studied outside the UK. GOV.UK says you only need the degree certificate.
• A degree from an institution outside the UK: needs an assessment from Ecctis, which issues a code confirming the qualification is equivalent to a UK bachelor's degree or higher and was taught in English. If you have already been assessed by Ecctis, GOV.UK says you can use the certificate from that earlier assessment rather than reapplying.
• For settlement and citizenship: GOV.UK adds that the degree must be academic, not vocational, and says to contact your university if you are not sure which yours is.

If the certificate is lost or the degree has not been awarded yet, GOV.UK accepts either an official transcript naming you, the institution, the degree and confirmation of the award, or an official letter from the university confirming that it cannot reissue the certificate, or when it will be issued.

If you studied in the UK on a Student visa, the degree route is likely to be the relevant one. Check also whether an exemption applies: nationals of the countries GOV.UK lists as majority English-speaking do not have to prove their knowledge of English at all.

Points to Check Before Booking

• Book the approved version. Standard IELTS and PTE are not on the list; the approved versions are IELTS for UKVI and PTE Academic UKVI.
• Check the test is available where you are. Trinity is inside the UK only, PSI outside it.
• Book in the name on your identity document. GOV.UK says the details used to book must be the same as on your passport or other identity document, and must match the document you present on the day. If your surname has changed and you want to book in the new name, the passport has to be changed first.
• Bring the right identity document. It must be current, valid, original rather than a photocopy, include a photo, and match the booking. If you cannot prove your identity you will not be allowed to take the test.
• Mind the 2 years. A result is valid for 2 years from the date it is awarded, measured against the date of application. See our citizenship application guide for how that fits a longer timeline.
• Components are awarded together. GOV.UK says that where two or more components of a test are examined and awarded together, the required scores have to be achieved with the same test centre provider as part of that one combined assessment. It adds that in certain circumstances a single failed component may be resat, and that the provider's terms and conditions govern this — check before booking.
• Keep the reference number. A pass gives a Secure English Language Test unique reference number, which must be used when making the application; GOV.UK says an application may be refused if it is not included. It appears on the result as "UER" for Trinity, "UKVI number" for the IELTS SELT Consortium, "Candidate URN" for LANGUAGECERT, "SELT URN" for Pearson and "URN" for PSI Skills for English. No test documents are sent with the application: the result is checked through the provider's online verification system. See our citizenship documents checklist.
• Check the list before booking. The approved lists of tests and centres are updated from time to time.

For more on the B2 requirement itself, see our B2 English requirement guide, and for the wider cost picture our visa fees guide.

Questions and answers