SQE

Important Changes to SQE1 starting January 2027

On September 12, 2026 by

 

xr:d:DAFZ6cvSucI:3,j:3285135618,t:23020717

The new SQE 1 structure will apply to all sitters from the January 2027 onwards. This includes resitters.

What main changes is the SRA introducing?

  1. Reducing the number of questions

Each Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK) assessment will be reduced from 180 to 170 questions.

As each FLK continues to be divided into two sessions per day, and candidates will now answer 85 questions per session, instead of 90 per session.

Thus, the total number of questions candidates answer in SQE1 overall will be 340, rather than 360.

2. To whom do these changes apply?

To candidates sitting in January 2027 and re-sitters.

3. What is the time allowed?

The time allowed remains unchanged at 2 hours 33 minutes per session. This means candidates will have slightly more time per question.

4. How will questions be grouped?

Another change is that subjects will now be grouped into specific sessions.

Questions in all subject areas will no longer be presented in both sessions of an FLK assessment. The questions in each FLK session will contain questions from the subject areas as shown in the table below:

FLK Session Subjects

FLK 1

Session 1

  • Business Law and Practice, Dispute Resolution, Legal Services

Session 2

  • Tort, Contract Law, Legal Systems (Legal System of England and Wales; Constitutional and Administrative Law and EU Law)

FLK 2

Session 1

  • Wills and the Administration of Estates, Solicitors Accounts (in the context of Wills), Trusts Law, Land Law

Session 2

  • Property Law and Practice, Solicitors Accounts (in the context of Property), Criminal Liability,  Criminal Law and Practice

NB: Ethics and Professional Conduct will however continue to be tested across all subject areas and can therefore be tested in each session.

Randomisation. Within each session, questions will continue to be fully randomised between those subject areas (i.e. candidates will not have all of the questions on one subject area presented together before the questions on another subject area are presented). This means that candidates will not receive questions grouped by subject areas; instead, questions covering the session’s different subject areas will appear in a mixed, random order throughout the sessions.

Why is the SRA are we making these changes?

Reducing the number of questions

The SRA has made changes having listened carefully to candidate and stakeholder feedback. In particular, some candidates have told the SRA that the SQE1 assessment can feel rushed and pressurised in terms of the amount of time allowed to answer a question, and this can be exacerbated by the lack of some grouping of questions in the sessions.

The number of questions originally used in SQE1 assessments was carefully considered when developing the SQE. This recognised the need to sample all the subject areas in each FLK and have an assessment that was reliable. This means the assessment is consistently fair and accurate and a candidate’s score is a good and highly reproducible reflection of their ability.

The SRA is reducing the number of questions in SQE1 now following a data review from all previous SQE1 assessment windows. Making this change now, rather than after only a small number of deliveries, allows the SRA to review a sufficient amount of assessment data to provide confidence that reducing the number of questions will both improve the candidate experience and retain the accuracy of the assessment.

Grouping questions by session

For SQE1 assessments taken so far, all subject areas were assessed in both sessions of an FLK assessment. Some candidates have told the SRA that this has made it more challenging than it would otherwise have been. Dividing the subject areas for each FLK between the two sessions will allow candidates to focus on fewer subjects in each session. Retaining randomisation of questions within each session will help to preserve assessment security requirements.

When will these SQE changes apply?

The changes will first apply for the January 2027 SQE1. These will apply to all candidates – both first sitters and re-sitters.

What is not changing?

Time allowed. Candidates will still be allowed 2 hours 33 minutes per session.

Blueprint. The proportion of questions that can be asked in each subject area (i.e. the SQE1 assessment blueprint) remains unaffected.