Updated 24.10.2026• 6 min read• Dates

LNAT test dates and deadlines for 2027 entry

When registration opens, when testing runs, and the sitting deadline attached to each LNAT university for September 2027 entry.

Jurica Research

LNAT preparation

There is no single test day for the LNAT. Instead, you book an appointment at a Pearson VUE test centre on any day that has a free slot, as long as it falls before the deadlines of the universities you are applying to. For 2027 entry, registration and booking opened on 1 August 2026 and testing began on 1 September 2026. The deadline for Oxford and Cambridge (15 October 2026) has now passed. If you are applying elsewhere, you can still sit the test by 31 December 2026 for King’s College London, LSE and UCL, by 13 January 2027 for Bristol and Durham, and by 25 January 2027 for Glasgow and SOAS.

What is the deadline for each university?

Each university sets its own date by which you must have sat the test. If you are applying to several LNAT universities, the earliest date among them is the one you have to meet, because your single sitting counts for all of them.

These are the dates in the LNAT Consortium’s calendar for entry in 2027, read on 24 October 2026. Three groups of applicants have different dates. Applicants to Oxford’s Foundation Year in Law must sit the test by 13 January 2027. Cambridge says that mature applicants in its January round must book by 20 January 2027 and sit by 25 January 2027. Applicants to Singapore University of Social Sciences for its July 2027 intake can sit the test between 1 September 2026 and 15 March 2027. The late-application dates in the last row usually apply only to international applicants, and the Consortium warns that your universities may not accept a test taken as late as July. Check the dates again on lnat.ac.uk before you book, because universities normally treat the test date as a firm admissions deadline.

How do I book the test?

You first set up an LNAT account, and then you book and pay for an appointment at a Pearson VUE test centre. Unlike A-level exams, the LNAT is not sat on a fixed national date, so the day you choose depends on which slots your nearest centre has free.

Booking involves four steps, which are best taken in this order:

1. Register for an account. Registration and booking opened on the same day (1 August 2026), but you cannot see any appointment times until you have an account. You must also add your UCAS Personal ID to your LNAT profile before you submit your UCAS application, and select each of your universities in your LNAT account (King’s and LSE both ask for this), because the universities download your score and essay using these details.
2. Book your appointment and pay for it. Registering does not reserve a seat, and the Consortium takes payment at the time of booking. Your deadline is the date by which the test must be sat, so a booking for a later date does not count.
3. Choose a date well before your deadline. If you are ill on the day, or the centre cancels your appointment, a slot in the last week of your window leaves you no time to rebook. You can reschedule free of charge only up to a cut-off before the test: the Consortium’s fee page gives this as 12 noon (UK time) on the second working day before it, and its booking page as 48 hours before it, so it is safer to work to the earlier of the two. After the cut-off, you have to book and pay again.
4. Remember that you may sit the LNAT only once in each admissions cycle. If you sit it twice, the second result is void, so we do not recommend booking an early sitting only to see how it goes.

When should I sit the test?

In general, the best date is one that lets you finish your preparation and still leaves a week or two before your deadline, so that a cancellation or illness does not push you past it.

If you are applying for 2027 entry, the choice now depends on your universities:

1. If King’s, LSE or UCL is on your list, you must sit the test by 31 December 2026, so your window is November and December. By then you will usually have had time to practise Section A and to write some timed essays.
2. If your earliest LNAT university is Bristol or Durham, you can sit the test until 13 January 2027, and if it is Glasgow or SOAS, until 25 January 2027, which gives you a few more weeks to prepare. Having said that, you may find it harder to get the appointment you want, because you will be booking at the same time as every other candidate who has left it late.

If you are applying in a later year, you will also have the choice of sitting in September or October, which is necessary for Oxford and Cambridge. For other universities it can be useful if you have already completed several timed mock papers and would like the LNAT out of the way before your school mock exams. However, there is little advantage in sitting early if your preparation is unfinished, because universities such as King’s and LSE give equal consideration to every applicant who sits the test by their deadline.

When do I get my results?

Universities see your score before you do. You will not be given your Section A score at the test centre, and if you sit the test on or before 26 January, your score is emailed to you in mid-February (after 26 January, in mid-August).

Each year the Consortium releases the first batch of scores (for tests taken between 1 September and 20 October) to universities on 21 October. After that date, your score and essay are available to your universities within 24 hours of your test. The essay is not marked by the test centre, and each university reads or marks it in its own way, which is why essay marks cannot be compared between universities. Our guide to what counts as a good LNAT score explains what the numbers mean once you have them.

Frequently asked questions