IELTS requirements
What IELTS score do you need for UK?
The UK is where most candidates are given the wrong number. The visa requirement and the university requirement are two different bars, set by two different bodies — and the visa bar is considerably lower than the figure prep sites usually quote. Both matter, because you have to clear both.
The visa bar — what UKVI actually requires
Student visas are assessed against the CEFR scale, and the Home Office publishes how IELTS for UKVI maps onto it. Note these are minimums in each of the four skills, not an overall score.
- Degree level or above
- CEFR B2 — 5.5 in each skill
- Below degree level
- CEFR B1 — 4.0 in each skill
- Skilled Worker visa
- CEFR B2 — 5.5 in each skillRaised from B1; B1 still applies to holders of the visa from before 8 January 2026 who are extending
The university bar — usually higher
Clearing the visa threshold does not get you a place. Universities set their own entry requirements above the UKVI floor, and licensed Higher Education Providers may assess your English themselves for degree-level study — though that assessment must still be equivalent to B2. Check the offer conditions from your specific institution, and treat the visa floor as the absolute minimum rather than the goal.
The full UKVI scale
For reference, the Home Office maps IELTS for UKVI to CEFR as follows, in each skill.
- B1
- 4.0
- B2
- 5.5
- C1
- 7.0
- C2
- 8.5
What we don't claim
We deliberately do not publish a UK university admission range: those figures are institution-set and no gov.uk source establishes them. Immigration Rules Appendix O, still cited by many guides, has been deleted — the approved-test lists are the current authority. Make sure you book IELTS for UKVI, not standard IELTS, where a visa requires a SELT.
Sources
Every figure above comes from the body that sets it. Requirements change — check the source before you rely on a number.
- 1gov.ukStudent visa: B2 for degree level, B1 below degree level
- 2gov.ukSkilled Worker visa: at least B2, with pre-8 January 2026 transition wording
- 3gov.ukSELT guidance and the approved-test score lists mapping IELTS for UKVI to CEFR
Retrieved 22 July 2026
Now find out where you actually stand.
Knowing the number is the easy half. Sit a full mock under real exam conditions — timers that don't pause, audio that plays once — and find out which skill is holding your band down, before it costs you an application.