When to take the Life in the UK Test: settlement, citizenship and your reference number

The Life in the UK Test is not attached to a single application. You take it once, you get a reference number, and that number goes onto whichever application asks for it: settlement first, usually, and citizenship later. Planning around that saves a second £50 and avoids a refusal for a missing pass.

The rules below are from GOV.UK and the Home Office's caseworker guidance on knowledge of language and life in the UK (version 31.0, 18 December 2025), as they stood on 28 October 2026.

Which applications ask for it

GOV.UK says you may need to take the test as part of an application for British citizenship or for settlement, also called indefinite leave to remain. Its advice is to check the guidance and application form for your route, because not every route asks for it. The exemptions by age, health and route are in our guide to who does not have to take the test.

For citizenship, GOV.UK lists having passed the test among the requirements, alongside proving your English, being of good character and intending to keep living in the UK.

Take it before you apply

The test is something you bring to an application, not a step that follows it. The caseworker guidance describes what happens when an applicant has been given time to sit the test, but that is the exception. The ordinary case is that the Home Office checks your pass when it receives the form.

In practice:

• Sit the test before you submit the settlement or citizenship application that needs it.
• You learn the result on the day. The guidance says people are told whether they have passed or failed on the day they take the test.
• If you fail, you can rebook as many times as you need, paying each time, so leave room in your timetable for a second attempt.

The unique reference number

When you pass, you get a unique reference number. GOV.UK says you need it to complete your citizenship or settlement application, and that the Home Office uses it to check that you have passed.

Some practical details from the caseworker guidance:

• Since 17 December 2019 the test provider, PSI, no longer sends pass letters. Your result and reference number are in your online Life in the UK account.
• You also get an email with the reference number after the test, whether you passed or failed.
• A photograph is taken of every candidate on the day, and caseworkers see it when they verify the result.
• If you took the test before 17 December 2019, you have a letter with a test reference ID instead. If you have lost the letter, GOV.UK says to send a letter explaining that with your application.

Neither the GOV.UK pages nor the caseworker guidance give a pass an expiry date. What they ask for is the reference number, so keep it somewhere you can find it years later.

One pass for settlement and citizenship

The usual sequence is settlement, then citizenship. GOV.UK says you do not need to take the test if you have passed it before, and gives this example: applying for citizenship after passing it for settlement.

The English requirement works the same way in part. The caseworker guidance says someone granted settlement on the basis of a B1 qualification can rely on it again for citizenship, but must pass the Life in the UK Test if they have not already done so.

Where citizenship timing fits in

If you are taking the test with citizenship in mind, the GOV.UK page for people who already have settlement sets out the timetable:

• You must have lived in the UK for 5 years and have had indefinite leave to remain, settled status or indefinite leave to enter for 12 months. Spouses of British citizens do not need to wait the 12 months.
• You must have been in the UK exactly 5 years before the day the Home Office receives your application.
• You should not have spent more than 450 days outside the UK in those 5 years, or more than 90 days in the last 12 months.
• The application costs £1,839: £1,709 to apply and £130 for the citizenship ceremony.
• A decision usually comes within 6 months.

None of this changes the test itself. What it changes is how long the reference number needs to sit in a drawer before you use it again.

ID: the BRP deadline and eVisa share codes

You need the same ID at the test that you used to book it, and it has to be the original, not a copy or a screenshot.

If you have an eVisa, GOV.UK says you should book with a share code, which you get by signing in to your UK Visas and Immigration account. Without an eVisa you can use a valid passport, a valid identity card from the EU, Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway, a valid travel document with a photo (not an emergency travel document), or a biometric residence permit or card.

The BRP option has a deadline. Your test must be no later than 24 months after the expiry date printed on the card, or before 31 December 2026, whichever comes first. If you are planning to book with a BRP for January 2027 or later, that will not work.

Cancelling, moving and refunds

GOV.UK sets out the money rules:

You cancel through your Life in the UK account, under confirmed tests. Refund requests for centre cancellations go to PSI, the test provider.

Where and in which language

There are over 30 test centres in the UK, and you choose one when you book. The caseworker guidance says you can take the test in Welsh at a centre in Wales, or in Scottish Gaelic if you take it in Scotland. Otherwise it is in English.

The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man have their own arrangements. In the Isle of Man it must be the test known as the Life in the UK Test. In Guernsey or Jersey it must be the test known as the Citizenship Test, run by an educational institution or someone approved by the Lieutenant Governor. There are also arrangements for armed forces personnel and their dependants to sit it in Germany and Cyprus.

On the day itself, GOV.UK says you cannot bring children or other family members with you to the centre.

A simple plan

1. Work out which application needs the test first, usually settlement.
2. Check your ID: if your BRP is your only document, look at the 31 December 2026 limit.
3. Book at least three days ahead, with the name exactly as it appears on your ID.
4. Leave enough time before the application to rebook if needed.
5. Save the reference number, and use it again for citizenship.

The format, the pass mark and the booking rules are in our guide to the Life in the UK Test.

Preparing for the test

The Life in the UK app has 305 questions written from the official handbook and 24-question mock tests in 45 minutes with the 75% pass mark. Questions are in English, as in the test, with a translation and explanation in one of 14 languages underneath. It is independent of the Home Office and is a free download with in-app purchases: Life in the UK on the App Store.

Sources

• GOV.UK — Life in the UK Test: book the test: who needs the test, test centres, accepted ID and the BRP deadline, eVisa share codes.
• GOV.UK — What happens at the test: original ID, photo, the unique reference number, rebooking.
• GOV.UK — Cancellations, refunds and complaints: the 72-hour rule and refund cases.
• GOV.UK — Apply for citizenship if you have indefinite leave to remain: residence, absences, the £1,839 fee and decision times.
• Home Office — Knowledge of language and life in the UK, caseworker guidance, version 31.0, 18 December 2025: results on the day, the reference number since 17 December 2019, Welsh and Scottish Gaelic, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, reusing a B1 qualification.

Fees and rules change. Check the GOV.UK pages above before you book or apply.