SQE2 exam dates for 2027

Every published SQE2 sitting

Each candidate sits one written sitting and one oral sitting from the windows listed. Where a sitting has more than one oral window, the stations differ between windows. April 2027 is the only sitting with two written windows.

What the five half-days look like

The written exam is three half-days in a row. Each half-day has one task in each written skill: case and matter analysis, legal research, legal writing and legal drafting. Day 1 is Dispute Resolution and Criminal Litigation, Day 2 is Property Practice and Wills and Probate, and Day 3 is Business Law and Practice.

The oral exam is two half-days. Each has one advocacy station and one client interview with its attendance note. The SQE2 exam format page gives the timings for each station.

Booking

Booking SQE2 has its own steps for each sitting, and the dates are in the planner above. For January 2027, seat reservation forms went out on 13 October 2026 and had to be returned by 16 October. Booking closes on 4 December 2026.

You can book only once you have passed SQE1 or hold an exemption from it. In 2026 the SRA ran a separate booking route for the April SQE2 for candidates still waiting for their January SQE1 result. Check whether it does the same in 2027 before you plan an April sitting.

Attempts and timing

Three attempts at SQE2 are allowed within six years of your first SQE assessment. A resit is the whole of SQE2, all 16 stations, because there is no pass for a single station. Results come about four months after the sitting, so a failed attempt usually means the next sitting but one, not the next.

Planning backwards from your sitting

Twelve of the 16 stations are written, so most preparation time goes on the written skills. A sensible order is the legal writing and case and matter analysis skills early, legal drafting and legal research next, then timed full sessions and a mock in the final four weeks. The how to pass SQE2 page sets this out week by week.