NPPF Exam
Registration Checklist
To register for the sergeants' or inspectors' exam you need your force to confirm you meet NPPF step one, then you register on the College of Policing's AIMS system inside the registration window, and your force verifies and allocates you. This guide takes each step from the College's 2027 candidate handbook and online exam guidance, lists every registration window to November 2027, and ends with a checklist you can print.
Independent information, not advice · Sources checked 4 October 2026 · England and Wales unless stated
Get your line manager to sign your force's step one eligibility form and return it to your force examinations officer before your force's deadline. When registration opens, use the AIMS link your force sends you to register for the right exam, and keep the confirmation. Your force then verifies and allocates you. The College deadline for the November 2026 inspectors' exam is 6pm on Monday 5 October 2026; the window for the March 2027 sergeants' exam is Monday 18 January to 6pm on Thursday 18 February 2027. Your force decides whether you are eligible.
Registration at a glance
Everything below comes from the College of Policing's NPPF step two candidate handbook (the 2027 version, updated 10 September 2026), the 2026 handbook where a 2026 sitting is concerned, the College's online examinations candidate guide and its reasonable adjustments policy, all read on 4 October 2026. Where a rule comes from legislation, we name it. Where we could not confirm something, it is in the not verified section rather than in the advice.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who decides you are eligible | Your force: line manager signs the step one form, force examinations officer verifies, chief officer approves. Not the College, and not PolicePay |
| Where you register | AIMS, the College's assessment information management system, through a link from your force examinations officer once registration opens |
| College deadline, November 2026 inspectors' exam | 6pm, Monday 5 October 2026, for the exam on 3 to 5 November 2026 |
| Sergeants' window, March 2027 | Monday 18 January to 6pm Thursday 18 February 2027, for 16 to 18 March 2027 |
| Your real deadline | Your force's closing date, which may be earlier than the College's |
| Conduct and performance bars | No live written warning, final written warning or extended final written warning; no live written improvement notice; no reduction in rank under the performance procedures in the previous 12 months |
| Sergeants' service rule | Regular constable, two years' service and probation complete by the exam date |
| Inspectors' rank rule | Substantive sergeant by the exam date (OSPRE sergeants from day one; NPPF sergeants after the 12-month step four) |
| Reasonable adjustments | Request to your force by the registration closing date at the latest; a new request for each exam or resit |
| Fee to the candidate | None stated in the handbook; forces are charged per registered and absent candidate |
| Late registration | Exceptional circumstances outside your control only; workload and not knowing do not count |
Eligibility is confirmed by your line manager, verified by your force examinations officer and approved by your chief officer. PolicePay is an independent guide: we cannot tell you whether you are eligible, and nothing here replaces your force's decision. If anything on this page differs from what your force examinations officer tells you, follow your force and the current College handbook.
The College's closing date was 6pm on Monday 5 October 2026, and that was the final date for forces to verify and allocate candidates. Your force's own deadline may have been earlier. If you are not registered, you can ask your force examinations officer, but late entries are only considered in exceptional circumstances. Otherwise, the next inspectors' window is Monday 15 March to 6pm Thursday 15 April 2027, for the exam on 11 to 13 May 2027.
How registration actually works
Registration involves three parties, and each has a job. You register and give accurate details. Your force confirms you are eligible and puts you into the exam. The College runs the systems and the exam. It helps to know whose job each step is.
| Stage | Who | What happens | Where the rule is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Before the window | You and your line manager | Step one eligibility form completed in force and signed by your line manager (or equivalent) | Handbook: Applications, NPPF step one |
| 2. Before the force deadline | You | Form returned to your force examinations officer ahead of the registration closing date | Handbook: Applications, NPPF step one |
| 3. When registration opens | Force examinations officer | Sends you details of how to register and a link to AIMS | Handbook: Applications, NPPF step two |
| 4. Inside the window | You | Register on AIMS: personal and biographical details, choose the exam, submit, keep the confirmation | Handbook: Applications, NPPF step two |
| 5. By the College closing date | Your force | Verifies you are eligible and allocates you to the correct exam on the platform | Handbook: Applications and Registration periods |
| 6. About a week before the exam | College | Emails you a link to the familiarisation exercise on Civica Assess | Candidate guide: Familiarisation exercise |
| 7. Exam days | You | Sit the exam on any one of the three days, starting before 8pm | Handbook: Dates; candidate guide: Exam times |
| 8. Within three weeks | College, via AIMS | Link to your result and feedback report, opened with your date of birth, National Insurance number and email address | Handbook: Feedback reports |
Two features of the handbook shape everything else. First, the College tells candidates to direct enquiries to their force examinations officer "in the first instance", not to the College's exams team. Second, the College's closing date is described as the final date for forces to verify and allocate, not the final date for you to act. Read together, that means your working deadline is set locally.
The four NPPF steps, for context: step one is competence in current rank, step two is the legal knowledge exam, step three is assessment against rank-specific competencies and matching to vacancies, and step four is temporary promotion and a work-based assessment. Registration is the point where step one and step two meet. For the exam itself, see the step 2 exam explained. For the whole route, see the promotion hub.
Step 1: are you eligible?
To enter the step two legal exam for sergeant or inspector, you must meet the NPPF step one eligibility criteria. The handbook lists five. The first four apply to both ranks; the fifth is the rank-specific criteria covered in the next section.
| Criterion | What the handbook says | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Competence in current rank | Shown through your PDR, your student officer learning and assessment portfolio (SOLAP) or an acceptable equivalent | An out-of-date PDR is an easy gap to miss. Check it before your line manager is asked to sign |
| Performance procedures | No live written improvement notice under the Police (Performance) Regulations 2020, and no reduction in rank under those procedures in the previous 12 months, beginning with the date of the notice | Any written improvement notice that is still live blocks step one |
| Conduct | No live written warning, final written warning or extended final written warning issued under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 | Reflective practice and a finding of no case to answer are not on this list |
| Attendance | Adhered to the attendance management policy, taking full account of Police Advisory Board guidance on attendance management | This is judged under your force's own policy; ask your line manager how it will be assessed |
| Rank-specific criteria | The sergeant or inspector conditions below | These are tested against the exam date, not the date you register |
The warning rule in detail
The handbook's wording is "no live written warning, final written warning or extended final written warning issued under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020". A warning is live (the regulations say "in force") from the day it is notified to you: 18 months for a written warning and 2 years for a final written warning, or up to 5 years if a hearing set a longer period. Time on a career break does not count towards those periods. The full rules are in our final written warning guide, and the wider promotion picture is in can I be promoted with a misconduct finding.
- What is not on the list. Reflective practice, management advice under the older regulations, a finding of no case to answer and an ongoing investigation are not named in the step one criteria. Whether an open investigation affects your force's decision is a matter for force policy, which we could not check.
- "Extended final written warning." The 2020 regulations have no outcome that extends an existing final written warning; that was a feature of the 2012 regulations. Under the 2020 regulations a hearing can instead set a final written warning's period above two years, up to five (regulation 42(10)). The handbook still lists the extended warning. If you hold a warning from the older regime, ask your force examinations officer how it is treated.
- When it is tested. The handbook does not say whether step one is judged on the day your line manager signs, the closing date or the exam date. The sergeant and inspector criteria are expressly tested at the exam date; step one is not. If a warning expires between the closing date and the exam, ask your force before assuming you can enter.
Performance and attendance
A live written improvement notice under the Police (Performance) Regulations 2020 blocks step one, as does a reduction in rank under those procedures within the previous 12 months, counted from the date of the notice. Attendance is judged against your force's attendance management policy, taking full account of Police Advisory Board guidance. The handbook does not give a sickness threshold. If you have had absence that is disability-related or pregnancy-related, raise it with your line manager before the form is signed, because that is the point at which the judgement is made.
The step one form needs your line manager (or equivalent) to state that you meet the criteria, and the handbook says candidates must not be verified without that confirmation. Do not leave the conversation until the week the window opens. Ask now whether your PDR is complete and whether anything on your record would stop them signing.
Sergeant and inspector specific rules
Sergeants' exam
Admission is restricted to regular constables (those appointed to the office of regular constable) who, by the date of the exam, have:
- completed two years' service;
- completed their probationary service;
- not previously passed a recognised police promotion exam for sergeant (for example, they are not already an OSPRE parts I and II qualified sergeant).
The key words are "by the date of the exam". A constable nearing the end of probation can register, but only if the force supports it and they will be substantive by the exam date. The handbook is blunt about the risk: officers who apply early but are not substantive will not be permitted to sit "under any circumstances", and anyone who sits before being substantive has their result voided.
On counting service, the Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996 as published on legislation.gov.uk say periods of unpaid leave are disregarded when reckoning service (regulation 2(3)(a)), and earlier service in some other forces and bodies counts (regulation 3(3) and (4)). If you have had unpaid leave or a career break, or you served elsewhere first, ask your force how it has calculated your two years.
Inspectors' exam
| Your position | Can you register? | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| OSPRE parts I and II qualified sergeant | Yes, from day one of your sergeant posting | You are substantive from day one, so you can sit during your one-year sergeant probation. You still need two years as a substantive sergeant before promotion to inspector (Promotion Regulations, regulation 3(2)) |
| NPPF qualified sergeant, substantive | Yes | Only once you have completed the NPPF route and been made substantive |
| NPPF sergeant still on step four | Not yet | Step four is a mandatory 12 months that cannot be reduced. You can register near the end only if your force supports it and you will be substantive by the exam date |
| Temporary or acting sergeant outside step four | No | Only candidates holding the rank of sergeant can sit; the Promotion Regulations also exclude sergeants on temporary promotion (Schedule 1, para 5(3B)) |
| Already passed a recognised inspectors' exam | No | For example, an OSPRE parts I and II qualified inspector |
| Fast Track officer | On programme timescales | Entry is not automatic; you and your force must register you in the normal way |
For what is actually tested at each rank, and why the inspector paper is harder, see sergeant vs inspector exam differences, the sergeants' exam explained and the inspectors' exam explained.
Every registration window to November 2027
These are the College's dates, from its exam hub and the 2026 and 2027 handbooks, checked on 4 October 2026. Every College window closes at 6pm. The exams run from 8am to 8pm on each of the three days, you can sit on any one of them, and you must start before 8pm. The Manuals column is the edition of Blackstone's Police Manuals the exam is set from.
| Sitting | College registration window | Exam | Results | Manuals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sergeants, October 2026 | Tue 4 Aug to 6pm Thu 10 Sep 2026 (closed) | Tue 6 to Thu 8 Oct 2026 | By Thu 29 Oct 2026 | 2026 |
| Inspectors, November 2026 | Mon 7 Sep to 6pm Mon 5 Oct 2026 | Tue 3 to Thu 5 Nov 2026 | By Thu 26 Nov 2026 | 2026 |
| Sergeants, March 2027 | Mon 18 Jan to 6pm Thu 18 Feb 2027 | Tue 16 to Thu 18 Mar 2027 | By Thu 8 Apr 2027 | 2027 |
| Inspectors, May 2027 | Mon 15 Mar to 6pm Thu 15 Apr 2027 | Tue 11 to Thu 13 May 2027 | By Thu 3 Jun 2027 | 2027 |
| Sergeants, October 2027 | Tue 3 Aug to 6pm Thu 9 Sep 2027 | Tue 5 to Thu 7 Oct 2027 | By Thu 28 Oct 2027 | 2027 |
| Inspectors, November 2027 | Mon 6 Sep to 6pm Mon 4 Oct 2027 | Tue 2 to Thu 4 Nov 2027 | By Thu 25 Nov 2027 | 2027 |
The same closing date is the deadline for reasonable adjustment and accommodation requests to reach your force. For more detail on each sitting, see NPPF exam dates 2027 and NPPF exam dates 2026. If you are not sure which edition of the Manuals to study from, see which Blackstone's edition.
Registration closes about four weeks before the exam
| Sitting | College closes | First exam day | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sergeants, March 2027 | 6pm Thu 18 Feb 2027 | Tue 16 Mar 2027 | 26 days |
| Inspectors, May 2027 | 6pm Thu 15 Apr 2027 | Tue 11 May 2027 | 26 days |
| Sergeants, October 2027 | 6pm Thu 9 Sep 2027 | Tue 5 Oct 2027 | 26 days |
| Inspectors, November 2027 | 6pm Mon 4 Oct 2027 | Tue 2 Nov 2027 | 29 days |
The handbook says that because registration dates are close to exam dates, you should fully consider whether you intend to sit before registering. In practice that means registration is not the start of your preparation; it is a commitment made with about a month to go. Most of your revision needs to happen before the window opens. If you want a week-by-week plan that works back from your exam date, our free exam study planner does that, and the sergeant revision plan and inspector revision plan explain the method.
Force deadlines fall before the College's
The handbook says the College's closing dates "are the final dates for registrations to be verified and allocated by forces", that forces and agencies may have earlier closing dates, and that you must check the closing date for your force with your force examinations officer. It also says you must register within the timeframe your force examinations officer specifies.
We have not collected force deadlines and will not guess them; they vary and change. What the handbook does make clear is the order things must happen in. Work back from the College date:
- College closing date (6pm): your force must have verified and allocated you by now.
- Your force's closing date: the last day you can register on AIMS and have your step one form in. Ask for it in writing.
- Your line manager's sign-off: needs to happen before your force's closing date, so allow for their leave and shifts.
- Any extra paperwork: a force medical examiner certificate if you are sick or on limited duties, chief officer sign-off if you are suspended or on a career break, and your adjustments request form with supporting evidence.
- Supporting evidence for adjustments: if you need a specialist report, it may take weeks to arrange, and the College does not pay for it. Start this months ahead if you can.
Every College window closes at 6pm, not midnight. If your force sets its own closing time, it may be earlier in the day still. A registration started at 7pm on the closing day is late.
AIMS: what it is and how to use it
AIMS is the College's assessment information management system. The handbook describes it as an online, cloud-based system built to support the administration and delivery of national examinations, designed to work on a variety of mobile devices. All NPPF candidates register through it. It is not the exam platform: the candidate guide says the exams are delivered on Civica Assess, a different platform from AIMS.
Registering, step by step
- Wait for the link. Your force examinations officer sends you details of how to register and a link to AIMS when registration opens. We found no public sign-up page, so if the window has opened and you have nothing, chase your force examinations officer.
- Enter your personal and biographical details carefully. After the exam you open your result by confirming your name, date of birth, National Insurance number and email address. If any of these are wrong at registration, getting your result is delayed. Use an email address you will still be able to read on results day.
- Choose the right exam. You confirm which exam you are registering for. Check rank and sitting.
- Diversity questions are optional. The College asks for demographic information to monitor barriers; the handbook says giving it is voluntary and that your identifiable information is shared only with your force or agency.
- Submit and keep proof. You should get an email confirming the College has received your application. The handbook advises taking a screenshot of the confirmation page in case the email does not arrive.
- Do not register twice. If no email comes, contact your force examinations officer rather than registering again; a second registration creates a duplicate entry.
- Your force does the rest. Your force or organisation verifies that you are eligible and assigns you to the correct exam by the closing date. Ask your force examinations officer to confirm when that has happened.
After registration
- About a week before the exam you are emailed a link to the familiarisation exercise. You can open it once. If you have no link 24 hours before your exam date, the candidate guide says to contact your force exams contact.
- You get your own username and password for the exam. Do not share them.
- Within three weeks of the exam, you get a link to your feedback report through AIMS. The feedback report is your proof of your result; the College does not issue certificates or reissue reports, so save a copy.
Rules for the day itself, including breaks, devices and the ban on AI tools, are in NPPF online exam rules and exam day.
Reasonable adjustments and accommodations
The College uses two terms. A reasonable adjustment is for a disability or a physical or mental health condition, in the sense used by the Equality Act 2010. An accommodation is for a condition that does not meet that definition, such as something short-term, but where you still need help to sit the exam fairly. Pregnancy, maternity leave and paternity leave are handled through accommodations.
The deadline
The handbook says the request must be submitted to your force no later than the registration closing date for that exam. The candidate guide adds that your force may set its own earlier deadline, and that late requests are still considered where possible, but there may not be time to put arrangements in place. Treat the registration closing date as the latest possible date, not the target.
How to request
- Contact your force exams contact. They explain the local process and give you a request form. You do not need your line manager to endorse the request.
- Or go to the College directly. If you would rather not raise your circumstances through your force, email nppf.enquiries@college.police.uk. The College says it will not give your force your personal information or reasons, but may need to tell your force what has been agreed, and not involving the force may limit what can be arranged locally.
- Explain the effect, not the fix. You do not need to know which adjustment you need. Describe your condition, how it affects you day to day and in an exam, and what support you have had at work or in education.
- Provide supporting information. A specialist assessment report is the most reliable. Screening test reports on their own (for example Lucid, QuickScreen or the Dyslexia Adult Screening Test) are not accepted, though they can form part of a workplace adjustment report. Alternatives such as an occupational health report, a workplace adjustment passport or education access arrangements may be considered. Diagnostic reports from before age 16 are accepted. The College will not pay for reports.
- Sign and return the agreement form in time. Your force sends an agreement form setting out exactly how the support works on the platform. The adjustment is only applied on the day if you sign and return it within the required timeframe.
- Check it before you start. On the exam platform, check your time allowance and any scheduled breaks before you begin. The College cannot change an adjustment once you have started and will not accept appeals if you start without checking.
The candidate guide's examples of support include additional time, multiple short breaks, a single longer break and, where supported by the evidence, a reader. What you are offered may differ from what you ask for. If you think the policy was not applied correctly, you can ask for a review, but it must be before the exam.
The 2026 handbook said that if you had an adjustment accepted before and wanted the same again, you did not need to resubmit the evidence. The College's current candidate guide and policy (August 2026) say you must submit a new request for each exam or resit, even if you have had the same support before. If you are resitting, do not assume last time's arrangements carry over.
Things that need no request: choosing where and when you sit within the window, your own larger monitor, noise-cancelling headphones, text-to-speech software, colour overlays and the platform's display options. You are responsible for testing them with the familiarisation exercise.
Fees and costs
The 2027 handbook does not mention any fee paid by candidates to register or sit. It does mention charges to forces:
- "Forces will be charged for all candidates registered for the examination two weeks before the examination date."
- "Forces will be charged for all absent candidates."
We could not find a published figure for what forces are charged. The handbook also says forces may implement their own penalties for absent candidates, so if you register and then do not sit, ask your force examinations officer what local policy says. There is no national limit on resits; the handbook says any limit is a local force decision.
Your own costs are study materials. The syllabus is contained only in the Blackstone's Police Manuals for the relevant year, and the handbook says officers and staff in England and Wales can get 30% off the Manuals through College Learn. Prices and the alternatives are compared in revision resources compared and free exam resources.
If you miss the registration window
The handbook allows late registration only where you can demonstrate exceptional circumstances that made it outside your control to register in time. It names two reasons that will not be accepted: a heavy workload, and being unaware of the registration period. The Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996 also let the College exclude a candidate whose candidature was not submitted before the closing date (Schedule 1, paragraph 6).
- Speak to your force examinations officer the same day. If the College date has not passed, your force may still be able to verify and allocate you. Ask, rather than assume your force's internal deadline is the end.
- If you have a genuine reason outside your control, put it in writing to your force examinations officer with evidence. The handbook says late registrations are only considered for exceptional circumstances; there is no guarantee.
- Otherwise, plan for the next sitting. Each rank has two sittings a year. Missing a sergeants' window means the next one about six months later: miss March 2027 and the next is October 2027 (window 3 August to 9 September 2027).
- Check your validity if you are resitting. If you already hold a pass, missing a resit window does not affect it. If your pass is near the end of its five-year life, see the special case below.
Use the extra months. A free timed sample is a useful way to see where you stand now: our free sergeant mini mock gives you a short timed set. For what happens after the result, see results, validity and resits.
On leave, on a career break, sick or suspended
The handbook deals with each of these separately. The common thread is that the paperwork has to be in by the registration closing date, not the exam date.
| Situation | Can you sit? | What you need and when |
|---|---|---|
| Career break | Yes, if the terms of your career break agreed by your chief officer allow it | Your force must tell the College's exams team by the closing date for that exam, with your chief officer's written approval |
| Pregnancy | Yes, if you choose to | Apply for accommodations as early as practicable; you may need to give your force examinations officer your latest pregnancy-related risk assessment |
| Maternity leave | Yes, if you choose to, but not during the two weeks of compulsory maternity leave after childbirth (Employment Rights Act 1996, section 72) | Accommodation requests no later than the closing date for entries |
| Paternity leave | Yes, if you choose to | Accommodation requests no later than the registration closing date |
| Sick or on limited duties (medically or self-certificated) | Only with a certificate of fitness to sit from your force medical examiner or equivalent, even at home | The certificate goes to your force examinations officer at the time of registration |
| Suspended from duty | Only with chief officer sign-off | Your force examinations officer must have that sign-off before you sit |
| Deployed overseas with force support | Possibly; the College cannot guarantee access outside the UK | Contact your force examinations officer |
| On holiday abroad | At your own risk | The College says it cannot support officers taking the exam abroad on holiday |
| Annual leave in the UK | Yes | No special step found; you choose the day and time within the exam window |
Remember that time on unpaid leave is disregarded when reckoning service under the Promotion Regulations (regulation 2(3)(a)), which can affect when a constable reaches two years' service. Separately, if a period of parental leave, care-related career break or long-term sickness ate into the five-year life of an existing pass, the handbook allows you to apply to the College through your force for an extension to validity. That is a different process from registering, and forces cannot grant it themselves.
The College cannot offer alternative dates. If illness appears on the day, the handbook says it is your decision whether to sit, and sickness (including a family member's) is not accepted as a ground for an unscheduled incident appeal. If you do not sit, you are marked absent and your force is charged. Tell your force examinations officer your reason, because forces may have local penalties for absence.
Special cases
Special constables and police staff
The sergeants' exam is restricted to regular constables, defined as those appointed to the office of regular constable. Special constables and police staff cannot register. If you move from the Special Constabulary to the regulars, you then need two years' service and completed probation as a regular. We did not find a rule counting special constable service towards the two years; ask your force.
Officers who transferred from another force
You register through the force you serve in when the window is open, because that force has to verify and allocate you. The Promotion Regulations count earlier service in a Scottish force, the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Isle of Man Constabulary towards the two years, and probationary service in those bodies and in some others (including the Ministry of Defence Police and British Transport Police) towards completed probation (regulation 3(3) and (4)). A pass is a pass in a national exam, but whether and when your new force runs step three for you is its decision. If you are mid-transfer around a closing date, ask both forces' examinations officers who is registering you. See how to transfer between police forces.
Officers in other roles, secondments and agencies
The handbook refers throughout to "forces and agencies" and "force or organisation", and the College's adjustments policy sets out responsibilities for forces and agencies. The criteria are the same whatever your role: we found no role that is excluded or exempt. If you are seconded, ask your home force examinations officer which organisation will verify and allocate you, and get its closing date. If you are deployed overseas with force support, the College cannot guarantee access from outside the UK, so raise it with your force examinations officer early.
Fast Track
Fast Track officers sit in line with programme timescales, but entry is not automatic. The handbook makes the participating force and the officer responsible for registering in the normal way.
Rejoiners
Officers rejoining at sergeant or inspector are treated as meeting step one, but must register in the normal way and sit the step two exam for that rank at the earliest opportunity. They get two attempts, and the handbook says that failing to reach the standard may lead to regulation 13 of the Police Regulations 2003 being considered.
SIPP trial forces
The College's exam hub says that in forces trialling the sergeant and inspector promotion and progression process (SIPP), the SIPP legal tests take place at the same time as the NPPF exams. Ask your force which process you are entering before you register. See SIPP explained.
A pass that is about to expire
A step two pass is valid for five years less one day from the exam date, and you must have undertaken the final stage of step three within that period. If your validity is near its end, the handbook lets you register for the exam as a fallback without losing your remaining validity, in case your force announces a step three process between registration and the exam. If you are then successful at step three, you must withdraw at the earliest opportunity. If you do not register and are later unsuccessful at step three, you cannot register late. If you do resit, any remaining validity on the old pass is forfeited from the moment you sit, whatever the result.
Withdrawing after you have registered
- Tell your force examinations officer immediately, and give your reason.
- It is final for that sitting. Once you have withdrawn, you cannot be re-entered, and nobody can take your place.
- It does not roll over. You are not automatically entered for the next exam and must apply again.
- Timing matters to your force. Forces are charged for every candidate still registered two weeks before the exam date. For the November 2026 inspectors' exam starting Tuesday 3 November, on a plain reading that point is Tuesday 20 October 2026.
- Not sitting is not the same as withdrawing. If you simply do not take the exam in the window, you are marked absent, your force is charged and local penalties may apply.
Common reasons registration fails
Each of these comes from the College's handbook, candidate guide or the Promotion Regulations. We have not included anecdotes or force-specific reasons we could not verify.
| Reason | The rule | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Not substantive by the exam date | Sergeants: probation not confirmed in time. Inspectors: still on temporary promotion or step four | Result voided; no right of appeal |
| A live warning or improvement notice | Step one requires none to be live | Not eligible for step one |
| No line manager confirmation | The force must not verify a candidate without it | Not verified, so not allocated |
| Step one form late | It must reach the force examinations officer before the closing date; your force may set an earlier one | Missed sitting |
| Missed the window | Late entries only for exceptional circumstances outside your control | Workload and not knowing are not accepted |
| Not verified and allocated by the force | The College's closing date is the final date for forces to verify and allocate | Registered on AIMS but not entered |
| Already passed for that rank | Sergeants' exam is closed to anyone with a recognised sergeants' pass (for example OSPRE parts I and II) | Not eligible |
| Wrong rank or status | Special constables, police staff, temporary sergeants applying for inspector | Not eligible |
| Unfit for work or limited duties without a fitness certificate | Force medical examiner certificate needed at registration | Not permitted to sit |
| Suspended without sign-off | Chief officer must sign off | Not permitted to sit |
| Career break not notified | Force must notify the College by the closing date with chief officer approval | Not permitted to sit |
| Withdrew earlier | Once withdrawn you cannot be re-entered for that sitting | Must apply for the next one |
| Under a disqualification ban | Rule breaches can lead to a bar of two years or more | Not eligible during the bar |
Two related problems do not stop you sitting but cause real trouble afterwards: wrong personal details on AIMS (your result is delayed because you cannot verify yourself), and an adjustment agreement form not returned in time (the adjustment is not applied).
Worked scenarios
Illustrative examples, not real cases, showing how the rules combine. In every one, the force makes the call.
Printable registration checklist
Work through this in order. It follows the handbook's sequence, with the dates for your sitting filled in from the table above. Print it or save it as a PDF:
- ☐ Read the current College candidate handbook for your sitting.
- ☐ Confirm with your force examinations officer which sitting you are aiming for and your force's closing date and time.
- ☐ Check you will meet the rank criteria by the exam date: two years' service and probation (sergeants), substantive sergeant (inspectors).
- ☐ Check for anything live: written warning, final written warning, written improvement notice.
- ☐ Make sure your PDR is complete and up to date.
- ☐ If you need adjustments, contact your force exams contact now and start gathering supporting information.
- ☐ If you are sick, on limited duties, suspended, on a career break or on parental leave, find out what extra sign-off or certificate you need.
- ☐ Buy or get access to the right edition of the Manuals, using the College Learn discount if eligible.
- ☐ Step one eligibility form completed and signed by your line manager (or equivalent).
- ☐ Form returned to your force examinations officer.
- ☐ Force medical examiner fitness certificate submitted, if needed.
- ☐ Chief officer sign-off obtained, if suspended or on a career break.
- ☐ Adjustments or accommodations request and evidence submitted.
- ☐ AIMS link received from your force examinations officer (chase it if not).
- ☐ Name, date of birth, National Insurance number and email entered exactly right.
- ☐ Correct rank and sitting chosen.
- ☐ Confirmation page screenshotted.
- ☐ Confirmation email received. If not, contact your force; do not register again.
- ☐ Your force has confirmed you are verified and allocated before the College closing date (6pm).
- ☐ Adjustment agreement form read, signed and returned in time.
- ☐ If you might withdraw, decide before the two-week point and tell your force.
- ☐ Device and browser checked against the College's technical guidance.
- ☐ Familiarisation exercise link received about a week before (contact your force if not there 24 hours before).
- ☐ Exam day chosen within the three-day window; plan to start well before 8pm.
- ☐ On the day: check your time allowance and breaks before you start.
- ☐ Within three weeks: open your feedback report on AIMS and save a copy.
Questions to ask your force examinations officer
- What is our force's closing date and time for this sitting, and is it different for the step one form and for AIMS registration?
- Who needs to sign my step one form if my line manager is away or I am seconded?
- On what date does the force judge step one: when the form is signed, at the closing date or at the exam?
- How has my service been counted towards two years, including any unpaid leave or earlier service elsewhere?
- What is the force's deadline for adjustment and accommodation requests?
- Does the force limit resits or apply penalties for absence?
- Will you confirm in writing when I have been verified and allocated?
- Does the force provide a place to sit the exam, if I cannot sit at home?
Once you are registered, the work is revision. If you want structured practice, our own exam prep toolkit (a paid product) has practice questions written and checked by us, a timed 150-question sitting weighted like the real paper, spaced review and progress tracking. It is not endorsed by the College, its questions are not real exam questions, and it is a supplement to the Manuals, which are the syllabus, not a replacement for them.
Registration myths
What we could not verify
- Force closing dates. The College says forces may set earlier dates. We have not collected them and they change between sittings.
- The date step one is tested. The handbook tests the sergeant and inspector criteria at the exam date but does not say on which date the warning, improvement notice and attendance criteria are judged.
- "Extended final written warning". The handbook lists it as a 2020 regulations outcome, but the 2020 regulations have no outcome that extends an existing final written warning (they let a hearing set a longer period, up to five years). How forces treat extended warnings from the 2012 regime is not stated.
- Charges to forces. The handbook says forces are charged per registered and absent candidate. We found no published amount, and no national rule on whether a force can pass any cost to an officer.
- The AIMS screens. AIMS is reached only through a link from your force, so we have described it from the handbook, not from using it. We have not seen its fields beyond what the handbook lists.
- Resits and the 1996 Regulations. Schedule 1, paragraph 5(5) of the Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996, as shown on legislation.gov.uk, says someone who failed in the immediately preceding year needs the College's leave to sit. The handbook says there is no national limit on resits. We could not find how the two fit together in practice.
- Special constable service. We found no rule counting it towards the two years' service for the sergeants' exam.
- Transfers around the closing date. The handbook does not say which force registers an officer who moves between the closing date and the exam.
- The November 2026 sitting. The 2027 handbook says it supersedes earlier handbooks; the 2026 handbook still governs the dates of the 2026 sittings, which match the College's exam hub. If the College issues anything different for November 2026, it takes priority over this page.
If you spot something that has changed, the College's candidate handbook and your force examinations officer are always the authority. This page was checked on 4 October 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I register for the sergeants' exam?
Ask your line manager to complete and sign your force's NPPF step one eligibility form, and make sure it reaches your force examinations officer before your force's closing date. When registration opens, your force examinations officer sends you a link to the College of Policing's registration system, AIMS, where you enter your details and choose the exam. Your force then verifies your eligibility and allocates you to the exam. For the March 2027 sergeants' exam the College window runs from Monday 18 January to 6pm on Thursday 18 February 2027 (checked 4 October 2026).
What is AIMS in NPPF registration?
AIMS stands for assessment information management system. The College's candidate handbook describes it as a cloud-based online system used to administer national examinations, which also works on mobile devices. You use it twice: to register, and after the exam to open your results and feedback report. It is a different platform from Civica Assess, which is where you actually sit the exam.
Who decides whether I am eligible to sit the exam?
Your force. The handbook says your line manager (or equivalent) signs the step one eligibility form, your force examinations officer verifies it, and applications are only acceptable when approved and submitted on your behalf by your chief officer. PolicePay cannot confirm eligibility for anyone. If you sit when you were not eligible, the College says your result will be voided and there is no right of appeal.
Can I sit the sergeants' exam with a live written warning?
No. The College's step one criteria require no live written warning, final written warning or extended final written warning under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020. They also require no live written improvement notice under the Police (Performance) Regulations 2020, and no reduction in rank under those procedures in the previous 12 months. Once the warning has expired, that particular bar no longer applies.
How much service do I need for the sergeants' exam?
By the date of the exam you must have completed two years' service and your probation, be a regular constable, and not already hold a pass in a recognised promotion exam for sergeant. If you are close to finishing probation, you can only register if your force supports it and you will be substantive by the exam date. Anyone who sits before being substantive has their result voided.
When does registration close for the next NPPF exams?
As checked on 6 October 2026: the November 2026 inspectors' exam registration closed at 6pm on Monday 5 October 2026. The next windows are March 2027 sergeants' closes 6pm on Thursday 18 February 2027, May 2027 inspectors' 6pm on Thursday 15 April 2027, October 2027 sergeants' 6pm on Thursday 9 September 2027, and November 2027 inspectors' 6pm on Monday 4 October 2027. Your force's own deadline may be earlier.
Can I register late for the NPPF exam?
Only in exceptional circumstances that show it was outside your control to register in time. The handbook says a heavy workload or not knowing about the registration period will not be accepted. If you miss it, the realistic option is the next sitting for your rank, which is about six months later.
Is there a fee to register for the sergeants' or inspectors' exam?
The College's 2027 candidate handbook does not mention any fee paid by candidates. It says forces are charged for every candidate still registered two weeks before the exam date and for every absent candidate. We could not find a published per-candidate charge. Forces may set their own penalties for candidates who do not turn up, so ask your force examinations officer about local policy.
When do I need to ask for reasonable adjustments?
The handbook says your request must reach your force no later than the registration closing date for that exam, and your force may set an earlier deadline. Contact your force exams contact first, or the College directly at nppf.enquiries@college.police.uk if you prefer not to go through your force. Under the College's current guidance you need a new request for each exam or resit, and the adjustment is only applied if you sign and return the agreement form in time.
Can I sit the exam while on a career break or maternity leave?
Yes, in both cases, with conditions. On a career break, the terms agreed by your chief officer must allow it and your force must tell the College by the closing date with the chief officer's approval. On maternity leave you can choose to sit, but not in the two weeks of compulsory maternity leave after childbirth, and any accommodation request must be in by the closing date.
Can special constables sit the NPPF sergeants' exam?
No. The handbook restricts the sergeants' exam to regular constables, which it defines as those appointed to the office of regular constable. Police staff are not eligible either. A special constable who later joins as a regular would need to meet the two years' service and probation conditions as a regular.
Can a temporary sergeant sit the inspectors' exam?
Not until they are substantive. The handbook says only candidates who hold the rank of sergeant can sit, NPPF sergeants must finish the mandatory 12-month step four, and someone near the end of a temporary promotion can only register if their force supports it and they will be substantive by the exam date. The Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996 also exclude sergeants on temporary promotion, except those on the high potential development scheme.
What happens if I withdraw after registering?
Tell your force examinations officer straight away and give your reason. You cannot be re-entered once you have withdrawn, nobody can take your place, and you are not automatically entered into the next sitting, so you must apply again. Forces are charged for everyone still registered two weeks before the exam.
Sources and how we checked them
Every factual claim on this page was written from the sources below, read on 4 October 2026. Rules and figures change, so check the source for the date you are reading this. Where we could not confirm something from an official or independent source, the page says so rather than guessing. Spotted something out of date? See our corrections policy.
- College of Policing: NPPF step two legal examinations candidate handbook (updated 10 September 2026, the 2027 version) — step one and rank eligibility; Fast Track, rejoiners, career breaks, overseas duties, suspension, pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave; step one form and AIMS registration; 2027 registration periods and late registration; adjustments deadline; withdrawals, absence and sickness; results dates; validity; unscheduled incident deadlines. The College's main site blocked our reader, so we read the same page on the College's production mirror and checked it against the PDF (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: NPPF step two legal examinations candidate handbook 2027 (PDF, September 2026) — the downloadable version of the handbook above, with the Manual appendices (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: NPPF step two legal examinations candidate handbook 2026 (PDF, September 2025) — the 2026 rules: the November 2026 closing date (6pm, Monday 5 October 2026), results by Thursday 26 November 2026, incident reports by 8pm Sunday 8 November 2026, and the older adjustments wording, including that ticking an intention to request an adjustment on AIMS is not a formal request. Its eligibility wording is the same as the 2027 version (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: Sergeants' and inspectors' NPPF step two legal exams (exam hub) — 2026 and 2027 exam and registration dates; SIPP legal tests run at the same time as the NPPF exams in trial forces (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: Online examinations candidate guide (updated 5 August 2026) — exam times (start before 8pm), no alternative dates, how to request adjustments, agreement forms, new request for each exam or resit, review of decisions, Civica Assess is a different platform from AIMS, familiarisation exercise about a week before, taking the exam abroad (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: Reasonable adjustments and accommodations policy (first published 5 August 2026) — definitions, supporting information (screening tests alone not accepted), the College does not pay for reports, reviews must be requested before the assessment, new request for each assessment or resit, contact routes (accessed 4 October 2026)
- The Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996 (SI 1996/1685), regulations 2, 3 and 6, legislation.gov.uk — unpaid leave disregarded when reckoning service (reg 2(3)(a)); qualification for promotion and counting of earlier service in other forces and bodies (reg 3); temporary promotion (reg 6) (accessed 4 October 2026)
- The Police (Promotion) Regulations 1996, Schedule 1 (qualifying assessments), legislation.gov.uk — the College notifies chief officers of exam dates and closing dates for candidates' names (para 4); who may take Part I (para 5); power to exclude a candidate whose candidature was not submitted before the closing date (para 6) (accessed 4 October 2026)
- College of Policing: Fast Track Constable to Inspector (FTCI) programme — Fast Track officers sit the exams on programme timescales but must register like everyone else (handbook) (accessed 4 October 2026)
On this topic elsewhere
More in this guide series
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Disclaimer
PolicePay.co.uk is an independent guide. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or produced by the College of Policing or Oxford University Press (Blackstone's). Exam rules, dates, syllabus editions and prices change, so check the College of Policing's current candidate handbook and exam pages before you register or buy. Practice material on this site is original and is not real exam content. Details apply to England and Wales unless stated. Details are as checked on 4 October 2026.