What a SELT is
A Secure English Language Test is an English exam run by a provider the Home Office has approved, at a centre it has approved, with identity checks and recording, so that the result can be used in a visa, settlement or citizenship application. Only SELTs count. A GCSE, a college ESOL course, an IELTS taken at a normal (non-UKVI) centre, or a Duolingo score do not, however good your English.
The approved providers for tests taken in the UK are Trinity College London (GESE and ISE), the IELTS SELT Consortium (IELTS for UKVI and IELTS Life Skills), LanguageCert (International ESOL SELT) and Pearson (PTE Home and PTE Academic UKVI). The list, and the approved centres, are on GOV.UK and change; check before booking.
Levels and skills by application
| Application | Level | Skills | Until when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partner visa, entry | A1 | speaking and listening | unchanged |
| Partner visa, extension | A2 | speaking and listening | unchanged |
| Settlement (ILR), most routes | B1 | speaking and listening | applications before 26 March 2027 |
| Settlement (ILR), family and most work routes | B2 | speaking and listening | applications from 26 March 2027 |
| Settlement, BN(O), Armed Forces, Domestic Worker | B1 | speaking and listening | unchanged |
| British citizenship | B1 | speaking and listening | unchanged |
| Skilled Worker visa | B1 | four skills | unchanged |
| Student visa (degree level) | B2 | four skills | unchanged |
The B2 change does not add reading or writing to settlement. It raises the level of the speaking and listening test.
Which provider for B2 speaking and listening
At B1 every 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, as of October 2026, none of them does. Trinity has announced GESE Grade 7 for late 2026. Until then the only B2 options are four-skills tests: Trinity ISE II, IELTS for UKVI (5.5 in each component), LanguageCert International ESOL SELT B2 and PTE Academic UKVI. For someone whose English is spoken rather than written, the difference is large. The comparison, with format and price, is on Trinity against IELTS, LanguageCert and PTE.
Validity and reuse
A SELT result is valid for two years from the test date for a new application. Two exceptions let you use an older one: for settlement, if the qualification is still on the approved list and was accepted for an earlier UK application; for citizenship, if it was accepted when you settled, even if it has run out or left the list. A B1 pass never satisfies a B2 requirement.
Booking and test day
Book directly with the provider, not through an agent who charges extra. You will need the passport or BRP you will use in the immigration application; the name must match exactly. Arrive early: identity checks take time and a late arrival is a no-show with no refund. Trinity GESE candidates bring a completed Topic Form. Results: Trinity within a few working days, IELTS for UKVI three to thirteen days depending on computer or paper, PTE usually within two days. The certificate or online result is what you upload with the application.
Where
Trinity has more than 20 SELT centres in the UK, seven days a week at the busiest; IELTS and Pearson test at their own approved SELT centres; LanguageCert also offers some SELTs online with remote proctoring. Approved centres abroad are listed by country on GOV.UK. See test centres.