Booking and paying for assessments

Overview

The booking process

Kaplan manages the booking process on behalf of the SRA. This page will help you with most queries about booking. But if you do have further questions about any aspect of booking (such as the queueing system, technical aspects of booking, availability of seats, etc), please contact our candidate services team. These are also the sources of information for training providers.

Self service

Once you’ve registered for your SQE account you can book and pay for your assessment. You can book using your candidate account, and make a direct payment or use a prepaid voucher.

Vouchers

If you’re a training provider or an employer you can purchase a number of vouchers to provide to your candidates for them to book their assessments.

Apprentices

If you are an apprentice, you should speak to your training provider well in advance of booking an assessment as you should not pay for the assessment yourself.

Reasonable adjustments

If you need to apply for a reasonable adjustment, you do not need to book an assessment online, but you do need to make an application for reasonable adjustments for each assessment that you sit. Doing so early and in advance of a booking window opening will give us enough time to review and organise any agreed adjustments.

Before you book your assessment

Before you book your assessment you will need to have done the following pre-booking tasks:

• Completed the monitoring and maximising diversity survey - the survey is compulsory. But if you don’t want to answer any of the questions you can opt out. You can review your answers and change your responses at any time. Please note that the survey contains questions about disability and other conditions but it is not the application form for reasonable adjustments. If you require a reasonable adjustment to take the assessment, please complete the application on your candidate account.
• Confirmed any exemptions - if you have applied for and had any exemptions confirmed by the SRA you must enter your SRA exemption number in your SQE account. You can skip this step if you’ve not applied for or been granted an exemption. If this applies to you, you must complete this step first before completing the diversity survey and reasonable adjustment steps.
• Requested reasonable adjustments - if you need any reasonable adjustments you must request them before we book your assessment for you.

You will need to complete all of the above every time you book an assessment. We recommend that you complete all the pre-booking steps as soon as possible. You do not have to wait until the booking window has opened before starting the pre-booking tasks.

When you can book your assessment

You will find details of when the booking window for an assessment will open on the timings page. Assessment dates will be published about 12 months before each assessment. We recommend that you book as early as possible as booking is on a first come first served basis with a finite number of seats. If the test centre you choose is fully booked you will need to choose an alternative centre.

You should consider carefully when you feel you will be ready to take the SQE. Please see the blog: “Preparing for SQE2” in the March 2022 edition of the SQE Update, for some of the considerations when planning ahead, such as whether a period of qualifying work experience would be beneficial.

Learn more: Timings

Booking your assessment

When a booking window opens, you can:

• Log in into your SQE account and see what assessments are available for you. You will only be shown the ones you are able to sit.
• Book your assessment via PearsonVue (accessed via your SQE account), and return to your SQE account to pay. You must pay when you book your assessment.

You will also need to accept the assessment terms and conditions at the time of booking your assessment.

We will send you an email confirming the details of your assessment booking and further details about the assessment.

Please note that, unless you have an exemption from sitting SQE1, you cannot book to take SQE2 until you have received your results for and passed SQE1. Similarly, you cannot book to re-sit SQE1 until you have received your results for your previous SQE1 attempt.

Learn more: Assessment terms and conditions

Booking opening

When booking has opened and you proceed to book your assessment using your SQE account, please note:

• A queuing system will be in place to allow for fair access to the booking process should a large number of candidates want to access their accounts when the window opens. If this facility is used, the waiting page will indicate a very approximate waiting time.
• You can navigate away from the waiting page and won’t lose your place in the queue. But we recommend that you check back regularly as the waiting time is only an estimate.
• The test centre booking page looks very similar to the Pearson VUE test centre locator tool, but with added functionality to make the booking. You can familiarise yourself with this Pearson VUE test centre locator tool during a booking window before booking your assessment. It is on our Dates and Locations page.
• The actual booking page automatically filters to a list of centres closest to the address that you have registered with. The search field can be amended so you can search by a different postcode or city instead and a list of centres will be shown. If seats are still available at the test centre you select, you can proceed to make the booking.
• Payment should be made at the time of booking to complete your booking. This can be done with a card payment or the use of a voucher code. If you experience any difficulties with this, please contact Candidate Services as soon as possible and they will be able to help you.
• For SQE1, you will book each Functioning Legal Knowledge assessment individually. Similarly, for SQE2, you will book your SQE2 written assessments separately to your SQE2 oral assessments. However, the relevant assessments are paid for together after all assessments have been added to your assessment “basket”.

Updates during a booking window

If we need to update you with any key information during booking (for example, in the event of technical issues) we will do so via the banner at the top of the homepage. This is the source of information that training providers also use. You can also contact the candidate services team.

Rescheduling

You are able to reschedule your test centre during the booking window for SQE1 or SQE2 Written if there are seats available at alternative test centres. This can be done in the assessment bookings section of your SQE account. You can only reschedule while the booking window is open. Once the booking window is closed, it is not possible to reschedule to an alternative test centre.

It is not possible to reschedule the SQE2 Oral assessment. If you need to change the dates or location of your oral assessments you will need to cancel your entire original SQE2 booking by contacting the SQE Candidate Services Team and then re-book using your SQE account. This is subject to the availability of written and oral test centre seats. Your cancellation is subject to the SQE Terms and Conditions and a fee may be payable based on when you request a cancellation.  

Please note that some candidates do cancel their bookings during assessment booking windows. This can be for various reasons. Therefore, candidates that have not made a booking or that may wish to book in a more convenient location, may find it helpful to return to the booking page occasionally during the booking window to see if a space has become available (due to a cancellation) at a more convenient test centre location.

Pearson VUE test centres

You can check the location and facilities of Pearson VUE test centres before booking your assessment. Please be aware that you may not be able to sit your assessment at your nearest centre. Seats are allocated based on availability and on a first come first serve basis. Note that you can not book your assessment directly through Pearson VUE.

Note: Pearson VUE test centres in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia are currently closed. We will therefore not offer SQE assessments in these countries for the foreseeable future. We will review this should the position change.

Learn more: Pearson VUE test centres

Payment methods

You must pay securely at the time of booking with a debit or credit card, or using a prepaid voucher supplied by your employer or training provider.

Learn more: Payment methods

Booking your assessment if you have reasonable adjustments

The test centres can accommodate a range of alternative arrangements for candidates with whom reasonable adjustments have been agreed, and who have individual requirements.

If you need to apply for a reasonable adjustment, you do not need to book an assessment online, but you do need to make an application for reasonable adjustments for each assessment that you sit. Doing so early and in advance of a booking window opening will give us enough time to review and organise any agreed adjustments.

A member of our Equality and Quality team will work with you to identify a test centre which can accommodate your agreed reasonable adjustment, and is as near to you as possible, and we will reserve a place for you there. Your booking is made when you make the required payment through the Candidate Services Team. If you need to make a Reasonable Adjustment request for both SQE1 and SQE2 you must do these separately when you book each assessment. This is because the assessment methods for SQE1 and SQE2 are not the same, so adjustments made for one may not be appropriate for the other.

Learn more: Reasonable adjustments 

Booking your assessment if you’re an apprentice

You should discuss your assessment booking with your apprenticeship training provider in advance. They can provide you with a prepaid voucher so that you can book your assessment.

Learn more: The SQE for apprentices

Information for employers and training providers

Employers and training providers can purchase vouchers for their candidates to use to pay for their assessment(s).

Learn more: Voucher payments

Vouchers

The simplest way for training providers and employers to pay for a group of candidates is to purchase vouchers. These can be provided to the candidate in advance of the booking window opening, in order for them to book their own assessment on their candidate account. A bulk booking process was available but it was not used. It has been removed as purchasing vouchers remains the most efficient to pay for groups of candidates.

If you are a training provider or employer and want to purchase a number of vouchers using an invoicing system, we will require your company to complete a credit application. Please contact us to request a Credit Application Form and it will be emailed to you. Please complete and email the credit application to the Candidate Services team to begin the credit application process. A credit application can take up to 10 working days to be processed.

Once the credit application form has been processed, the Candidate Services team will provide details regarding the status of the form. If the credit limit has been approved, you will be able to request vouchers up to the value of your credit limit.

Individual candidates must complete the registration process including the ID verification, as well as the pre-booking steps including the diversity survey, confirming any exemptions, and letting us know if they need any reasonable adjustments requests, before any booking can be completed on their behalf.