Every Australian health board but one uses the same IELTS rule: 7 overall, 7 in Listening, Reading and Speaking, and 6.5 in Writing. You need IELTS Academic, taken at a test center.
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IELTS Academic, on paper or computer at a test center
Official page Last checked: 19 October 2026
This rule covers every National Board but one, from nursing and medicine to pharmacy, physiotherapy and psychology. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board has its own rule.
Ahpra lets you use up to two tests no more than 12 months apart. Each needs 7 overall, and no score in either can be below 6.5. Here is an example in our own numbers.
Writing is the one skill where Ahpra's minimum is 6.5, not 7, and in IELTS's own 2024-2025 Academic data it had the lowest average. IELTS test taker performance data, 2024-2025.
One Skill Retake: accepted. It does not count as an extra test, but with two tests all three must fall within 12 months.
Who accepts One Skill Retake
Make your target band the Writing score your National Board asks for. For Ahpra, that is 6.5 in Writing. The rewrite then puts your own ideas at that band, so you can see what it takes.
Practice the two Academic tasks: a chart report for Task 1 and an essay for Task 2. Start the practice timer for each one.
Begin with the criterion that scores lowest and go through its labeled corrections. Compare your recent Task 1 and Task 2 bands before you book a first or a second test.
No. Ahpra does not accept at-home or indicative versions of any English test, and that includes IELTS Online. Take IELTS Academic on paper or on computer at a test center.
No. If you use two tests, both must be from the same test provider. Ahpra says results from different providers cannot be combined.
No. A One Skill Retake taken within 60 days is not counted as an extra sitting. But if you also use a second full test, all three tests must fall within 12 months.
Two years before the date you apply. Ahpra can accept older results in some cases, such as continuous work or study, so read the exceptions on its page.
IELTS Academic. Ahpra's list has the Academic test only, on paper or on computer at a test center. General Training is not on the list.
This page sums up official rules in plain words. It is not immigration or legal advice. Rules change, so check the official page before you book or apply. Every rule here was checked on or after 19 October 2026. VoyaLang is not affiliated with or endorsed by IELTS, the British Council, IDP, or Cambridge Assessment English.
