I proved my English for my Skilled Worker visa. Do I need to do it again for ILR?

If you apply for ILR before 26 March 2027, usually not: GOV.UK lists Skilled Worker visa holders among the people who do not need to prove English again for settlement. If you apply on or after 26 March 2027, the new rules add a B2 speaking and listening requirement at settlement, unless one of the ways of meeting it applies to you.

What changes

Today, Skilled Worker main applicants have no English requirement at settlement, because they proved English when they got the visa. HC 1691 adds a settlement-stage requirement (Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 22A.1) for applications made on or after 26 March 2027. Health and Care Worker is part of the Skilled Worker route, so it is covered too. Scale-up main applicants get the same change (SCU 16A.1).

Does the English I used for my visa count?

It can. Under Appendix KoLL, if your current permission was granted on the basis of an English qualification at B2 or higher, and that provider is still approved, it counts for applications on or after 26 March 2027. If your permission was granted on the basis of B1, that counts only for applications before that date. GOV.UK adds that, for settlement, the qualification must be on the current approved list and must have been accepted for another UK immigration application.

If you proved your English with a degree, the degree route has no date limit: see Does my degree count?.

What about an old test certificate?

A new SELT has to be taken no more than 2 years before you apply. An older B2 result does not count on its own; it counts only under the earlier-application rule above. Whether your own old result qualifies for that depends on your route and on whether the provider is still approved, so we cannot answer it for you in general. Check GOV.UK, or use the free checker for a quick first answer.

Your partner

Partners applying as Skilled Worker dependants also move to B2 from the same date: see Does my partner or child need B2?.

What we are not sure about

GOV.UK's guide also lists Domestic Worker in a Private Household as not needing a settlement test. One test provider says that route stays at B1, but we could not confirm that in the Rules text, so we do not give an answer for it here.

Last checked against GOV.UK: 21 October 2026.

Sources

1. Prove your knowledge of English: exemptions, GOV.UK (checked 21 Oct 2026)
2. Immigration Rules: Appendix Skilled Worker (SW 22A.1, SW 44.1), GOV.UK (checked 20 Oct 2026)
3. Immigration Rules: Appendix KoLL (updated 8 October 2026), GOV.UK (checked 20 Oct 2026)
4. Prove your knowledge of English: approved English language qualifications, GOV.UK (checked 21 Oct 2026)
5. HC 1691 Explanatory Memorandum (paragraphs 5.60 to 5.62), GOV.UK (checked 20 Oct 2026)
6. Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 1691 (5 March 2026), GOV.UK (checked 20 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.