The short version
To settle in the UK (indefinite leave to remain, ILR) most adults must prove two things: knowledge of English, and knowledge of life in the UK. The second is the Life in the UK test. The first is a Secure English Language Test (SELT) in speaking and listening, taken at a Home Office approved centre, or an exemption.
Until 25 March 2027 the level is B1. For applications submitted on or after 26 March 2027, on the family route and almost every work route, the level is B2. That is the change made by the Statement of Changes HC 1691, laid in Parliament on 5 March 2026. The Home Office gave a year of notice so people already on a five-year route could prepare.
Only speaking and listening is tested. There is no reading or writing paper for settlement. You do not need IELTS, you do not need a four-skills exam, and a GCSE or college certificate does not count.
Who needs B2 from 26 March 2027
HC 1691 raises the requirement to B2 for settlement under these routes: Appendix Settlement Family Life (partner and parent of a British citizen or settled person), Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, Global Talent, Innovator Founder, Scale-up, UK Ancestry, Long Residence, Private Life, Child Relative, Bereaved Partner, T2 Minister of Religion, Representative of an Overseas Business, International Sportsperson, and the general Appendix KoLL.
It applies to the date you submit the application. People who arrived on a visa in 2022 or 2023 and reach five years in spring 2027 fall on either side of the line by a few weeks. If your qualifying date is near the cut-off, read the spouse visa page and use the B1 or B2 tool.
Who stays at B1
Three settlement routes keep B1: Hong Kong BN(O), HM Armed Forces and their family members, and Domestic Worker in a Private Household. British citizenship (naturalisation) also stays at B1: HC 1691 changes the settlement rules, not the British Nationality Act. The full picture is on citizenship stays at B1.
Who does not need a test at all
You are exempt from the English requirement if you are under 18 or aged 65 or over when you apply, if you are a national of a majority English-speaking country, if you hold a degree that was taught in English (foreign degrees need an Ecctis statement), or if a long-term physical or mental condition prevents you from taking the test. Refugees and people with humanitarian protection have no knowledge of language requirement at settlement, and the EU Settlement Scheme has none either. Details and evidence on exemptions.
Which test
Any SELT on the current GOV.UK approved list at the right level counts. At B1 every approved provider has a speaking-and-listening test: Trinity GESE Grade 5, IELTS Life Skills B1, LanguageCert International ESOL SELT B1, PTE Home B1. At B2 only Trinity has announced one, GESE Grade 7, for late 2026; its price is not published yet, and the current GESE SELTs cost £160. As of October 2026 every B2 test actually on sale (Trinity ISE II, IELTS for UKVI, LanguageCert B2, PTE Academic UKVI) is a four-skills exam. The comparison is on SELT tests.
The certificate must be no more than two years old at the date of application, unless you already used that same qualification for a previous UK immigration application and it is still on the approved list.
What B2 actually asks of you
B1 means you can hold a simple conversation about familiar things: your family, your job, a festival, a journey. B2 means you can discuss as well as describe: give advice, weigh advantages and disadvantages, say what you used to do and what you would do if things were different, lead a conversation and ask the examiner questions. In the Trinity exam the jump is concrete: Grade 5 is 10 minutes and two phases; Grade 7 is 15 minutes and three phases, including one where you have to run the conversation yourself. The difference, with examples you can hear, is on what B2 English sounds like.
Where to start
- Find your level and date with the B1 or B2 tool.
- Read the GESE Grade 7 format if you need B2, or the Grade 5 page if B1 is enough.
- Try the free four-minute practice with the AI examiner and see your grade.