FOI release

Continuity and integrity of Home Office Secure English Language Test providers

Published 22 October 2014

© Crown copyright 2014

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/withdrawal-of-the-competition-for-secure-english-language-test-licences/continuity-and-integrity-of-home-office-secure-english-language-test-providers

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  1. The current Secure English Language Test (SELT) licence agreements have been extended to enable the authority to complete a detailed and robust review of its tender approach and documentation; to give a sufficient period of time for the new procurement to complete and to ensure continuity of SELT testing services. All of the current SELT licenses include additional integrity and security measures to further protect the department against immigration abuse.

  2. The Home Office notified bidders that the competition for Secure English Language Test Licences was being withdrawn on 16 June 2014. The decision to withdraw was taken following a thorough investigation of the allegations made by Panorama.

  3. The assessment conducted by UK NARIC provides assurance that the tests offered by the SELT providers meet our requirements. This was conducted prior to the Panorama allegations.

  4. The Home Office notified bidders that the competition for Secure English Language Test Licences was being withdrawn on 16 June 2014. The decision to withdraw was taken following a thorough investigation of the allegations made by Panorama.

  5. Officials from Immigration Enforcement and UK Visas and Immigration have not found evidence to suggest there is systematic cheating taking place in the tests carried out by the other providers. All of the current SELT licences now include additional integrity and security measures to further protect the department against immigration abuse. As soon as the allegations of systematic cheating were first made, the Home Office suspended ETS testing in the UK, put a hold on all immigration applications from those in the UK using an ETS test certificate, and made all applications from overseas subject to interview by UK Visas and Immigration staff. In April ETS’s license to conduct tests for immigration purposes ended – and we formally removed the company as a test provider in the Immigration Rules.

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