When Can I Reapply?
The earliest date you can reapply to the police, or resit the national sift or online assessment, under the College of Policing rules. Nothing you enter is saved or sent.
Free tool: nothing saved
When can I reapply to the police?
Pick the stage you were unsuccessful at and enter one date. The rules are the College of Policing’s; your force can set its own.
The short answer
Usually three months after your rejection letter, unless your force says otherwise. The national sift runs from the date you completed it and the online assessment from the start of your assessment window, with no more than two attempts at either in 12 months. Severe inappropriate behaviour at assessment means at least two years.
Sources: College of Policing pre-employment guidance (April 2024), national sift guidance (1 June 2026) and online assessments guide (21 July 2026). Last reviewed 21 October 2026.
The rules the calculator uses
The waiting periods do not all run from the same date, which is the most common reason a resit gets booked too early. The calculator applies these national rules. Forces can apply their own (some set a longer wait after particular stages), so check with yours before you apply.
| Stage | Wait | Runs from | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any rejection (the general rule)Unless the force you are continuing with says otherwise; forces can decide locally. | Three months | The date you receive the letter of rejection | College pre-employment guidance (April 2024) |
| National siftOne force at a time. Both the SJT and the behavioural styles questionnaire again. | Three months; no more than twice in 12 months | The date you completed the sift | National sift candidate guidance (1 June 2026) |
| Online assessment processOne force at a time. All the exercises again. | Three months; no more than twice in 12 months | The start date of your assessment window | Online assessments candidate guide (21 July 2026) |
| Force interview, medical, fitnessFitness attempts and gaps are set by each force. Medical deferrals are the force's decision. | No national rule found; the three-month default | The rejection letter | Pre-employment guidance; College fitness standards; HOC 59/2004 |
| VettingWritten reasons and an appeal on three grounds since 13 July 2026. | No national waiting period found; the three-month default | The decision letter | Vetting Regulations regs 4F and 4G (SI 2026/653) |
| Severe inappropriate language or behaviour at assessmentYou cannot resit that stage for at least two years. | At least two years | The assessment concerned | College pre-employment guidance (April 2024) |
The general three-month rule
The College's pre-employment guidance lets previous applicants reapply three months after receiving their letter of rejection unless the force says otherwise. The College says the gap is there to give people time to develop, so that a later success comes from development rather than familiarity with the tests.
Sift and online assessment resits
Both run three months from a fixed date: the day you completed the sift, or the day your online assessment window opened. Example from the College rules: a window that opened on 1 May allows a resit from 1 August, not three months after the result.
Twice in 12 months
You may sit the sift or the online assessment no more than twice in a 12-month period and with only one force at a time. The guides do not say how the 12 months are counted. If you enter an earlier attempt, the calculator reads the limit as any rolling 12 months and says so on the result.
Interview, medical, fitness and vetting
We found no national resit rule for these stages, so the calculator uses the three-month default from the rejection letter. Fitness retakes and medical deferrals are set by the force. For vetting, the force must give written reasons and you can appeal; the reason decides whether a new application could succeed.
A few outcomes are not cured by waiting: automatic disqualification for certain convictions and cautions under regulation 10 of the Police Regulations 2003 and the two-year bar for severe inappropriate behaviour at assessment. See what reapplying cannot change.
Guides for the gap
- Police application rejected: when you can reapply Every stage's rules, appeals and feedback in one guide.
- Can I apply to more than one police force? Applying elsewhere while you wait and the one-force-at-a-time rule.
- What happens if you fail the police interview Feedback and reapplying after the force interview.
- What happens if you fail the police OAC Your feedback report, the 24-hour appeal rule and resits.
- What happens if you fail vetting Reasons, appeals and applying again after a refusal.
- What happens if you fail the fitness test Retakes and force rules on attempts.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to wait to reapply to the police?
The College of Policing pre-employment guidance (April 2024) says previous applicants can reapply three months after receiving their letter of rejection, unless the force they are continuing with says otherwise. Forces can decide this locally, so your letter or the force recruitment team has the final answer.
When can I resit the national sift?
The College national sift candidate guidance (updated 1 June 2026) says you may resit from three months after the date you completed the sift, no more than twice in a 12-month period and with one force at a time. You take both the situational judgement test and the behavioural styles questionnaire again.
When can I resit the police online assessment (OAC)?
The College online assessments candidate guide (updated 21 July 2026) says you may resit from three months after the start date of your assessment window, not the date of your result. The limit is twice in a 12-month period with one force at a time. You complete all the exercises again.
How many times can I apply to the police?
We found no lifetime limit on applications. The limits are on the assessments: no more than two attempts at the national sift and two at the online assessment process in a 12-month period. The College guides do not say how the 12 months are counted. The calculator reads it as any rolling 12 months, so with two attempts already inside 12 months the earliest third attempt is 12 months after the first of them. Ask your force before planning a third attempt.
Can I reapply to the police after failing vetting?
We found no national waiting period specific to vetting, so the three-month default applies unless the force says otherwise. Since 13 July 2026 the Vetting Regulations (as amended by SI 2026/653) require the force to give detailed written reasons for refusing clearance. You can appeal to someone not involved in the decision. Whether a new application could succeed depends on the reason for the refusal.
Will you remind me when I can reapply?
No. We do not send automatic reminders. The Add to calendar button downloads a calendar file made on your device, with an all-day event on your date and a reminder 14 days before. If you leave your email for the joining list, we write by hand when forces open applications or the rules change.
Sources
- College of Policing: Police constable pre-employment guidance (April 2024): three months after the rejection letter unless the force says otherwise; local discretion; one force at a time; twice in 12 months; the two-year bar.
- College of Policing: National sift candidate guidance (updated 1 June 2026): sift resit from three months after completion, twice in 12 months, both exercises again.
- College of Policing: Online assessments candidate guide (updated 21 July 2026): OAC resit from three months after the window start date, twice in 12 months, all exercises again.
- Police (Conduct and Vetting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/653), regulation 15: written reasons (reg 4F) and appeals (reg 4G) for vetting decisions from 13 July 2026.
- College of Policing: Job-related fitness standards: the 15m multi-stage fitness test to level 5.4 is a recruitment requirement.
- Home Office Circular 59/2004: medical standards for police recruitment: individual assessment; deferral rather than rejection for some conditions.
Accessed 21 October 2026. This tool gives general information about the national rules, not advice on your own application.