QWE
confirmation
by a solicitor
QWE confirmation by a solicitor usually comes from the COLP or a solicitor where you worked. If the organisation has no COLP and no solicitor, regulation 2.2 lets an outside solicitor with direct experience of your work confirm: an FQPS solicitor reviews your work, gets feedback from your supervisor and, if satisfied, confirms your QWE in mySRA. From £275.
Check if an FQPS solicitor
can confirm your QWE
Answer the SRA’s own questions. If there is a COLP or a solicitor where you worked, they confirm your QWE, and the check will tell you so. The rule in full: Who can confirm QWE?
Does the role involve providing legal services?
Legal activity as section 12 of the Legal Services Act 2007 defines it: for example advising clients, drafting documents or running cases.
Six questions, about two minutes. Nothing you answer is stored.
Sources: SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2; SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024)
When can an external solicitor confirm your QWE?
You can use an external solicitor to confirm QWE only if the organisation where you did the work has no COLP and no solicitor of England and Wales working in it. That is regulation 2.2(c). In every other case, the COLP or a solicitor in the organisation confirms it, or a solicitor who supervised you there and has since left.
When an FQPS solicitor can confirm your QWE
The organisation where you did the work has no COLP and no solicitor of England and Wales working in it. For example:
- An in-house legal team in an organisation with no solicitor of England and Wales working in it.
- Paralegal work at a business the SRA does not regulate, such as a legal team at an insurer, with no solicitor working there. Guide: Paralegal QWE sign-off
- A charity, law centre or law clinic with no COLP and no solicitor working in it.
- An organisation outside England and Wales with no solicitor of England and Wales working in it. Guide: QWE confirmation for overseas work
When your COLP or a solicitor where you worked confirms
Regulation 2.2 puts them first, so an outside solicitor cannot confirm when:
- The organisation has a COLP: the COLP, or a solicitor who works there, confirms.
- A solicitor of England and Wales works there, in any team, even without a practising certificate.
- A solicitor or COLP there will not confirm: follow the SRA’s steps for a refusal. An outside solicitor cannot step in while the organisation has one. Guide: Employer won’t sign off your QWE?
The solicitor who supervised you there has since left: they can still confirm, if they reviewed your work for the period and, for any work after they left, got feedback from the person who supervised you then. Guide: Employer won’t sign off your QWE?
If you are not sure which applies, use the 2-minute check or book a free call before you pay. Once you sign up, your designated solicitor checks this on the initial guidance call and tells you if regulation 2.2 means someone where you worked confirms instead. Book a free call.
Sources: SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2; SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024); SRA: Qualifying work experience questions and answers (updated 3 October 2023); SRA: Dealing with a refusal to confirm qualifying work experience (updated 19 February 2025); SRA: Your organisation’s approach to qualifying work experience (September 2021)
QWE confirmation guides for your situation
How to get your QWE signed off
The sign-off process in mySRA, step by step, whoever confirms your QWE.
Read the guideEmployer won’t sign off your QWE?
A solicitor or COLP where you worked will not confirm, or your supervisor has left.
Read the guideQWE confirmation for overseas work
You did legal work outside England and Wales.
Read the guideParalegal QWE sign-off
You work, or worked, as a paralegal or legal assistant.
Read the guideWho can confirm QWE?
The SRA rule on who confirms QWE, with every source linked.
Read the guideQWE record template
A record of your work against each competence, ready for your solicitor.
Read the guideOur QWE confirmation service,
step by step
Seven steps from sign-up to the SRA’s email, with one designated solicitor guiding you throughout. You may know this service as QWE validation. The general process, whoever confirms, is in How to get your QWE signed off.
Sign up
Initial guidance call
If your solicitor finds you are not ready, you get a full refund.
Your QWE profile
You can also arrange a call with your solicitor if you need more support.
Proof of your work
Review and supervisor feedback
Record your QWE in mySRA
Your solicitor confirms
Each period of QWE is confirmed separately, from up to four organisations.
Sources: SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2; SRA: Recording your qualifying work experience (updated 12 April 2023); SRA: How to manage my individual account, confirming QWE (updated 8 June 2026); SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024)
What your confirming solicitor checks before confirming QWE
Regulation 2.3 sets out three things a confirming solicitor confirms for each organisation. An outside solicitor must have direct experience of your work and, before confirming, must have reviewed your work for the period and received feedback from the people who supervised you.
How long your QWE lasted
How long the work experience lasted.
The chance to develop the competences
That it gave you the opportunity to develop some or all of the competences for solicitors, at least two of them.
Character and suitability
That nothing arose that raises a question about your character and suitability to be admitted or, if something did, the details of it.
What the SRA suggests a confirming solicitor does
- Reviewing your QWE training template, training diary, learning and development record or portfolio of work.
- Checking that the experience you describe relates to the competence you say it developed.
- Speaking to the person or people who supervised your work.
- Exploring with you any ethical issues you met, and how a solicitor would have approached them.
If something did arise, the solicitor gives the SRA the details instead, and the SRA considers them under its character and suitability requirements. Confirming QWE is not a judgement on whether you are competent, how well you were trained or how good your work was. The SQE assessments test competence, and the SRA checks suitability when you apply for admission.
Sources: SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2; SRA: Solicitors and COLPs confirming qualifying work experience (updated 29 September 2021); SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024)
What you need to get your QWE confirmed
Have these ready before your review. The SRA does not set the form of your record, but the confirming solicitor can say what evidence they need to see.
Your dates and work pattern
The start and end date for each organisation, whether you worked full or part time, and the total months and weeks. The end date must be in the past.
A record of your work
A training diary, portfolio or the SRA’s training template, showing what you did and which competences it gave you the chance to develop. Each role must give you the chance to develop at least two.
Your supervisor’s details
The name, role and contact details of the person or people who supervised you, so your solicitor can get their feedback.
Your organisation’s details
Its name and details, as mySRA asks for them, and whether a COLP or any solicitor of England and Wales works there.
The type of experience
Paid, apprentice, placement or volunteer: mySRA asks for this for each period.
A mySRA account
You record each period in mySRA, so create an account first if you do not have one.
You do not send your record to the SRA: its training template is a training and recording aid only. Your confirming solicitor reviews it instead, so keep it up to date as you go. Start from our QWE record template, with a filled-in example for each competence, or the SRA’s own training template.
Sources: SRA: Recording your qualifying work experience (updated 12 April 2023); SRA: QWE training template (September 2021); SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024)
What QWE confirmation by a solicitor costs
QWE confirmation with FQPS costs £275 for the whole process, for up to four QWE periods. The SRA charges no fee to record QWE in mySRA, so what you pay for is your solicitor’s time: the review, the supervisor feedback, support throughout and, if they are satisfied, the confirmation.
- A designated solicitor
- An initial guidance call
- Review of your QWE record and evidence
- Feedback from your supervisor, gathered by your solicitor
- mySRA process guidance
- Unlimited support
The price covers the whole process for up to four QWE periods, counting each period you record in mySRA. With more than four, additional charges may apply: ask us on a free call before you pay. If your designated solicitor finds you are not ready, you get a full refund. Our solicitors confirm only where the organisation has no COLP and no solicitor: where it has either, the COLP or a solicitor there confirms your QWE.
Sources: SRA: Recording your qualifying work experience (updated 12 April 2023); SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2
How long QWE confirmation takes
How long QWE confirmation takes depends mostly on your records and your supervisor. Once your solicitor confirms in mySRA, the SRA emails you the outcome: in our experience, often within 24 hours.
Your review
Depends on your records. A dated diary or portfolio for the whole period needs fewer follow-up questions than one pieced together later.
Your supervisor’s feedback
Depends on how soon the people who supervised you reply. Tell them to expect contact from your solicitor.
The SRA’s outcome
After your solicitor confirms the period in mySRA, the SRA emails you to say it has been approved or rejected. In our experience that is often within 24 hours.
The SRA’s own published timescale is that it will let you know within 30 days that it has registered your QWE. You only need your full two years registered by the time you apply for admission as a solicitor.
Sources: SRA: Recording your qualifying work experience (updated 12 April 2023); SRA: How to manage my individual account, confirming QWE (updated 8 June 2026)
QWE confirmation by a solicitor: your questions
If your question is not here, contact us or book a free call.
How does QWE confirmation by an outside solicitor work?
Where the organisation you worked for has no COLP and no solicitor, regulation 2.2 lets a solicitor of England and Wales outside it, with direct experience of your work, confirm your QWE. Before confirming, your FQPS solicitor reviews the work you did in the period and gets feedback from the people who supervised you. If they are satisfied, you then record the period in mySRA and the solicitor confirms it there.
Can you confirm my QWE if my firm has a solicitor?
No. Where the organisation has a COLP or a solicitor of England and Wales, one of them confirms your QWE, or a solicitor who supervised you there and has since left, because regulation 2.2 allows an outside solicitor such as an FQPS solicitor only when it has no COLP and no solicitor. If they will not confirm, the SRA sets out steps to take, and its Professional Ethics team can remind them of their obligations.
How much does QWE confirmation cost?
QWE confirmation by an FQPS solicitor costs £275 for the whole process, covering up to four QWE periods (each period you record in mySRA); with more than four, additional charges may apply, so ask us on a free call before you pay. The price includes a designated solicitor, an initial guidance call, the review of your evidence, your supervisor’s feedback, mySRA guidance and unlimited support. The SRA charges no fee to record your QWE.
What happens if you decide I am not ready?
You get a full refund. Your designated solicitor goes through your experience with you on the initial guidance call and tells you honestly whether it is ready to confirm.
Do I need to tell my supervisor before the review?
Yes, it helps. Regulation 2.2 requires an outside solicitor to get feedback from the person or people who supervised your work, so give your solicitor their details and tell them to expect contact.
Can I check my situation before I pay?
Yes. Use the 2-minute check on this page, or book a free call to ask whether an outside solicitor can confirm your QWE before you sign up. Once you sign up, your designated solicitor goes through your experience again on the initial guidance call.
Does the confirming solicitor assess my competence?
No. Under regulation 2.3 the solicitor confirms the period of your QWE, that it gave you the chance to develop some or all of the competences (the SRA’s guidance sets a minimum of two), and that nothing arose that raises a question about your character and suitability, or, if something did, gives the SRA the details. Your competence is tested by the SQE assessments.
What do I enter in mySRA?
In the mySRA application ‘Notify us of your qualifying work experience’ you give the organisation, the type of experience, your dates and work pattern, and the name and SRA number of the solicitor confirming it. Your FQPS solicitor gives you their name and SRA number before you apply. The end date must be in the past.
How many organisations can I have confirmed?
Up to four: QWE can be gained in no more than four organisations, and you make a separate mySRA application for each period. Each one is confirmed on its own, by its COLP or a solicitor there, or by an outside solicitor only if that organisation has neither. Our price covers up to four QWE periods.
Is QWE confirmation the same as QWE validation?
Yes. The SRA calls it confirming QWE, and some providers, including us, have called the service QWE validation. There is no separate validation step or certificate: a solicitor confirms your QWE in mySRA, and the SRA emails you to say it has been approved or rejected.
SRA pages read on 8 November 2026: SRA Authorisation of Individuals Regulations, regulation 2; SRA: Qualifying work experience for candidates (updated 26 January 2024); SRA: Dealing with a refusal to confirm qualifying work experience (updated 19 February 2025); SRA: Recording your qualifying work experience (updated 12 April 2023); SRA: Meeting our standards for good qualifying work experience (updated 5 November 2026); SRA: Qualifying work experience questions and answers (updated 3 October 2023); SRA: Solicitors and COLPs confirming qualifying work experience (updated 29 September 2021); SRA: How to manage my individual account, confirming QWE (updated 8 June 2026); SRA: QWE training template (September 2021); SRA: Your organisation’s approach to qualifying work experience (September 2021).
No COLP or solicitor where you did your QWE?
Your designated solicitor reviews your work, gets feedback from your supervisor and, if satisfied, confirms your QWE in mySRA. If they find you are not ready, you get a full refund.
QWE confirmed? Next, pass the SQE
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More on getting your QWE confirmed
The SRA rule on who confirms: the COLP, a solicitor where you worked, or an outside solicitor only if there is neither.
Getting QWE signed off in mySRA, step by step: what to prepare, what the solicitor checks and how long it takes.
What to do when your firm refuses to confirm, your supervisor has left, or there is no solicitor to sign off.
A free QWE record template with a filled-in example for each competence, in Word and PDF.
Overseas legal work can count as QWE. Who can confirm it, and when an outside solicitor can because there is no COLP and no solicitor.
Paralegal and legal assistant work can count as QWE. Who signs it off, and what to do if your firm has no COLP and no solicitor.
Check your work against the SRA’s QWE questions in two minutes, and see who can confirm it.
