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Dear all, I have ILR and I am due to apply for British Citizenship late next year. The home office has recently announced that the English language requirement for ILR and citizenship is going to be raised from B1 to B2. Therefore, I am considering to take an SELT English test at B2 level. Because there is no two facets (speaking and listening) tests available for B2 level at the moment, I am wondering if I can take a UKVI-approved four facets test (speaking, listening, reading and writing, e.g., IELTS for UKVI general training) and use it for citizenship application (as long as I can achieve the required scores at B2 level)?

This seems possible given that: 1) Skilled workers can use their expired four-facet language certificate, which was accepted for entry clearance application, when applying for citizenship in future. 2) One approved test provider (Pearson) states that applicants can use four-facet tests for visas that require two-facet English qualification (see note in https://www.pearsonpte.com/destination-uk/visas). But I am not totally sure about this, so any suggestions or experiences are appreciated. Many thanks!

First of all, we don’t know any more about the proposed changes to immigration and nationality requirements than anyone else.

I’m sure that approved test providers will test you on any level you book for. I would be wary of booking anything ahead of official guidance because the new regime may look different and there may be transition provisions.

Unfortunately, if it’s about saving money it’s difficult to make a call. Fees for tests and applications will go up, my guess. Your call.

We’ve all heard the phrase “immigrants are expected to pay their way”!

alterhase58 wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 23, 2025 8:36 pm

First of all, we don’t know any more about the proposed changes to immigration and nationality requirements than anyone else.

I’m sure that approved test providers will test you on any level you book for. I would be wary of booking anything ahead of official guidance because the new regime may look different and there may be transition provisions.

Unfortunately, if it’s about saving money it’s difficult to make a call. Fees for tests and applications will go up, my guess. Your call.

We’ve all heard the phrase “immigrants are expected to pay their way”!

Thank you for the reply. It's not about saving money and I know things could change. I just wonder under the current rules, do you think I can use a four-facet test for citizenship application though? If so, I am going to take a IELTS for UKVI four-facet test. And if things changed in the coming months, I can take another test if needed. Thanks.

alterhase58 wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 23, 2025 8:36 pm

First of all, we don’t know any more about the proposed changes to immigration and nationality requirements than anyone else.

I’m sure that approved test providers will test you on any level you book for. I would be wary of booking anything ahead of official guidance because the new regime may look different and there may be transition provisions.

Unfortunately, if it’s about saving money it’s difficult to make a call. Fees for tests and applications will go up, my guess. Your call.

We’ve all heard the phrase “immigrants are expected to pay their way”!

For example, if I am going to apply tomorrow, can I use IELTS for UKVI general training (instead of IELTS life skills) for citizenship application, based on the current rules?

If you were to apply tomorrow, you would need to use a SELT B1 test - not the 4 facet ones. You will be tested at B1 level only on speaking and listening. Read the official guidance here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prove-your- ... -test-selt

If you took an English test for ILR, you can reuse it. This is the current status of the rules.

Note what you wrote:

ofloyd wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 23, 2025 8:53 pm

1) Skilled workers can use their expired four-facet language certificate, which was accepted for entry clearance application, when applying for citizenship in future.

You don't have a test like what you describe that was previously accepted.

As we don't know what the new rules will be or when they will start, we can't advise on the new iteration or what the safest choice would be. It will be easy to find a text to book when you are due to apply. As you can't apply before roughly 12 months it seems, reassess the situation in 9 months or so.