How much IELTS costs in Nigeria, India, Pakistan and Kenya, and how not to pay twice

Quick take. On IDP's official pages in October 2026, IELTS Academic or General Training costs ₦299,000 in Nigeria, ₹19,000 in India, PKR 75,600 to 76,240 in Pakistan and KES 41,580 in Kenya. IELTS for UKVI costs a little more. The biggest cost is not the fee, it is paying it twice: book only when your practice shows every skill is at your target, and if one skill falls short, check whether a cheaper One Skill Retake is accepted for your purpose.

Fee pages online are often months out of date or copied from each other. The figures below come from each country's official IDP IELTS page, checked on 7 October 2026. British Council prices in the same country can differ slightly, and fees change, so confirm on the booking page before you pay.

IELTS fees by country

IELTS Life Skills, used for some UK family and citizenship applications, is listed at ₦298,500 in Nigeria, ₹18,000 in India and PKR 53,000 in Pakistan.

Which test are you paying for?

Booking the wrong version is the most expensive mistake, because the fee is not refunded when your result is rejected.

• Academic or General Training. Universities, and nursing regulators like the NMC, usually want Academic. Canadian immigration wants General Training.
• IELTS for UKVI. Needed when a UK visa asks for a Secure English Language Test. An ordinary IELTS result, even a high one, does not count for that.
• One Skill Retake. Cheaper, but not accepted everywhere. Canada's Express Entry does not accept it.

IELTS score requirements by country shows what universities ask for, and One Skill Retake explains who can use it.

The real cost: paying twice

For most candidates, the fee is not the problem. A second full test is. If your target is 6.5 in every skill and one skill comes back at 6.0, you pay the full fee again, plus the weeks of waiting, and sometimes a missed deadline.

A few things change the maths:

• One Skill Retake costs about two thirds of a full test where it is offered (₹12,650 against ₹19,000 in India; PKR 48,050 against PKR 75,600 in Pakistan). If your purpose accepts it and only one skill is short, it is the cheaper route.
• A re-mark (Enquiry on Results) has its own fee and is refunded only if your score changes. It makes sense when a score looks clearly out of line with your others, not as a hopeful second chance.
• The cheapest test is the one you only take once. Book when your practice shows every skill is reliably at your target, not when you hope it might be.

Know your Writing score before you pay

Listening and Reading are easy to self-check: practice tests have answer keys. Speaking and Writing are not, and Writing is the skill most often below the line.

Before you book, write a few timed Task 2 essays and get them marked. The essay checker gives an estimated band for each of the four criteria and marks the sentences holding you back, so you can see whether you are at your target or still some way off. It is a practice estimate, not an official score, but it is far cheaper than finding out on test day.

Fees checked on 7 October 2026 on the official IDP IELTS pages for each country. They change, and British Council prices may differ, so confirm on the booking page before you pay.