If you’re planning on taking the SAT outside of the United States, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands, you’ll want to pay close attention to international SAT test dates and test registration windows among other key factors.

While the content on the test is the same for the both domestic and international test takers, there are a few differences for international students to consider:

Fewer test dates

While domestic test takers are able to take the test as many as seven times within a school year, international test takers only have six possible administrations.

Here are the six dates for the 2022-2023 school year (as provided by The College Board):

SAT Test Date	Registration Deadline
Aug 27, 2022	Jul 29, 2022
Oct 1, 2022	Sep 2 2022
Dec 3, 2022	Nov 3, 2022
Mar 11, 2023 (Digital)	Feb 24, 2023
May 6, 2023 (Digital)	Apr 21, 2023
June 3, 2023 (Digital)	May 19, 2023

[Note: These dates do not apply to students in Egypt, where the SAT will not be administered until further notice.]

While it might not initially seem like a big deal, because there are only six dates for international test takers to take the SAT each year, you will have to be particularly careful about which test dates you choose to sign up for during your junior and senior year.

You want to give yourself plenty of time to study and prepare for the test without running out of time to retake the test if necessary before your college applications are due.

No late registration

Another major difference for international students planning to take the SAT is that there is no late registration offered for international test takers.

If you do not register for the test by the registration deadlines listed above, you’re out of luck.

Although this is likely not going to seem important when you sign up for your first test of the year, this will have an impact on subsequent tests.

No late registration means it will be challenging to wait until after you receive test scores from an SAT administration before you register to take the test again.

If you take the SAT on October 1, your scores might not be ready before the November 3 deadline to sign up for the December test administration.

This means you have two options:

1. Take your first test of the school year early so that you will have enough time to take the test again, but you will also have the chance to look at your test scores first.
2. Sign up for two tests back to back and pay the cancellation fee if, after receiving your scores, you decide you don’t need to take the test an additional time ($25 fee if you cancel by the registration deadline; $35 fee if you cancel after the deadline up until test day).

Although it might be frustrating to know that you don’t have an option for late registration, if you plan ahead, you should be able to take the SAT multiple times within a school year without any hassle.

Location specific policies

You may have some additional guidelines or policies to keep in mind when registering for the SAT if you are from Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Korea, Macau, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, Thailand, or Vietnam:

• The SAT will not be administered in Egypt until further notice.
• Pakistan and India do not allow Sunday administrations.
• In addition to other location specific guidelines, Hong Kong doesn’t allow waitlist status requests.
• Korea, Macau, Nigeria, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam do not allow waitlist status requests.

Furthermore, if you are residing in a country that has been deemed by the United States as a Sanctioned country or you have been deemed by the United States as a Specially Designated National and Blocked Person, you will be prohibited from taking the SAT.

Limited test centers

While there are over 1,000 test centers spanning 175 countries, that does not necessarily mean that there are convenient test center locations in your area. Many of these test centers are located in the United States.

You can search for test centers in your country and see if there is one nearby as well as any fees or requirements you will have to take care of to use this test center.

Fortunately, available for students in many countries, if there is not a test center within 75 miles of your location, you can send a request to the College Board to provide a test center near you.

Additional fees

The SAT is more expensive for students taking the test outside of the United States than it is for domestic test takers.

The SAT registration fee is $60, and there are additional fees that must be paid depending on the test taker’s region:

Region	Fee
Africa (Sub-Saharan)	$43
Americas	$43
East Asia/Pacific	$0
East Asia/Pacific	$53
Europe and Eurasia	$49
Middle East/North Africa	$47
South and Central Asia	$49

You may also have to pay a test center fee of $24.

How Prep Expert can help

As you can see, taking the SAT as an international student is not cheap. It’s important that you are well-prepared for the test so that you can reach your target score in as few attempts as possible.

This is where Prep Expert can help.

We offer private SAT tutoring and SAT prep courses that will prepare you for success on the SAT so you can earn the score you need without breaking the bank.

Going into the SAT, international students should be aware of the following:

• Reading comprehension is essential, even on the SAT Math section (there are many word problems!)
• The Reading and the Writing and Language sections of the SAT account for half of the test
• The Reading section will have vocabulary in context questions
• You will have a limited amount of time to read several lengthy passages on the SAT Reading section

If English is not your first language, or you are worried about struggling with the English and reading comprehension questions you will encounter on the test, working with a private tutor and/or taking an SAT prep course will be invaluable.

A private tutor will help you address your personal strengths and weaknesses on the SAT, and an SAT prep course will help you learn strategies to tackle all of the different types of questions you will be faced with on test day.

The best part of Prep Expert is that you can gain access to both of these resources online, allowing you to receive 1-on-1 instruction from tutoring and countless strategies from expert course instructors without leaving your room. 

You can reap the benefits of these tools regardless of your location or your schedule!

See why thousands of students have entrusted Prep Expert to help them prepare for the SAT when you check out our private SAT tutoring and SAT prep courses today.