What score is B2 in IELTS for UKVI, PTE Academic UKVI and LanguageCert?
On the Home Office approved list, B2 means at least 5.5 in each skill in IELTS for UKVI, 59 in each skill in PTE Academic UKVI, and 60 in each skill in LanguageCert Academic SELT or General SELT. These are the list's minimum grades; the list says nothing about averages, so plan on reaching the minimum in each component.
The full B2 table
- IELTS for UKVI: 5.5 in each of listening, speaking, reading and writing.
- PTE Academic UKVI: 59 in each of listening, reading, writing and speaking.
- LanguageCert Academic SELT: 60 in each skill. LanguageCert General SELT: 60 in each skill.
- LanguageCert International ESOL SELT B2: 33/50 in each skill.
- Trinity ISE II and Skills for English UKVI B2: a pass in each skill.
IELTS says the same on its own site: at least 5.5 in all four components of IELTS for UKVI for B2.
Is it each skill or the overall score?
The list gives a minimum for each component, not an overall band. GOV.UK says that where components are examined and awarded together, you must achieve the required scores in all the relevant components in the same test. For ILR the Rules ask for speaking and listening, but it is not stated whether reading and writing scores will be ignored on a four-skill test. Check with the provider and GOV.UK before you book.
What about PTE Home?
Pearson says PTE Home tests speaking and listening only. On the approved list it exists at A1, A2 and B1, not at B2. For B2, Pearson's listed test is PTE Academic UKVI, which tests all four skills.
How old can the result be?
No more than 2 years before the date of your application. See How long is an English test valid?.
Before you book
The free checker tells you whether you probably need a test at all. See also the approved B2 list.
Last checked against GOV.UK: 21 October 2026.
Sources
- List of approved Secure English Language Tests taken in the UK (ODS, October 2025 version) (GOV.UK, checked 21 Oct 2026)
- List of approved Secure English Language Tests taken outside the UK (ODS, October 2025 version) (GOV.UK, checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Prove your English language abilities with a Secure English Language Test (SELT), last updated 12 October 2026 (GOV.UK, checked 21 Oct 2026)
- IELTS: tests for UK Visas and Immigration (provider site) (test provider's site, checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Pearson: SELT tests (provider site) (test provider's site, checked 21 Oct 2026)
This is general information, not immigration advice. Check GOV.UK for your own route, or speak to a regulated immigration adviser (registered with the IAA, formerly OISC). Find a regulated adviser on GOV.UK.