The B1 English test for ILR, and how to prepare for it

To settle in the UK (Indefinite Leave to Remain, or ILR) on most routes, you need to prove your English at CEFR level B1. For speaking and listening this is a Secure English Language Test (SELT), most commonly the Trinity GESE Grade 5.

What the B1 speaking test looks like

GESE Grade 5 is a short face-to-face exam, about ten minutes, with a real examiner. It has two parts: a Topic phase, where you talk about a subject you prepared in advance and answer the examiner's questions, and a Conversation phase, where the examiner leads a discussion on two everyday subject areas. You are assessed on how well you communicate, your grammar, your vocabulary, and your pronunciation.

Why speaking practice matters most

You cannot pass a speaking test by reading about it. The people who pass are the ones who have spoken, out loud, many times, and understood exactly what to fix. A failed test means paying the fee again and, worse, delaying your settlement application. Practising the real conversation, and knowing honestly when you are ready, is the difference.

How Speak & Stay helps

Speak & Stay is an AI conversation partner that runs the GESE Grade 5 format, marks you against the published B1 criteria, and then explains every mistake in your own language, contrasting it with how your first language works. You practise in English, but you understand in the language you think in. It gives you a calm, honest readiness read so you know when to book your test.

Speak & Stay is an independent preparation service and is not affiliated with Trinity College London, the Home Office, or any test provider. Practice results are feedback, not an official result, and this is not immigration advice.