Which English tests count for a UK visa? The approved SELT list

The test must be on the approved list, taken at an approved test location, and awarded in the 2 years before you apply. If a test has several components, you must pass all the ones you need with the same provider. Put your SELT reference number (UKVI number, URN or equivalent) on the application, or it may be refused. GOV.UK warns against booking through unofficial third parties.

Any test that is not on the list. That includes TOEFL iBT, the Duolingo English Test, standard IELTS Academic or General Training not booked as IELTS for UKVI, and standard PTE Academic without the UKVI SELT version. A listed test taken at a centre that is not approved does not count either.

See TOEFL for a UK visa, Duolingo for a UK visa and IELTS for UKVI vs IELTS Academic.

For a Student visa at degree level or above, your Higher Education Provider can assess your English itself and may ask for a different test, which must still be equivalent to CEFR B2 (GOV.UK). That is how universities accept TOEFL, Duolingo or standard IELTS Academic. Below degree level you need B1 shown by a SELT or another listed route.

Work and family routes have no such exception. Skilled Worker applicants proving English by test need a SELT at B2 (GOV.UK, read 14 October 2026). Family visas need a SELT at A1 or above for the first application (GOV.UK), and settlement and citizenship need B1 (GOV.UK).

IELTS for UKVI uses the same questions and format as standard IELTS, and PTE Academic UKVI is the same test as PTE Academic. Try the IELTS for UKVI practice test or the PTE UKVI practice test.

Checked on 25 October 2026 against: GOV.UK, SELT guidance (last updated 12 October 2026); GOV.UK, Student visa: knowledge of English. Skilled Worker, family and settlement levels are from GOV.UK pages read on 14 October 2026. This guide is not immigration advice; check your visa's own English page.