The test lasts for 45 minutes during which time the candidate is required to answer 24 multiple-choice questions. To pass the test, the candidate must receive a grade of 75% or higher (at least 18 correct answers out of 24 questions). Testing is not directly administered by the UK Border Agency, but is carried out by Ufi Limited

Ufi Ltd

Ufi Ltd is a not-for-profit organisation created in 1998 to take forward the UK Government's vision of a University for Industry in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

 via a secure web connection. As of the 1st June 2011 the cost of the test is £50.

From November 2005 to March 2007, the questions for the test were based on chapters 2 to 4 of the book Life in the United Kingdom: A Journey to Citizenship. However, from 2 April 2007, a new version of the test is based on chapters 2 to 6 of a revised handbook, published on 27 March 2007. The additional chapters cover knowledge and understanding of employment matters and everyday needs such as housing, money, health and education. The testable materials within the revised second edition handbook total 21,400 words, which is nearly 10,000 words longer than the original materials. The original materials also included an introduction by Bernard Crick welcoming immigrants to the UK, expressing the hope that they apply for citizenship, and stating the country's need for both skilled and unskilled migrants. In the second edition, this introduction was removed. Candidates are not tested on Chapter 1, which covers the history of Britain.

The official test website includes a section describing "What you need to know" for each chapter, but the questions are not in the multiple choice format of the real test. Sample questions are, however, widely available on the internet.

At the time of the initial introduction the materials were primarily about England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, but the second edition of the handbook contains more detail about aspects of life in the United Kingdom which differ in Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

, Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 and Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. Applicants taking the test receive a version tailored to where they live; for example, candidates in Scotland will be asked about the Scottish Parliament

Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...

, but not about the Welsh Assembly.

Pass rate

Of the 906,464 tests taken in 2009, 263,641 were failed (a pass rate of 70.9%). The results of candidates from countries with a strong tradition of immigration to the UK were variable. The pass rates for people from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States were all above 95%. In contrast, the pass rates for people from Iraq, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Turkey were below 50%. The largest single country of origin was India, with just over 100,000 tests taken and 79,229 passed (79.2%). These results are comparable to those from previous years. A sample test taken by 11,118 British citizens had a pass rate of only 14%.

Upon completion of the test, candidates are not informed of their exact mark. Successful candidates are informed that they have passed, while unsuccessful candidates learn the topics that they should study further. The test may be taken an unlimited number of times until a candidate achieves a pass. Since its inception, there have been numerous instances of fraud and cheating on the test.

Criticism

Prior to its launch, the test produced considerable speculation in the British media about possible questions. Most of this was not based on factual information about what the test required, and in particular a semi-serious BBC-devised test was often quoted as being the real thing.

Upon its publication, the associated handbook was widely criticised. Particular criticism was reserved for the section on the UK's history, which was described as a "turgid, abysmal piece of writing," filled with "factual errors, sweeping generalisations [and] gross misrepresentations." The UK Border Agency acknowledged that the first edition of the handbook "did not fulfil [its] role particularly well."

In 2008, Lord Goldsmith stated in a report on citizenship that the test "is not seen typically as a stimulus for learning, though that was one of its stated aims."

In 2011, the government announced its intention to include questions on the UK's history and remove questions on the EU from the test.

Errors and inaccuracies in the material

There were many critics of the first edition study materials for the test. Some of the claims in the handbook were factually incorrect, as an article in The Guardian

The Guardian

The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

 pointed out. Crick justified the errors on the basis that the handbook "was done fairly quickly because we didn't want to keep immigrants waiting for their citizenship." The second edition corrected most of these errors, however a number still remain:

• Claim: The law states that children between the ages of 5 and 16 must attend school
  School
  A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
  
  .
  • Fact: According to Section 7 of the Education Act 1996, children between the ages of 5 and 16 must be educated. This education may be provided at school or otherwise (for example, home education or private tutoring). Many questions state or suggest that school attendance is compulsory, which is untrue.
• Claim: Birth
  Birth
  Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
  
  s must be registered within 6 weeks (42 days).
  • Fact: Births in England, Wales and Northern Ireland must be registered within 6 weeks. In Scotland this figure is 21 days.
• Claim: You can attend a hospital without a GP's letter only in the case of an emergency.
  • Fact: Although a referral from a GP is normally required, this is not always necessary. For example, other doctors may refer for abortions, and self-referral is possible for physiotherapy, therapy and sexual health clinics. It is also possible to be referred from Accident and Emergency (as opposed to being referred to Accident and Emergency in order to receive the initial emergency treatment). And this only applies to treatment on the NHS - whilst a GP referral is still recommended for private treatment, it is not required.
• Claim: Information about the census is kept secret for 100 years (as opposed to being made available immediately).
  • Fact: In fact both are true, and the question is ambiguous. The full set of answers are not released until after 100 years, but generalised information from the census is certainly made available sooner (after all, otherwise there would be little point in the census).
• Claim: That only two groups of people receive prescriptions free of charge.
  • Fact: Prescriptions are free for all residents of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Only England chooses to means-test.

Further information in the current handbook, including the number of MPs in the House of Commons, and the Government's plan to introduce a UK Identity Card, is no longer valid as of the 2010 general election. Nevertheless, candidates are tested solely on their "knowledge of the official Life in the UK Handbook. No appeal will be accepted on the basis of a challenge to the validity of the information contained in the handbook."

External links

• Changes with effect from 1 November 2005 – the need to demonstrate knowledge of life in the United Kingdom as well as language ability
• Introduction of new rules for people applying for settlement
• 2004 original Life in the UK handbook