Frequently asked questions

The rules for marking IELTS are clear and are closely followed. Candidates should take care when writing answers on the listening and reading answer sheets as incorrect spelling and grammar are penalised. Both British and American varieties of spelling are acceptable.

If you are asked to write an answer using a certain number of words and/or a number (or numbers) you will be penalised if they exceed this. For example, if a question specifies an answer using no more than three words and the correct is 'black leather coat', the answer 'coat of black leather' is incorrect.

For questions where you are expected to fill in a gap, you should only transfer the necessary missing word(s) onto the answer sheet. For example, if you're asked to complete 'in the..........' and the correct answer is 'morning' the answer 'in the morning' would be incorrect.

Read and follow the instructions and questions very carefully.  Particular care should be taken when transferring answers onto the answer sheet during the listening element of the test.

You may apply for an enquiry into your results within six weeks from the test date. Please send us a payment of £60 (card payment or postal order payable to the University of Westminster) and the IELTS Payment Slip together with your original Test Result Form and an Enquiry on Results (EOR) Form explaining which test sections you wish to have re-marked. We do not accept cheques or cash for the EOR payment.

After receiving your EOR form and payment, we will send the appropriate test materials together with your EOR form and any accompanying letter to the British Council. The British Council will usually notify us (the Test Centre) approximately eight weeks after the receipt of the appeal.  We will then immediately let you know the outcome.

Should your Test Result change due to the re-marking, your payment will be fully refunded within four weeks of the outcome and a new Test Report Form will be issued. Please note; we do not need you to send the original Test Report Form with your EOR form.

All requests to cancel or postpone a test must be made in writing and received by us no later than 3pm on the Friday three weeks before your test. These are subject to a £40 administration fee.

If you postpone or cancel your test within three weeks of the test date you will be charged the full test fee unless you are able to provide appropriate medical evidence (from your GP or hospital) to support your request.

You will normally lose your full test fee unless you are able to provide appropriate medical evidence (from a GP, Walk-in centre or hospital) to explain your absence. Medical evidence must be provided within five days of the test date. It is your responsibility to make sure we receive the medical evidence within the deadline.

There are four types of acceptable identification. These are:
a) A valid passport
b) A national identity card from your home country (European Union citizens)
c) A Certificate of Registration from the Police
d) An official Home Office identification card bearing a photograph and IND reference number (normally the identity documents of refugees/asylum seekers)

These are the only forms of identification acceptable. You will not be able to register without one of them. On the test day you will not be able to take the test unless you show one of the forms of identification listed above at registration. This must be the same document as written on your application form. No copies will be accepted. You will also lose the entire test fee.

If you know beforehand that you will not have your identification document on the test day but you are still in the possession of your identification, please contact the centre immediately before you send your identification away.

If you have already sent your identification away, and you know you will not be able to produce one of the other accepted forms of identification on the test day that is also the same as the identification written on your application form, you will not be able to take the test. You also lose the entire test fee unless you contact us to reschedule your test with at least five weeks notice.

If you have sent your passport to the Home Office because you are applying for leave to remain under Tiers 1 and 2 of the Points Based System you can request your passport back for purpose of sitting the test.Please see the Border Agency's instructions about how to request your passport back. We would advise you to send/fax this document with your request as some of the caseworkers at the Border Agency may not be aware of this provision.

Please note the above is only applicable for Tiers 1 and 2 applications, all other candidates will have to make sure they are in the possession of their passports at the time of the test.

You can repeat the test at the next available test date; there are no restrictions on candidates retaking the test.

It is your responsibility to tell the test administrator which version of the test (Academic or General Training) you need to take.  Academic (AC) is normally required for further/higher education entry whereas General Training (GT) is usually for emigration and working/training purposes.

Check with the institution you need to send your documents to if you are unsure.

You can buy IELTS exercise and preparation books in any large bookstore. They should stock them in their English Language section. We also sell the Official IELTS practice materials.

You are entitled to one personal and up to five institution copies of your Test Report Form (TFF) per test. This includes the copies for institutions written on page three of your application form. These are free of charge within four weeks of the test date.

Your personal copy is automatically sent to you two weeks after you take your test. To request your free institution copies, please fill in the Application for the Issue of Additional TRFs and post or fax it to us.

After four weeks, extra institution copies cost £5 each. Fill out the Application for the Issue of Additional TRFs and the IELTS Payment Slip. We do not accept cheques or cash for extra TRF payment. If you are abroad you may fax us the IELTS Payment Slip (and the above document) clearly filled with your credit card details.

Unfortunately TRFs older than two years are not replaceable (ie cannot be reprinted by the centre).

No, computer-based IELTS tests are not available in the UK yet.

There are no deadlines for applying. We operate on a strict first come first served basis. Our tests dates tend to fill up quite quickly, particularly over the summer months, so we advise getting your application in early. When we receive enough applications for a particular test date we close it.

No, this is not possible. We must receive all your documents and payment before we register you for a test date.

Unfortunately we do not have the ability to display results online yet. You will receive your result by post. We always post results 13 days after the test.

We can accommodate results collection in exceptional circumstances. If you present us with proof, eg a plane ticket or deadline letter from institution, you can collect your results from the IELTS Test Centre office 13 or 14 days after your test.

This is possible in exceptional circumstances. Please contact the IELTS Test Centre and request approval to use the Collection Form.

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