What IELTS score do you need as a speech and language therapist in the UK?

IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training are both accepted, in UKVI and non-UKVI versions, but only at an official test centre, not at home. Certificates must be no more than two years old when the HCPC receives your application.

IELTS One Skill Retake is accepted if the retake is done within six months of the original test and the retake result appears on the test report alongside the original results. The retake is valid for the same two-year period as the original test.

TOEFL iBT is not accepted if taken in the UK, and the HCPC does not accept combined scores, superscores or MyBest scores. PTE Academic is not on the HCPC's list.

You do not need a test if the qualification that first let you practise was gained in a country on the HCPC's qualifying countries list, which includes Australia, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Malta, New Zealand, the USA and a number of Caribbean and other territories. Everyone else applying through the international route must send a test certificate.

An 8.0 with no element below 7.5 leaves little margin, so plan for a possible One Skill Retake within the six-month window. Regulators change these rules, sometimes at short notice. Confirm the current scores on the HCPC page before you book a test.