Do You Need to Retake the Test for Citizenship?

One test, two applications

The Life in the UK Test is a single exam: 24 multiple-choice questions, 45 minutes, 18 correct to pass, drawn from the 3rd edition of the official handbook. It is booked on gov.uk for £50 and sat at an official test centre.

Two different applications ask for it. Most people meet it first when they apply for indefinite leave to remain, then reach for the same pass a year or more later when they apply for citizenship. The Home Office does not issue a settlement version and a citizenship version; it issues one result, and that result belongs to you.

Why people think there is an ILR version and a citizenship version

The confusion comes from the forms. The settlement application and the naturalisation application both ask whether you have passed the test, so it looks like two separate hurdles. Some immigration advisers add to the muddle by listing the test under both routes without saying it is the same one.

There is also the gap in time. If you passed in 2021 and are applying to naturalise in 2026, it feels as though something must have lapsed. Nothing has. A pass from any year counts.

What to keep after you pass

When you pass, the test centre gives you a pass notification. Keep it with your other immigration documents, because it carries the reference used to confirm your result. Use the same name, date of birth and identity details on later applications that you used when you booked, so the record matches.

If you lose the notification, do not book the test again. Contact the test booking service through gov.uk and ask for the result to be confirmed against your details.

If you have not passed yet: one preparation covers both

Because the test is the same, there is no reason to prepare twice or to hold back until citizenship. Pass it once, properly, and the requirement is settled for good. The Life in the UK Test 2026 Pro app follows the official handbook in 10 chapters and 66 lessons, with 550 practice questions and 22 timed mock tests. The first four chapters and two mock tests are free.

Study until three timed mock tests in a row come in at 21 or above, then book. That margin is what turns a pass into a reliable pass.

What the test covers, whichever route you are on

The content does not change with the application. The same handbook chapters on British values, history, government, law and everyday life supply every question, and the lesson on active citizenship shown below is the kind of material that appears in both an ILR candidate's test and a naturalisation candidate's test.

That is worth remembering when you plan your study. You are not learning settlement facts and citizenship facts; you are learning one syllabus.

Timing: when to sit it if you are heading for both

Take it once, and take it early. The pass never expires, so there is no advantage in waiting until citizenship, and every advantage in getting it out of the way while you are already studying for settlement. If a resit is needed, the seven-day minimum wait and the £50 fee are easier to absorb months before a deadline than weeks before it.

There is no confirmed change to the test in 2026, only a 2025 White Paper proposal with no date or edition attached, so a pass you earn now is the same pass you will use later.

• Passed for ILR already: keep the notification, do nothing else
• Applying for ILR soon: study now, pass once, reuse the pass for citizenship
• Going straight to citizenship: the same single test applies

Exemptions apply to both routes too

If you are under 18 or aged 65 or over when you apply, or a doctor confirms on the required form that a long-term condition prevents you from taking the test, you are exempt whichever application you are making. A prior pass is itself an exemption from taking it again. Everyone else takes it once, and once is enough.

Frequently asked questions

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