IGCSE and IB access arrangements in India: evidence, deadlines and practice

Cambridge International, which sets the IGCSE and AS and A Level exams, and the International Baccalaureate (IB) both decide access arrangements on need and evidence rather than a disability label. Cambridge's Handbook 2026 (section 1.3) covers 'candidates with special educational needs, disabilities or temporary injuries/illnesses'. The IB's Access and inclusion policy, published in September 2022 and last updated in November 2023, covers MYP eAssessment, the Diploma Programme (DP) and the Career-related Programme (CP), and names specific learning difficulties, ADHD and neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism.

That is the main difference from CBSE and CISCE, which work from Indian disability certificates (see board exam accommodations for a learning disability). Neither asks for a UDID card; both want a professional report with standardised scores, and evidence that the arrangement is how the student already works. Cambridge adds that English not being a first language 'is not a valid reason', and that exam nerves are generally not grounds, though a formally diagnosed mental health condition can be. Confirm the current version of each document with the school.

Extra time is the commonest arrangement. Cambridge says 'extra time up to 25%' should 'meet the needs of most candidates', and more than that needs 'strong justification'. A candidate who uses one or two of a computer reader, human reader, scribe or practical assistant for the whole exam may have 25%, and one who uses three or more may have 50%, though the centre must still apply. The other main arrangements are these.

• Reading: a human or computer reader where reading is below average on psychometric tests, a reading pen, or reading aloud in a separate room; no human reader in language papers or syllabuses that test reading.
• A scribe: for psychometric evidence of slow writing speed or poor spelling, illegible or very slow free writing, or a physical disability.
• Spelling in language exams with a scribe: the candidate 'opts out' and loses the spelling marks, or 'opts in' and dictates letter by letter, with up to 100% extra time.
• A word processor: for a learning difficulty that affects writing, not a preference for typing; spellcheck is allowed unless spelling, grammar or the quality of writing is assessed.
• A prompter for significant attention difficulties, supervised rest breaks, and voice-activated software.
• Supplementary aids, including noise-cancelling headphones from 2026, plus transcripts and modified papers.
• A separate room, for example for hyperactivity or tics, which the centre need not report to Cambridge.

A Cambridge 'exemption' excuses a candidate from one component of a subject, never a whole subject, and only 'in the very rare circumstance that no other access arrangement is suitable'. The student still studies the whole syllabus and is graded only on completing at least 50% of the assessment. Cambridge has no second-language rule; subject entries are the school's choice.

The IB sets additional time in bands tied to standard scores. All additional time needs IB authorisation, and different allowances are never added together.

A reader, reading software or reading pen (for a reading score of 90 or below), a scribe (writing by hand in the DP and CP, typing in MYP eAssessment), a word processor, a four-function calculator (for a mathematical fluency score of 90 or below), a graphic organiser and the MYP spelling assistant also need authorisation. A prompter, a separate room, noise-cancelling headphones, a practical or care assistant and rest breaks, of about 10 minutes per hour, need none.

On ADHD the policy is specific: where a report has no executive-function scores but there is substantial educational evidence, 'the standard 25% additional time may be authorized' (section 4.18). On languages it is firm: all students, 'including those with specific learning challenges, are required to study two languages without any exemption'. Exemptions of any kind are a 'very last resort'.

The two boards agree on the principle and differ in the detail. This is how the main points stood in each board's documents at the time of writing.

Nothing approved by Cambridge transfers to the IB. A student moving from IGCSE in class 10 to the IB Diploma in class 11 needs a new application, a report within three years and fresh school evidence.

Cambridge wants evidence 'dated within four years of the exam', in English, verified by a medical professional, an educational, clinical or occupational psychologist, or a qualified specialist teacher; it may accept a teacher with at least five years' experience of special educational needs. Where an arrangement rests on test results, the scores must be 'below average' on the thresholds in the table above. The school keeps the evidence on file, and Cambridge may audit it.

The IB asks for a psychological or medical report 'undertaken within three years of the intended examination', with some flexibility for permanent sensory or physical conditions, by a qualified, licensed professional who is not a relative. It must give standard scores, not percentiles or age equivalents, be on letterhead, signed and dated, and be translated into English, French or Spanish if needed.

The IB also wants evidence from the school: teacher observations, an IEP, or a sample of timed work done without the arrangement. Letters from parents are not accepted. The school's records from earlier years therefore carry real weight, so ask the learning support team what they are keeping.

Many families in India first get an assessment for a CBSE or state board, or for a disability certificate, and those reports are often written to a different brief. A certificate or UDID card on its own meets neither board's requirement. Before booking, send the psychologist the requirements above and ask whether their report will meet them; getting a learning disability assessment in India explains who assesses. Ask for these in the report:

• English throughout, on letterhead, signed and dated.
• Every test named, with the date it was given.
• Standard scores for each measure tested, such as reading, spelling, writing speed and processing speed, not only percentiles or age equivalents.
• The professional's qualification and registration; clinical and rehabilitation psychologists can be checked on the Rehabilitation Council of India's online Central Rehabilitation Register.
• Recommendations that link each arrangement to the scores behind it.

Then count back from the exam date. A report from class 5 is usually too old for IGCSE exams at the end of class 10, and one from class 9 for Diploma exams at the end of class 12. Allow time for the appointment, the testing, the written report and the school's application. The practical rule is to have the report in hand in the year before the exams: class 9 for IGCSE, class 11 for A Level or the IB Diploma.

At Cambridge the centre applies, on 'Access arrangements: Preparation – Form 1' or through the Apply for Access Arrangements service in My Cambridge, rolled out in phases during 2026. Every exam series needs a new application: 'we cannot carry over approval'. The 2026 Handbook's deadlines show the pattern: 21 February 2026 for the June series (21 January for modified papers); for November, 21 July for new entries and 10 September for retakes (1 July for modified papers). No 2027 Handbook had been published at the time of writing, so ask the exams officer for the 2027 dates. Emergency arrangements are allowed and must be reported as soon as possible.

At the IB, the coordinator submits the request with the head of school's support, 'by the deadline stated in the Assessment procedures'. In the 2023 edition, the latest public one, that was 15 November for a May session and 15 May for a November session, six months before the written exams, for registered candidates; referred cases took at least four weeks. We could not check the current deadlines, which need an IB login, so ask the coordinator. Approval carries over to later sessions, except for additional language learners, and a re-evaluation must be requested within one month.

Both boards expect an arrangement to be how the student already works. Cambridge says arrangements for long-term needs 'should reflect their normal way of working'; the IB calls it the student's 'usual way of working' and expects them to practise it in class tests and mock exams. A student who first meets a reader, a laptop or a scribe in the final exam is at a disadvantage whatever the board approves.

So the arrangements the family hopes for should be in use, and recorded, in the school's own tests from the year before. Ask subject teachers to allow them in unit tests and mocks, and the learning support team to keep timed work samples. A reader or a word processor is only as useful as the practice behind it.

Special Minds introduces remedial tutors and special educators who help students practise with their arrangements, from dictation and typed answers to timed papers with the extra minutes built in; see board exam support for a learning disability. We do not assess students or write reports.