IELTS General Training · Work, migration and PR
IELTS General Training, where every mark counts more.
The texts are easier than Academic — and the band scale is harsher to compensate. You need 30 out of 40 in Reading for band 6.0, where an Academic candidate would already be on 7.0. Practising against the wrong table gives you false confidence.
Score scale
The same 30 out of 40 that earns 7.0 on Academic is 6.0 here. Above band 7.0 the scale tightens to one wrong answer per half band.
- Score scale
- 0–9 bands
- Reading
- Everyday & workplace texts
- Writing Task 1
- Write a letter
- 30 of 40 in Reading
- Band 6.0
- Length
- ~2h 45m + speaking
Who sits it
Choosing the wrong one wastes weeks.
Work visa, migration and permanent residency
Take this test if you are
- Permanent residency and migration — Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK
- UK visas and immigration, where the required band is often 4.0–6.0 per skill
- Secondary education and work experience programmes
- Training below degree level
Not sure? Your university, employer or immigration authority specifies which one they accept. Check before you book — they are not interchangeable.
Test structure
What you sit, in order.
Listening, Reading and Writing are taken in one sitting with no break. Speaking may be on the same day or up to a week either side.
Listening
~30 minutes · 40 questions
Four parts, increasing in difficulty. Identical to Academic. The audio plays once — no pausing, no replay, no going back.
Reading
60 minutes · 40 questions
Section 1 social survival — notices, advertisements, timetables. Section 2 workplace survival — contracts, staff handbooks. Section 3 one longer text of general interest.
Writing
60 minutes · 2 tasks
Task 1 is a letter of at least 150 words, and tone is assessed. Task 2 is a 250+ word essay counting for twice as much.
Speaking
11–14 minutes · 3 parts
Interview, a long turn from a cue card with one minute to prepare, then an abstract discussion. Identical to Academic.
The task that separates the two tests
Task 1 — write a letter
You are given a situation and asked to write a letter of at least 150 words. Getting the register wrong — writing casually to a manager, or stiffly to a friend — is penalised directly under Task Achievement.
What you may be asked for
- Formal — to a manager, council or company you do not know
- Semi-formal — to a landlord, colleague or neighbour
- Informal — to a friend or family member
- Requesting information
- Making a complaint
- Apologising or explaining
- Applying for something
Every submission is scored on Task Achievement, Coherence & Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range & Accuracy — separately, each worth a quarter, each with its own explanation quoting your own sentences.
Reading band scale
How General Training Reading is actually scored.
Notice how tight the top of this scale is. One wrong answer costs you half a band between 40 and 36. There is very little room at band 7.0 and above.
30 correct out of 40 on General Training = band 6.0
| Correct answers | Band |
|---|---|
| 40 | 9.0 |
| 39 | 8.5 |
| 37–38 | 8.0 |
| 36 | 7.5 |
| 34–35 | 7.0 |
| 32–33 | 6.5 |
| 30–31 | 6.0 |
| 27–29 | 5.5 |
| 23–26 | 5.0 |
Indicative conversion. Exact tables vary slightly by test version — ours are versioned per test and pinned to your result.
Question types
Every type you will meet, drillable on its own.
When your review shows you lost six marks on True / False / Not Given, you practise only that — rather than sitting another full test and hoping.
Sit a full General Training mock this week.
The free plan includes one full mock every month, marked against the General Training band table, with a question-by-question review.