The test was introduced to make sure that you had a good idea about life in the UK.
Personally I think this is a very useful exam which can educate you about the UK, a lot of very useful information, if you plan to live here long term.

If you are applying for either

  1. Indefinite leave to remain (Permanent Residency) or
  2. British citizenship (UK nationality)

Again you would normally apply for both, first for Permanent Residency, then after 1 year, for UK nationality. So this citizenship exam is required for both, and you just need to do the test only once.

Prove that you have knowledge about life in the UK can be by either

  1. Passing the Life in the UK Test (if your level of English is ESOL 3 or above) OR
  2. Depending on your level of English (Below ESOL 3), by attending combined English language (ESOL- English for Speakers of Other Languages ) and citizenship classes.

You must either pass the test or do ESOL, before you apply for British nationality or before applying for permanent settlement.

Our site helps you to prepare for the test in the UK or British citizenship. You can make use of all the free and tested information to pass this. All knowledge and questions are from the ‘Life in the United Kingdom: A Journey to Citizenship‘ handbook. While there are many materials out there to help you prepare for the UK Citizenship exam, this is the only book recommended to prepare for the test.

This computer based test can be taken at any accredited Life in the UK Test centre in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland). The exam itself can be passed very easily with thorough and meticulous preparation

For other questions you may have, a great source of answers Is the Life in the UK Test Helpline 0800 0154245. Test centre staff are also quite capable of answering your questions, however it is always a good idea to resolve your queries before the exam. Ie by using this site and the help line.

UK settlement and naturalization can quite possibly be the most important events in your whole life. So pass the exam without any further delay !. One of the reasons for the delay with my application was I kept delaying attempting the exam !. Once I decided to go for it, with proper preparation as I have described on this site, it took only 5 minute to pass !!!!

Read this to find out how you can Pass the Life in the UK exam in 5 minutes !