NEBOSH IGC Exam Check-in Guide: GIC1 Open Book 2026

GIC1, is a scenario-based open-book exam that you download from NEBOSH’s own online platform and upload from home. No third-party proctoring platform and no room scan are involved. The only “check-in” with ID and a look at your room comes afterwards, in a closing interview with your Learning Partner. This guide walks through the process in order and says plainly where the official sources go quiet.

How This Exam Is Delivered

NEBOSH updated the International General Certificate for 2026. Teaching of the revised syllabus began on 2 February 2026, with first assessments from 4 March 2026, and the units are now called GIC1 and GIC2 (2025 specification). The old IG1 and IG2 units had a final sitting in August 2026, so any sitting you book now is a GIC unit.

Item	What the official sources say
Qualification	NEBOSH International General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety (2025 specification)
Exam unit	GIC1, an open-book, scenario-based examination, followed by a closing interview
Second unit	GIC2, a practical risk assessment of a workplace (about 3 hours of work), submitted through the same online platform
Delivery platform	NEBOSH’s own online assessment platform; NEBOSH submissions also go through Turnitin text matching
Where you sit it	At home or another safe and suitable location
Time window	24 hours to access, complete and submit, starting at 11:00 UK time on the exam date
Pass mark	45 marks
Number of questions	Confirm on the official page
Check-in window	None. Login details arrive by email no later than 8 days before the exam
Late submission	Not accepted or marked; you are recorded as absent
Registration	Only through a NEBOSH Learning Partner

You cannot book this exam yourself. NEBOSH says only learners who have studied with an accredited Learning Partner can be registered, and the Learning Partner registers you for a specific sitting. GIC1 sittings run monthly in English. Sittings in Arabic, French, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Turkish run quarterly, and not every sitting offers every language. At the time of writing, NEBOSH lists GIC1 on 4 November and 2 December 2026, with GIC2 submission deadlines of 18 November and 16 December 2026. The December sitting is the one that includes other languages (confirm on the official page).

Pre-Exam Preparation

Hardware and Network Requirements

NEBOSH’s requirements are short, because nobody monitors your device. They come from its Technical Learner Guide (version 14, February 2026).

Device: a computer, smartphone or tablet that can download and view a PDF. The platform is optimized for mobile, but a laptop or desktop is the practical choice for typing a long answer.
Browser: the platform works with Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge on desktop, and Mobile Safari and Chrome on mobile. NEBOSH recommends keeping your browser up to date.
Word processor: the answer sheet template is a Word file, and you must enable editing before you can type in it.
PDF export: you can submit only a PDF, only one file per assessment, and no more than 100 MB. Handwritten answers are not accepted.
Internet: a connection good enough to download the paper and upload your file. NEBOSH gives no speed figure (confirm on the official page).
Personal email: give your Learning Partner a personal address, not a work one, because company firewalls can block NEBOSH’s emails.
For the closing interview: a smartphone, tablet or computer with video, unless your Learning Partner arranges a face-to-face meeting.

The guides say nothing about VPNs, virtual machines, multiple monitors or headphones, because there is no monitored session. That means no restrictions are published, not that none exist (confirm on the official page). If you are on a work laptop, test it with the platform before exam day anyway.

ID Requirements

You do not show ID to the platform. You show it at the start of the closing interview. NEBOSH accepts a passport, a driving licence or a national identity card, and the interviewer cross-checks it against your registration details. I found no mention of a second ID (confirm on the official page).

Name matching therefore starts with your registration. NEBOSH sends you an Assessment Registration Confirmation email that includes your learner number, and it asks you to check that your name is spelt correctly. If it is wrong, tell your Learning Partner and NEBOSH. For a global audience, a passport is the simplest choice, since it is accepted everywhere and carries no regional naming quirks, but any of the three accepted documents will do.

Exam Tip: Check the spelling on your Assessment Registration Confirmation as soon as it arrives, and compare it letter by letter with the ID you plan to use at the interview. Your name, learner number and unit details also go onto your answer sheet. A mismatch is far easier to fix weeks before the interview than on the day.

Testing Environment

Set up a desk and a comfortable chair with room for your books and notes.
Choose a quiet room with good lighting and a comfortable temperature.
Put a clock where you can see it, and convert the 11:00 UK start and the deadline to your own time zone before the day.
Stock water and snacks. NEBOSH explicitly suggests refreshments.
Prepare a separate private room for the closing interview. NEBOSH requires you to be alone, with no notes or electronic devices you could reach.

Step-by-Step Check-in Walkthrough

There is no proctor to check you in, so these are the steps that stand in for check-in. They follow NEBOSH’s Technical Learner Guide and Learner Guide.

Check your registration email. What to do: read the Assessment Registration Confirmation for your name, learner number and sitting date. Sticking point: it lands in spam. Fix: check your junk folder and ask your Learning Partner to confirm the email address on file.
Log in early. What to do: NEBOSH emails a username (your learner number) and a temporary password no later than 8 days before the exam. Log in at learning.nebosh.org.uk, set a new password, accept the privacy statement and take the platform tour. Sticking point: no email. Fix: the guide says to contact NEBOSH if it has not arrived 7 days before. If you have sat a NEBOSH digital assessment before, your old login still works.
Download everything at 11:00 UK time. What to do: on exam day, open your unit and scroll to the examination section. Download all files: the question paper (PDF), the answer sheet template (Word) and any supporting documents. Sticking point: you cannot open the paper before the window starts. Fix: work out the start time in your own time zone the day before.
Enable editing and work offline. What to do: open the Word template, click Enable Editing, then switch from Viewing to Editing. Fill in your name and learner number. Sticking point: if you stay logged in to the platform while you write, it can time you out and you may lose work. Fix: log out, work in the saved file, and save it often.
Write to the scenario and keep to the word count. What to do: answer from the scenario, in your own words, within 10% of the recommended word count. Sticking point: pasting from textbooks, which will not earn the marks. Fix: list each source in a reference list as you write.
Export a single PDF and name it correctly. What to do: save your answers as one PDF named with your surname, first name and learner number, for example “Smith John 00123456”, keeping the .pdf extension. Sticking point: uploading the question paper by mistake. Fix: open the file and read the first page before you upload.
Upload and confirm. What to do: click Add submission, agree to the Turnitin end-user licence, choose your file, save changes, and tick the statement of own work. Wait for the green confirmation. Sticking point: choosing “I do not agree” to the Turnitin terms, which delays marking and gets you contacted by NEBOSH’s Ethical Practice team. Fix: read the terms the day before. You can delete and replace your file at any time during the window.
Book your closing interview. What to do: your Learning Partner arranges it, by video link or in person. Sticking point: leaving it late. Fix: ask for a date on the day you submit, because results are not declared until it has taken place.

Exam Tip: Treat the deadline as a fixed clock time in UK time. NEBOSH’s wording is that your 24 hours run from 11:00 UK time on the exam date, so assume opening the paper late does not give you extra time (confirm on the official page). NEBOSH also says you are not expected to work for the full 24 hours, but a late upload will not be marked. Plan to submit hours before the deadline, because high traffic near the deadline can slow uploads.

What the Interviewer Looks for at the Closing Interview

This is the nearest thing to a proctor’s room scan, and it happens after you submit. NEBOSH describes it as a check that the work is yours, not an assessment. You get no mark for it, but your result is not published if you do not attend. These are the things the interviewer checks:

Your ID. Hold up your passport, driving licence or national identity card at the start. It is compared with your registration details.
Your room. On a video interview, you show that you are alone and have no notes or electronic devices within reach. Sit so the interviewer can see the door.
Your answers. The interviewer reads your paper beforehand and asks questions about it, in a random order from a bespoke list. NEBOSH says the interviewer must hold a NEBOSH General Certificate or equivalent, or have at least three years in health and safety.

The room must be private. The exceptions are a child or vulnerable person you cannot arrange care for, or someone present as an approved reasonable adjustment. NEBOSH silently observes a targeted selection of interviews, so treat every one as observed. If you wrote the answers yourself, the questions are easy. If the interviewer is not satisfied, they tell NEBOSH, which contacts you about next steps, possibly a second interview or an investigation.

Rules During the Exam

NEBOSH publishes no warning system, because there is no live proctor. Its rules fall into two tiers: process mistakes that cost you the submission, and malpractice, which can cost you far more.

Tier 1: Process Mistakes That Can Cost You the Submission

Submitting after the deadline. The upload is not accepted and you are recorded as absent.
Submitting in a format other than PDF, or submitting handwritten work. Files in other formats are declined.
Uploading more than one file, or a file over 100 MB.
Choosing “I do not agree” to the Turnitin licence. This delays marking and prompts contact from the Ethical Practice team.
Leaving out your sources. Listing references is expected, and unreferenced copying is what plagiarism checks look for.
Going well over the word count. The limit is the recommended count plus 10%, though I found no stated penalty (confirm on the official page).

Tier 2: Malpractice That Can Lead to Disqualification or a Ban

NEBOSH’s Learner Guide names three offences: plagiarism, collusion and impersonation or commissioning. Suspected cases are investigated, and the outcome sets the sanction. Repeated plagiarism or collusion can lead to a ban from future NEBOSH assessments, and a submission can be disqualified. Assume each of these is covered:

Copying text or ideas from books or websites without referencing them.
Sharing answers with another learner, or using theirs.
Letting another learner use your assessment. NEBOSH says you face the same sanction.
Asking someone else to write all or part of your paper, or buying one.
Talking about the assessment with your Learning Partner’s staff during the window.
Getting input from proof-readers, friends or family. NEBOSH rules out any third party.
Making a false own-work declaration when you submit.

Skipping the closing interview is not listed as malpractice, but your result is not published until you attend. Malpractice cases opened from 1 October 2026 fall under Malpractice Policy version 22. Appeals are heard under NEBOSH’s Appeals Policy (Q020).

Breaks, Notes, Drinks and Referencing

Breaks. You can take them whenever you like. The 24-hour window exists so you can work in chunks around work, family and sleep, and NEBOSH tells you to allow time for breaks and for rest.

Notes and books. Using your own notes, textbooks and online sources is allowed, and NEBOSH expects you to reference what you use. The guides do not restrict rough planning notes, but the final answer must be typed and submitted as a PDF. Calculators are not mentioned (confirm on the official page).

Drinks and food. Allowed during the exam. At the closing interview, the guide says you can have a glass of water.

Other help. The Learner Guide says you must not communicate with Learning Partner staff or other learners about the assessment, or take advice from any third party.

Exam Tip: “Open book” does not mean “look it up”. NEBOSH says the questions are scenario-based and that pasting from course notes will not pass. It asks for answers tied to the workplace described, using evidence from the scenario. Practice on the GIC1 sample paper on the NEBOSH website, in your real exam room, before the sitting.

Open Book at Home vs. a Proctored Exam

Many readers of guides like this one are used to proctored exams from vendors such as Pearson VUE or PSI. The GIC1 differs in almost every way, which is why it needs different preparation.

Factor	NEBOSH GIC1 (open book)	Typical proctored exam
Supervision	None during the exam; a closing interview afterwards	Live or recorded proctor throughout
Check-in	Platform login; ID checked at the interview	ID and room scan before the exam
Time	24-hour window from 11:00 UK time	A fixed number of minutes
References	Books, notes and internet allowed, with sources listed	Usually none, or the vendor’s tools only
Answers	Typed, exported to PDF and uploaded	Answered on screen in the exam software
Breaks	Whenever you want	Often restricted
Integrity checks	Turnitin, examiners, own-work declaration and interview	Proctor monitoring and software controls
Main risk	Leaving the upload too late; weak application of the scenario	Technical failure during check-in

Who the Open-Book Format Suits

It suits learners who can organize their notes, write clearly in English, and pace themselves across a long window. NEBOSH recommends English at IELTS 6.0 or above for this qualification.

Who May Want to Ask About Alternatives

If you cannot find a quiet private space, or cannot get online reliably, talk to your Learning Partner first. NEBOSH says Learning Partners can apply for reasonable adjustments and access arrangements for you before the assessment, and it points candidates there for special consideration too.

Exam Day Checklist

The Night Before

Log in to learning.nebosh.org.uk and confirm your password works.
Convert the 11:00 UK start time and the deadline to your own time zone.
Check that your name, learner number and unit match your registration email.
Check that Word opens and can export a PDF.
Organize your notes and books so you can find anything quickly.
Clear your desk and set up your chair and lighting.

60 Minutes Before

Stock water and snacks.
Close other programs and tell people you are unavailable.
Check your internet connection.
Save a blank copy of the answer sheet template somewhere you can find it.

30 Minutes Before

Open the platform and wait for the exam files to appear at 11:00 UK time.
Have a clock in view.
Keep your personal email open in case NEBOSH sends a notice.

During the Exam

Download every file in the assessment folder.
Read the scenario fully before you answer any question.
Work offline in the saved Word file, and save it often.
Add your references as you go.
Export one PDF named Surname First name Learner number.
Upload well before the deadline, agree to the Turnitin terms, tick the own-work box and wait for the green confirmation.
Keep a copy of your submission until results are declared.

FAQ

Access and Technical Problems

I never received my login email. What do I do?

Check your spam folder first, then confirm the address your Learning Partner registered. NEBOSH says the login email should arrive no later than eight days before the exam, and tells you to contact it if nothing has arrived by seven days before. If you have taken a NEBOSH digital assessment before, your existing username (your learner number) and password still work, and the platform’s “Forgotten your username or password?” link resets them. Allow at least ten minutes for the reset email.

Can I take the exam on my phone or tablet?

NEBOSH says the platform is optimized for mobile and works on any device that can download and view a PDF. The catch is the answer sheet: it is a Word file, and your final answer has to be a single PDF. For a long written answer, a laptop is much easier.

What if my internet drops or the upload fails?

Keep your work saved on your own device so you are not depending on the platform. NEBOSH says to contact it at once if you cannot upload, and warns that not reporting problems could mean your submission is not accepted. You can reach it by email, live chat or telephone at +44 (0)116 263 4700. NEBOSH publishes no separate rule on connection drops during writing, since your work happens offline (confirm on the official page).

Submission and Timing

What happens if I miss the deadline?

NEBOSH will not accept or mark a late upload, and you are recorded as absent. Speak to your Learning Partner about registering for a later sitting.

Do I need a webcam for the exam?

No. A camera is only needed for the closing interview if it is held by video link. NEBOSH says you will need a smartphone, tablet or computer for that, and that an in-person interview can be arranged instead.

Interview, Results and Appeals

Is the closing interview compulsory?

Yes. NEBOSH will not publish your result if you do not attend. It is not marked, and the interviewer cannot tell you the outcome. Check your result date in your Assessment Registration Confirmation, because NEBOSH’s pages give two timeframes, 60 working days on the qualification and exam pages and 50 in the FAQ (confirm on the official page).

Can I challenge my result or an allegation?

For a mark you disagree with, NEBOSH offers an Enquiry About Results, either a clerical check or a re-mark by a more senior examiner. Requests go to NEBOSH within one month of the results date, with full payment up front. Malpractice appeals are heard under the Appeals Policy (Q020). If you are referred, you resit through your Learning Partner, and NEBOSH publishes a sample paper and learner performance report to help.

References and Sources

Where the Facts in This Guide Come From

Everything above comes from NEBOSH’s own pages and guides: the International General Certificate page, the certificate digital assessment pages, the April 2026 Learner Guide and the February 2026 Technical Learner Guide. A tutor-provider page was used only to cross-check the closing interview and the 2026 transition. The premise that this exam uses a proctored check-in could not be confirmed, so the guide is built around the open-book process instead.

References

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