Exam fundamentals16 min read·19 April 2026

UKMLA Exam Dates 2026: Booking Windows & Deadlines

The full UKMLA 2026 booking calendar — UK medical school windows, IMG AKT sittings, Manchester CPSA slots, document verification timelines, and how to work backwards from graduation.

Every week we see candidates — usually smart, usually well-organised — who've left booking too late. Pearson VUE full in their region. Manchester CPSA slots gone for three months. Document verification stalled on a missing translation. A nine-month plan turned into a fourteen-month plan because one calendar dependency was missed.

UKMLA booking is not difficult, but it is dependency-chained: English test → document verification → AKT booking → AKT sitting → results → CPSA booking → Manchester slot → CPSA sitting → registration. Skip a link and the chain pauses.

This is the practical booking calendar for UKMLA 2026 — UK medical school windows, IMG AKT rolling schedule, Manchester CPSA slots, registration timing, deferral and retake deadlines, and the working-backwards logic that turns a graduation date into a booking-today decision.

By the end you'll have a clear calendar of every deadline that matters, whether you're a UK finalist or an IMG starting the GMC journey.

UKMLA 2026 exam period overview
AKT dates: UK medical school windows
AKT dates: IMG sittings (rolling calendar)
How to find your school's specific AKT date
CPSA dates: UK medical schools
CPSA dates: IMG Manchester bookings
Registration timeline — when to start
Document verification window
Booking opening dates
Seat availability and early-bird strategy
Key deadline calendar for readers
Working backwards from graduation
Deferral and retake deadlines
Results timeline
What to do if you miss booking
FAQ

1. UKMLA 2026 exam period overview

UKMLA 2026 runs across the full calendar year, with different rhythms for UK medical schools and for IMGs sitting through the PLAB pathway.

UK medical schools:

AKT: typically sat within each school's final-year assessment window — commonly late autumn (November–December) through early spring (February–March). Each school sets its specific dates within the GMC's overall framework.
CPSA: typically within each school's final OSCE programme — commonly spring (January–May), though some schools split their OSCEs across multiple mornings.

IMG candidates:

AKT (PLAB 1 standard-set to UKMLA): rolling throughout the year via Pearson VUE. Multiple sittings per month in most regions.
CPSA (PLAB 2 standard-set to UKMLA): rolling at the GMC Clinical Assessment Centre in Manchester, typically several sittings per month subject to seat availability.

Before you rely on specific dates: always cross-check the GMC website and your medical school's assessment calendar. Dates published in any blog post (including this one) are indicative — the authoritative source is the GMC for IMGs and your faculty office for UK students.

2. AKT dates: UK medical school windows

Most UK medical schools run AKT as a two-paper day embedded within their final-year written finals. The typical academic calendar:

Late autumn AKT (October–December):

Schools running early finals windows.
Includes some integrated programmes where AKT-equivalent content is embedded into Year 5.
Results typically released 6–8 weeks after sitting.

Winter AKT (January–February):

The largest cluster — most UK schools sit AKT in this window.
Aligned with traditional finals dates before clinical placements ramp up into summer.
Results typically released alongside school finals results in spring.

Spring AKT (March–May):

Fewer schools, typically those running later-year assessment calendars.
Often aligned with a subsequent CPSA window in April–June.

Retake windows:

Most schools run a resit sitting in summer (June–August) for candidates who failed the first sitting.
Some offer a second retake in the following academic year.

What UK students should do:

Check your medical school's final-year assessment handbook early in the academic year — this is the authoritative source.
Note your AKT date the moment it's published. Work backwards from it using a 12-week study plan.
Confirm your CPSA dates at the same time — they're usually published together.

3. AKT dates: IMG sittings (rolling calendar)

For IMGs, the AKT runs year-round at Pearson VUE test centres worldwide. This is an advantage — you pick the sitting that suits your preparation — but the global rolling calendar also means popular centres fill early.

Typical AKT sitting cadence:

Large metros (London, Dubai, Delhi, Manila, Lagos, Riyadh, Singapore): 4–8 sittings per month.
Medium centres (most capital cities and regional hubs): 2–4 sittings per month.
Smaller centres: 1–2 sittings per month.

Booking lead time:

Peak demand months (March–May, September–November): book 8–12 weeks in advance.
Moderate demand months (January–February, June–August, December): book 4–8 weeks in advance.

Key rule: your AKT booking opens only after your GMC document verification is complete. Don't plan a specific date until you've got verified status.

Full IMG-specific planning is at UKMLA for IMGs: eligibility, routes & 2026 timeline.

4. How to find your school's specific AKT date

For UK students, these are the authoritative sources in order of reliability:

Your medical school's final-year assessment handbook — usually published in September or October each year. Contains the full AKT and CPSA schedule for your cohort.
Your faculty office or assessment team — email or visit in person for clarification. Faculty staff are the single source of truth.
Your student representatives — year reps typically know dates early and share via WhatsApp or year group pages.
Your medical school's Moodle / VLE — assessment information is usually posted there as well.

Sources to treat with caution:

Third-party revision websites listing "UK medical school AKT dates" — these are often outdated or extrapolated.
Social media group chats — useful for cross-checking but not authoritative.
Last year's handbook — dates change annually; always check the current academic year's document.

5. CPSA dates: UK medical schools

UK students sit CPSA within their school's final OSCE programme. Formats vary:

Single-day CPSA:

All 16–20 stations sat in one half or full day.
Common at schools with large enough cohort-management capacity.

Split-day CPSA:

Stations sat across two or more days — often half the stations on one day, half on another.
Allows schools with smaller SP pools to rotate candidates.

Multi-week OSCE windows:

Some schools stagger CPSA across 2–4 weeks with different candidates on different days.
Your specific assigned date is confirmed via school communication typically 2–4 weeks in advance.

Typical timing:

Most UK schools run CPSA in spring (February–May).
A smaller cluster runs in autumn/winter (November–January) for early-calendar schools.

Retake CPSA:

Most schools offer a resit window 6–12 weeks after the main sitting.
Some schools require additional remediation (clinical placements, supervised practice) before retake.

Practical advice: don't plan travel, weddings, or major personal commitments in the three-week window around your expected CPSA dates. Last-minute date changes within that window are rare but happen.

6. CPSA dates: IMG Manchester bookings

IMG CPSA happens exclusively at the GMC Clinical Assessment Centre in Manchester. No overseas alternative exists.

Booking mechanics:

Book through your GMC online account after your AKT pass is confirmed.
Pay the CPSA fee (approximately £943 in 2026).
Select from available Manchester sessions — typically several dates per month.

Typical lead time to first available slot:

Peak demand: 4–6 months wait between AKT pass and CPSA sitting.
Moderate demand: 2–3 months wait.
Off-peak: 4–8 weeks wait.

Practical implications:

Book your CPSA the same day you see your AKT pass notification. Seats genuinely fill — a 48-hour delay can cost you 6+ weeks.
Start planning Manchester logistics (flights, accommodation, UK visa if needed) the moment your CPSA date is confirmed.
Budget 3–7 days in Manchester: arrive early to acclimatise, run local mock sessions, sit the exam, leave.

Busy periods to plan around:

March–May: peak CPSA demand; book earliest.
September–November: second peak.
December–January: holiday period; fewer slots.

Our IMG timeline guide has a fuller Manchester logistics section.

7. Registration timeline — when to start

For IMGs, the full registration-to-sitting timeline is typically 6–12 months depending on your starting point. Here's the sequence:

Months 1–3: English language

Take IELTS Academic or OET.
Re-sit if you fall short (common). Retake typically 2–4 weeks after first sitting.

Months 2–4: Document gathering

PMQ certificate, academic transcripts, internship certificate, passport, passport-sized photos, certified translations of non-English documents.
Prior professional registrations / letters of good standing from your home regulator.

Months 3–5: GMC submission

Create your GMC online account.
Submit all documents.
Pay the verification fee.

Months 3–6: GMC verification

GMC verifies documents, contacts your awarding institution for Primary Source Verification.
Typical duration: 6–12 weeks. Slower if any document is missing or delayed.

Months 6–7: AKT booking

Once verified, book AKT at your chosen Pearson VUE centre.

Months 7–8: AKT sitting and results

Sit AKT. Results within 4–6 weeks.

Months 8–10: CPSA booking and wait

Book Manchester slot. Wait for session (2–6 months depending on demand).

Months 10–11: CPSA sitting and results

Sit CPSA in Manchester. Results within 4 weeks.

Months 11–12: Final GMC registration

ID check, scope of practice confirmation, annual retention fee payment.
Apply for UK jobs.

If you're starting now and want to be GMC-registered by Q4 2026: start English language testing and document gathering in Q4 2025 or Q1 2026 at the latest.

8. Document verification window

Document verification is the slowest single dependency in the UKMLA chain. Plan accordingly.

Typical duration: 6–12 weeks from submission to verified status.

What causes delays:

Slow university response. The GMC contacts your medical school directly to verify your degree. If your university takes 4–6 weeks to respond, your file waits 4–6 weeks.
Incomplete initial submission. Missing a translation, an internship certificate, or a transcript page adds 2–6 weeks per round of back-and-forth.
Name mismatches. If your name differs across passport, degree, and English test, you must provide a name-change affidavit or equivalent documentation.
Ambiguous internship documentation. Countries vary on whether internship is a separate certificate or integrated into the PMQ. Clarify upfront.
PSV fails. Occasional cases where the GMC's attempt to verify your degree returns ambiguous results — requires escalation.

What you can do to accelerate:

Submit a complete file from day one. Every incomplete submission resets the clock.
Pre-emptively translate documents via a certified translator before you submit.
Chase your university — polite, professional, repeated emails to your registrar's office about the PSV response can shave weeks.
Respond to GMC queries within 48 hours. Any delay on your end adds delay on theirs.

When to submit: submit the moment your English language test result arrives and your documents are complete. Don't wait to "also gather X." Incremental submission is worse than early submission plus a small follow-up.

9. Booking opening dates

UK medical school AKT and CPSA:

Dates are published by your school typically 3–6 months before the sitting.
Your school assigns you to a sitting — you don't "book" in the traditional sense. You confirm your attendance.

IMG AKT at Pearson VUE:

Bookings open immediately upon your GMC verified status. There is no separate booking window — it's first-come-first-served against available seats.

IMG CPSA at Manchester:

Booking opens the moment your AKT pass is visible in your GMC account.
The next 1–4 weeks of availability often fill within hours of GMC's scheduled monthly seat release.

Practical tip: check your GMC account obsessively in the 24–48 hours after your AKT sitting. The moment the pass shows, book CPSA.

10. Seat availability and early-bird strategy

Supply is finite and demand is seasonal. A few practical patterns:

For IMG AKT:

Large metros in low-demand months (Jan, June, August, Dec): abundant availability, book 2–4 weeks ahead.
Large metros in peak months (Mar–May, Sep–Nov): tight availability, book 8–12 weeks ahead.
Medium centres year-round: 4–8 weeks ahead generally safe.
Smaller centres or niche testing sites: 8–16 weeks ahead recommended, and consider travelling to a larger metro for guaranteed availability.

For IMG CPSA:

Early 2026 (Jan–Apr): tightest supply. Candidates who passed AKT in late 2025 are racing for Manchester seats.
Late 2026 (Sep–Dec): second peak — candidates passing AKT in summer booking for autumn.
Off-peak (May–Aug): relatively looser supply.

Early-bird tactic: sit AKT slightly earlier than your "ideal" prep window so your CPSA booking falls in a less-peak period. A 2-week earlier AKT can save 6+ weeks of CPSA wait.

11. Key deadline calendar for readers

Here's a template calendar to localise to your own sitting. Adjust the anchor date based on your target sitting.

Anchor: target AKT date = T

T − 12 weeks: structured study plan begins; daily SBA practice at 40+/day; content-map audit complete.
T − 8 weeks: first full-length timed mock. Review domain-by-domain accuracy. Target weak areas.
T − 6 weeks: ramp to 60–100 SBAs/day. Second full-length mock.
T − 4 weeks: third full-length mock. Focus on top-3 weakest domains. Begin timed-question sprints.
T − 2 weeks: final full-length mock. Light review only. Protect sleep.
T − 1 week: taper practice. Rehearse exam-day logistics (ID, travel, meal timing).
T: sit AKT.
T + 4–6 weeks: AKT results released.
T + 4–6 weeks (for IMGs): book Manchester CPSA the moment results are visible.
CPSA − 8 weeks: shift prep focus to communication, examinations, ethics; arrange mock CPSA day.
CPSA − 4 weeks: peer practice 2–3x/week. Video review. Refine weakest station archetypes.
CPSA − 2 weeks: arrange Manchester travel, accommodation, visa (if applicable).
CPSA: sit.
CPSA + 4 weeks: results released.
CPSA + 4 weeks onwards: final GMC registration steps; UK job applications.

12. Working backwards from graduation

For UK students, the logical anchor is your graduation date. Most final-year UK medical students graduate in summer (June–August); UKMLA AKT sittings are typically January–March and CPSA is February–May, with results released in spring.

Practical backwards planning:

Graduation: August 2026.
CPSA: March 2026.
AKT: January 2026.
Intensive prep start: October 2025.
Content-map audit start: June–September 2025.
Q-bank subscription active and regular use: Year 4 / early Year 5 (12+ months before finals).

The single most common mistake UK finalists make is starting intensive prep in November or December when their AKT is in January. That's 4–8 weeks of intensive prep against a 24-month content map. Start earlier.

13. Deferral and retake deadlines

Deferrals:

UK students: deferral requests go through your medical school's mitigation or fitness-to-sit process. Documentation required (medical certificate, supporting statements). Deadlines vary by school but typically 48–72 hours before the sitting for acute circumstances, earlier for foreseeable ones.
IMGs: deferrals processed through the GMC online account. Rescheduling fees apply. Available up to 30 days before the sitting without penalty; shorter-notice deferrals may forfeit the exam fee.

Retakes:

AKT retake booking windows (IMG): after a fail, your next available AKT sitting is typically 2–4 months later. Your GMC account unlocks retake booking after the fail is registered.
CPSA retake booking windows (IMG): similar mechanics; next available Manchester slot typically 3–6 months after fail.
UK students: retake windows set by your school's regulations, usually in the summer following the main sitting.

Attempt limits:

IMGs: up to four attempts at each component under current GMC rules. Beyond four requires an exceptional review.
UK students: typically 2–3 attempts per component, with remediation required between some attempts.

14. Results timeline

AKT results:

UK students: typically released alongside school finals results, 4–8 weeks after sitting.
IMGs: 4–6 weeks after sitting, via GMC online account.

CPSA results:

UK students: with school finals results, 4–6 weeks after sitting.
IMGs: 4 weeks after Manchester sitting, via GMC online account.

What you receive:

Overall pass/fail decision.
Raw score and pass mark for your specific sitting.
Domain-by-domain AKT breakdown / station-by-station CPSA breakdown.
If fail: retake booking guidance.

Full scoring mechanics are in UKMLA pass mark explained.

15. What to do if you miss booking

It happens. If you're reading this having missed your ideal window:

For IMG AKT:

Book the next available Pearson VUE slot — there's always something within 4–8 weeks.
Consider travelling to a nearby metro with more seats.
Don't wait for "perfect prep" — a sat-slightly-later exam beats a not-sat exam.

For IMG CPSA:

Book the next available Manchester slot the moment your AKT pass is confirmed.
If no slots show: check daily. GMC releases new dates periodically.
Use the waiting time productively: refine communication frameworks, practise mock stations, get UK ward experience if possible.

For UK students:

Contact your faculty office immediately if you've missed a school-set date — mitigation processes exist for genuine reasons.
If you've failed to register for finals: this is a broader faculty issue; address it the same day.

If your AKT pass is about to expire (2-year window):

Book CPSA urgently. If no Manchester slots are available within the window, contact the GMC for mitigation guidance.
Don't let the AKT pass lapse — re-sitting AKT doubles your cost and your timeline.

Don't let booking anxiety delay prep. Take MLA Prep's free 25-question UKMLA diagnostic today and baseline your readiness — no commitment, no credit card. Start the diagnostic →

16. FAQ

Q. When is the next UKMLA AKT for IMGs? Every 1–2 weeks at most large Pearson VUE centres. Log into your GMC account once verified and check your preferred centre's calendar.

Q. When do UK medical schools typically publish AKT dates? Most publish in September or October of the academic year in which finals occur. Check your school's assessment handbook.

Q. Can I sit AKT outside my home country as an IMG? Yes. Pearson VUE has 5,000+ centres in 180+ countries. You're not restricted to your country of residence. Book wherever works for you.

Q. Can I re-book a CPSA date after confirming one? Yes, subject to availability and rebooking windows. Administrative fees apply. Plan carefully — last-minute rebookings may mean months of delay.

Q. How early should I book my English language test? As early as possible. If your current level is below the threshold, start structured preparation now and book your test in 6–12 weeks.

Q. What if my document verification takes longer than 12 weeks? Chase proactively. Contact your awarding university to verify they're responding to GMC PSV requests. Reach out to the GMC's registration team for case-specific updates.

Q. Can I book AKT before my document verification is complete? No. Verification must be complete first. You can prepare intensively during verification, but booking is gated.

Q. If I pass AKT in December 2025, when's the earliest I can sit CPSA? Typically February–March 2026, depending on Manchester seat availability. Book the moment your pass shows in your GMC account.

Q. Do AKT sittings fall on weekends? Many Pearson VUE sittings are weekdays; some centres offer weekend slots at a premium. UK medical school sittings are weekdays.

Q. Is there a specific UKMLA "exam week" like UCAT or LNAT? No. UKMLA AKT and CPSA don't have a single global exam week. Sittings are rolling (IMG) or scheduled by individual medical schools (UK).

Q. How do I keep track of all these dates? Put the GMC key dates into a personal calendar the moment they're confirmed. Set reminders at T−12, T−8, T−4, T−2, T−1 weeks for prep milestones. The 12-week UKMLA study plan includes a downloadable schedule template.

Q. What happens if there's a public holiday on my sitting date? Pearson VUE and GMC avoid scheduling exams on major public holidays, but check the specific date. Travel planning around UK holidays (Easter, Bank Holidays, Christmas) needs extra buffer.

Sit UKMLA with a platform that mirrors the real exam. MLA Prep runs full-length 200-SBA mocks on realistic timing, with NICE- and BNF-referenced explanations — the closest you can get to the GMC format before exam day. See pricing →

Booking for UKMLA isn't hard — it's sequential. English test before documents. Documents before verification. Verification before AKT. AKT before CPSA. CPSA before registration.

Know your dates. Confirm them at source. Build your revision calendar backwards from the sitting. Book seats before you "feel ready" — if you wait for perfect confidence, the seats will be gone.

The calendar is yours to own. Start it today.

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