What IELTS score do you need as a lawyer in Australia?

Under the LACC guidelines you need no test if English is your primary language and you completed all your primary and secondary education and your law degree in a recognised country, taught and assessed only in English. If English is not your primary language, the final two years of secondary school plus the law degree in a recognised country, in English, also meets the requirement. Recognised countries are Australia, Canada (except Quebec), New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the UK and the USA.

If you missed one component by no more than 0.5 (IELTS), the fifth pathway may still help: for example, reaching every minimum across no more than two sittings within six months before you apply, completing all secondary education and your law degree in English in Malaysia or Singapore, or at least 12 months of full-time recognised legal work.

Victoria accepts IELTS One Skill Retake as part of the IELTS Academic test. NSW accepts IELTS Online and test centre results, and accepts One Skill Retake only in a special exemption application where you met all the minimums across several sittings within two years. See the NSW exemption guidelines.

ETS changed the TOEFL iBT scale on 21 January 2026. The LACC guidelines let you rely on results from the old 0 to 120 scale until January 2028, as long as they meet the old minimums for each section.

For a test pathway you must give the board your original result, your test identification number and your authority for it to verify the result with the test provider. Other states and territories have their own admitting authorities, so check the one where you will apply.

Regulators change these rules, sometimes at short notice. Confirm the current scores on the NSW LPAB page before you book a test.