IELTS cancellation and refund policy

If you have booked an IELTS test and you need to change your test date, you can transfer your booking to a new date. To do this, visit the Test Taker portal and follow the instructions under View this booking > Transfer test date.

Transfer terms depend on when you apply for you transfer:

Transfer request date	Transfer Policy
15 or more days before the test date	Transfer allowed. No cost.
Within 5-14 days of test date	Transfer allowed. An administrative fee of 25% will be charged.
Under 5 days	No transfers allowed. Any transfer requests will be treated as a cancellation, and normal refund rules will apply.

If you have booked an IELTS for UKVI test or an IELTS on paper test and want to change your test date, please contact your test centre. 

You can cancel your IELTS test registration at any time before taking your test via the Test Taker portal. Refund terms depend on when you cancel and whether exceptional circumstances apply:

Cancellation date	Refund Policy
15 or more days before the test date	75% refund of the total test fee (25% admin fee)
Within 14 days of the test date	No refund will be provided

• full refund only if you have a new exam booking with another British Council centre abroad (confirmation needed) or if you no longer need an exam because your scores were changed as a result of EOR request
• submit your cancellation request via the Test Taker Portal  

Your local laws may give you better rights. If consumer protection law where you have registered to take your IELTS test offers you more favourable cancellation and transfer rights, then local laws will apply. 

Test taker exceptions 

If you are ill or have a personal emergency on your test date, you may need to cancel your test. If this is the case, you can submit a case for special consideration due to exceptional circumstances to your test centre. This will allow you to carry over your test fee to a later test date or, in some cases, apply for a refund.

We define exceptional circumstances as:

• a traumatic experience
• domestic crisis
• unavoidable legal or military obligation
• serious medical conditions which prevent you from attending or performing normally on test day.
• bereavement or other forms of significant hardship
• civil unrest or extreme weather.

You can make a case for exceptional circumstances before the test and up to two calendar days after the test date if you did not attend the test. Applications for special consideration will not be accepted after your results have been released.

You need to contact your test centre directly and provide full information as to why you qualify for special consideration with supporting evidence. Your test centre will assess your application and will respond to you within seven working days of receiving your full application in writing.

If your test centre approves your application, you will receive a refund or transfer. In some cases, this will be subject to an administrative fee. Please be aware that refunds can take 4–6 weeks to process.

To apply for special consideration, please contact your Test Centre and submit a cancellation request, along with your supporting evidence.

Test Centre exceptions 

Under certain circumstances outside of your test centre’s control, we may have to cancel your test and transfer it to a future date. These circumstances include, but are not limited to, extreme weather conditions, natural disaster, civil unrest, industrial action or force majeure.

In these circumstances, your test centre will provide you with as much notice as possible and give you the choice of either:

• a full refund, or
• a transfer to a future test date convenient to you.

If your test is cancelled or postponed due to other circumstances such as technical failure, venue or environmental factors, your test centre will provide you with as much notice as possible and give you the choice of a refund or a transfer to a future test.