SQE1 Exam Dates 2027: 11 to 22 January, Booking and Results

Short answer: The next SQE1 sitting is January 2027: FLK1 on 11 to 15 January and FLK2 on 18 to 22 January. The SRA emailed its seat reservation form on 22 September 2026 from 6pm and it was due by 5pm on 24 September; payment requests follow between 19 October and 18 November; anyone without a form can book directly from 10am on 19 November; booking closes at 5pm on 23 November 2026; results are released on 9 March 2027. The sitting after that is July 2027 (FLK1 12 to 16 July, FLK2 19 to 23 July), with booking and results dates still to be published. Every date on this page was read from sqe.sra.org.uk on 20 September 2026, and the SQE2 dates for 2026 and 2027 are further down.

Why Your SQE1 Timeline Matters More Than You Think

The SQE1 is not an exam you can simply turn up for. It sits at the centre of a chain of deadlines, booking windows, result releases, and subsequent assessments that together determine when you qualify as a solicitor. Miss the SQE1 registration deadline and you wait months for the next sitting. Pass SQE1 but fail to plan your SQE2 timeline and you could add half a year to your qualification journey.

This guide gives you every confirmed and projected SQE1 exam date for 2026 and 2027, tells you exactly when bookings open and close, when results come out, and how to map your path from first booking all the way through to admission. Bookmark it and return to it whenever you need to check a date.

SQE1 Exam Dates for 2026 and 2027

The SRA, through its assessment provider Kaplan, administers the SQE1 twice per year: in January and July. Each sitting runs over two consecutive assessment weeks — you sit FLK1 on a day within the first week and FLK2 on a day within the second week, booked as individual slots at a Pearson VUE test centre.

Below are the dates published on the official SQE website (checked 20 September 2026).

Confirmed SQE1 Exam Dates

If you missed the July 2026 sitting, January 2027 is your next opportunity — and there is no sitting in between. With only two windows a year, missing a booking deadline costs you six months, which is why the timeline planning below matters so much.

January 2027 is the first sitting on the updated specification

One more date to have on your radar: the SRA's annual assessment specification review takes effect on 1 September 2026. It refines the FLK wording in places (for example, tax rates and thresholds will be provided in the question where needed) but does not change the exam format, question count, or marking. The January 2027 sitting is the first SQE1 run under the updated specification — July 2026 and earlier sittings used the current one. Every change is explained in plain English in our specification changes guide. Our question bank and flashcards have been audited against the updated wording, so practice on the platform reflects the January 2027 specification. The same September date brings a fee increase for every assessment from that month onwards — see our SQE fee increase guide.

Important: Always verify your specific sitting dates on the official SQE assessment dates page before committing to travel, study leave, or time off work. Dates can change.

Booking Windows: When Registration Opens and Closes

SQE1 booking runs through your SQE candidate account, with Kaplan and Pearson VUE delivering the assessment. The SRA's recommended route is its seat reservation form: it is emailed to candidates on a published date, you return it within a few days with your preferred dates and test centre, and seats are allocated in the order forms arrive. Direct booking through the candidate account is only offered if online booking is open and you did not reserve a seat. Where the SRA publishes a closing date it falls five to seven weeks before the first FLK1 day — the July 2026 window, for example, closed on 28 May 2026. All dates are announced on the official SQE website.

How the Booking Process Works

1. Create your SQE candidate account. Register on the official SQE website before the seat reservation date — do not leave it to the week the form goes out.
2. Complete the pre-booking tasks. Submit the diversity survey, lodge any reasonable-adjustment request, and confirm any exemptions. The SRA will not book you without these.
3. Return the seat reservation form, or book directly. The form arrives by email on the published date; you give your preferred dates and test centre, seats are allocated in the order forms are received, and you are then emailed to complete the booking and pay. Direct booking through your candidate account is only offered if online booking is open and you did not reserve a seat.

Booking Window Timeline

If you are aiming for January 2027, the seat reservation form closed at 5pm on 24 September 2026. If you returned it, pay within 48 hours of the payment request that arrives between 19 October and 18 November. If you did not, a limited number of seats can be booked directly in your SQE account from 10am on 19 November to 5pm on 23 November. If you did not return a form, a limited number of seats can be booked directly through your candidate account between 10am on 19 November and 5pm on 23 November 2026, subject to availability; 23 November is the booking closing date. The SQE fee increase applies to every assessment from September 2026 onwards, so January 2027 costs £2,006 (£1,003 for a single paper) whenever you book. Details in our fee increase guide.

January 2027: Every Date in Order

Source: the SRA's January 2027 SQE1 booking page and its dates and booking windows page, read on 20 September 2026. Candidates with reasonable adjustments pay by phone after the payment email and reschedule through the accessibility team rather than the Bookings page.

Pearson VUE Booking Tips

Pearson VUE test centres have limited seats and popular locations fill up fast — particularly London centres. Here is how to avoid problems:

• Book as early as possible. Return the seat reservation form on the day it arrives and pay within 48 hours of the payment request. Seats are allocated in the order forms are received, so waiting even a few days can mean your preferred centre is full.
• Have backup test centres ready. If central London is fully booked, consider centres in Croydon, Watford, Reading, or other nearby locations.
• You can change your booking. Pearson VUE allows you to reschedule or change your test centre up to a certain date before the exam, usually 48 to 72 hours prior. Check the specific reschedule deadline in your confirmation email. There is no fee for rescheduling within the allowed window.
• Check your confirmation carefully. Make sure the date, time, and location are correct. Errors do happen, and catching them early saves stress on exam day.
• Arrive early. Test centres require you to arrive 30 minutes before your scheduled start time for identity verification. If you arrive late, you may not be admitted and will lose your exam fee.

SQE1 Results: When Do They Come Out?

The most common question candidates ask after sitting SQE1 is: when do SQE1 results come out? Results are released about six and a half weeks after the last FLK2 day. The SRA's published guide is five to six weeks; in practice the July 2026 results came out on 8 September 2026 and the January 2027 results are scheduled for 9 March 2027, both a little over six weeks after the final FLK2 day.

SQE1 Results Timeline

The SRA confirms the exact results release date on the official SQE website. You will receive an email after 11am UK time on results day telling you that your results are available in your SQE candidate account.

What Your Results Will Show

Your score report shows, for each paper you sat: a pass or fail, your scaled score out of 500 (300 is the pass mark, set by standard-setting for each sitting), your quintile among the candidates in that sitting, a breakdown by practice area, and your attempt number with the deadline for completing the SQE. It does not show individual questions or answers. How to read the report is in SQE1 results explained; if you did not pass, the January 2027 resit plan starts from the practice-area breakdown.

The SQE1 to SQE2 Timeline: How Long Between Passing SQE1 and Sitting SQE2?

This is the critical planning question. The gap between your SQE1 results and the next available SQE2 sitting determines how quickly you can move forward.

The SQE2 Assessment Windows

The SQE2 runs in its own assessment windows (typically four a year), which do not align neatly with the two SQE1 sittings. Here is how the published timelines line up:

Key insight: if you pass SQE1, you typically have only about six weeks until the next SQE2 window, and the seat reservation form for that window may already have closed before your results arrive. That is not much time to prepare for an assessment that tests 16 legal skills across written and oral exercises. This is why we strongly recommend deciding your SQE2 plan (and diarising its booking deadline) before your SQE1 results come out — more on that below.

For a detailed breakdown of the SQE2 format, skills tested, and preparation strategies, see our complete SQE2 preparation guide.

SQE2 Exam Dates 2026 and 2027

SQE2 runs four times a year, in January, April, July and October. The written papers are sat at Pearson VUE centres; the oral assessments run in sittings at venues in Birmingham, Cardiff, London and Manchester, and you attend one oral sitting. Results follow 14 to 18 weeks after the window, and booking closes about five weeks before it. The full table as published by the SRA on 20 September 2026:

Two things to notice. The written and oral parts are not in a fixed order, so "the January 2027 SQE2" starts with orals in January and ends with written papers in February. And from April 2027 the April window runs about four weeks, with two written sittings, to meet demand. The examinable-law cut-off for each SQE2 window is four calendar months before its first day.

What to Do While Waiting for SQE1 Results

The six-to-seven-week wait for SQE1 results can feel agonising, but it is also a strategic window. Here are your options:

Option 1: Start SQE2 Preparation Immediately

This is the approach we recommend to most candidates. If you start preparing for SQE2 while waiting for results and then find out you passed, you are already weeks into your preparation with a comfortable runway before the next SQE2 sitting. If you find out you failed SQE1, you have not lost anything — the legal knowledge you revise for SQE2 overlaps heavily with SQE1 content and will strengthen your resit preparation.

Use our SQE2 preparation guide to understand the skills assessed and start working on client interviews, advocacy, and legal writing exercises.

Option 2: Continue Qualifying Work Experience (QWE)

You need two years of QWE to qualify as a solicitor. Time spent waiting for results does not count towards QWE unless you are actually working. If you are in a training role or paralegal position, keep logging those days. Every week counts.

Option 3: Rest and Recover

SQE1 preparation is intense. If you have been studying hard for months, taking a short break is reasonable. Just be aware that a complete pause makes it harder to restart momentum, particularly for SQE2 preparation. A balanced approach is to take 1 to 2 weeks off and then ease into light SQE2 familiarisation.

Option 4: Resit Preparation (If You Think You Failed)

If you are fairly confident you did not pass, use the waiting period to analyse what went wrong and start rebuilding. Review your study notes, drill weak subjects with practice questions, and consider whether you need to adjust your study approach. Our guide to failing SQE1 and planning your resit covers this in detail.

Decision Trees: What to Do Based on Your Results

Your next steps depend entirely on your results combination. Here is a practical decision tree for every scenario.

Scenario 1: You Passed Both FLK1 and FLK2

Congratulations — you have cleared the biggest hurdle. Here is your immediate action plan:

1. Confirm your results in mySRA. Download and save your result notification.
2. Check the next SQE2 booking window. Book your SQE2 place as soon as possible — SQE2 slots also fill up quickly.
3. Begin focused SQE2 preparation. You likely have about six weeks. That is enough time if you start immediately. Focus on practical skills: legal writing, drafting, advocacy, client interviews, case and matter analysis. Use our SQE2 preparation guide for a structured plan.
4. Log your QWE. Make sure your qualifying work experience is being properly recorded and signed off.
5. Think about the admission timeline. After passing both SQE1 and SQE2 and completing QWE, you apply to the SRA for admission. The SRA typically processes admission applications in 4 to 8 weeks.

Scenario 2: You Passed FLK1 but Failed FLK2

You only need to resit the paper you failed. You do not need to resit FLK1.

1. Identify your FLK2 weak subjects. Without subject-level feedback from the SRA, use your practice question data and revision notes to pinpoint where you struggled. FLK2 covers Property Law, Criminal Law, Wills and Estates, Solicitors Accounts, Land Law, Trusts, and Criminal Liability.
2. Target the next available sitting. You can resit at the very next SQE1 sitting — but with only two windows a year, that means July if you failed in January, or January if you failed in July. Counted from results day, that gives you roughly four months of preparation time. Use it deliberately rather than treating it as a long runway.
3. Focus your revision. Do not revise everything equally. Concentrate on the subjects where your practice scores were weakest. Use flashcards for high-yield memorisation topics like Solicitors Accounts rules and criminal procedure.
4. Continue SQE2 prep. You can still prepare for SQE2 while planning your FLK2 resit. The knowledge overlaps significantly.

Scenario 3: You Failed Both FLK1 and FLK2

You need to resit both papers. The SRA allows unlimited resit attempts, but each attempt requires a new booking and exam fee.

1. Decide when to resit. You can sit at the next available window, but give yourself an honest assessment of whether you had enough preparation time. If you went into the exam underprepared, it may be better to skip one sitting and use the extra time to build a stronger foundation. See our failed SQE1 resit guide for a detailed resit strategy.
2. Change your approach. If you failed both papers, something in your study method needs to change. Consider whether you need more practice questions, better study materials, a different revision technique, or simply more time.
3. Use targeted resources. Work through our study notes for subject-by-subject coverage and drill with practice questions to build exam technique. Take a mock exam under timed conditions to simulate the real test.

Scenario 4: Should You Delay Your Sitting to Prepare More?

This is one of the hardest decisions candidates face. You have booked a sitting but feel underprepared. Should you push to the next window?

Our guide to passing SQE1 while working full-time covers time management strategies that can help you prepare efficiently even with limited study hours, potentially avoiding the need to delay.

Key SRA Dates for Admission After Passing SQE1 and SQE2

Once you have passed both SQE1 and SQE2 and completed your two years of qualifying work experience, the final step is applying to the roll of solicitors.

Admission Timeline

Prerequisites for Admission

• Pass both FLK1 and FLK2 (SQE1)
• Pass the SQE2
• Complete 2 years of qualifying work experience (QWE) — can be completed before, during, or after the assessments
• Meet the SRA's character and suitability requirements
• Have an approved law degree or pass the SQE via an alternative pathway

Visual Timeline: From First Booking to Admission

Here is a complete visual walkthrough of a typical candidate journey, assuming you sit SQE1 in January 2027 and SQE2 in the April 2027 window.

Total elapsed time from booking SQE1 to admission: approximately 12 months. This assumes you pass both parts on the first attempt and have your QWE completed or nearly completed.

How to Plan Your Study Schedule Backwards from Your Exam Date

Reverse planning — starting from your exam date and working backwards — is the most effective way to structure SQE1 preparation. Here is a template you can adapt.

The 12-Week Countdown (Example: January 2027 Sitting)

Adapting the Timeline for Your Situation

If you are studying while working full-time, you may need to stretch this to 16 to 20 weeks. The structure remains the same — just extend each phase proportionally. The key is to protect the final 4 weeks for practice and mock exams regardless of how long your overall preparation period is.

If you are studying full-time and can dedicate 6 to 8 hours per day to SQE1 prep, you may be able to compress this to 8 to 10 weeks. But do not cut the practice phase short — answering thousands of practice questions is what builds exam-day fluency.

Fees and Costs: What Each Sitting Will Cost You

Understanding the financial timeline helps you plan ahead. The SQE1 assessment fee is payable at the time of booking — and from September 2026 the SRA's new fee rates apply to every assessment from that month onwards, so the date you sit (not the date you book) determines what you pay.

If you fail one paper and need to resit, you pay the full fee for that paper again. This is another reason why thorough preparation and planning your study schedule properly matters — resits are expensive in both time and money. Full numbers, including materials and incidental costs, are in our SQE cost breakdown and fee increase guide.

For full preparation resources at a fraction of the cost of a traditional course, see our 4,400+ practice questions and mocks.

Your Next Step

Pick your target sitting. Count backwards 12 to 16 weeks. Block out your study time. Start with the study notes, layer in practice questions from week 6, take a mock exam at the 4-week mark, and use flashcards for the final push. The candidates who plan their timeline and stick to it are the ones who pass.

Good luck with your preparation. Every date in this guide is a milestone on your path to admission. Use them wisely.