The NEBOSH International General Certificate is taken by people who work in or are moving into health and safety roles, including in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt through Learning Partners. This page gives you free practice sets by topic, worked answers, a study plan and the main facts on format, scoring and results.
Facts verified Oct 29, 2026 against National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health. Dates that have passed are removed automatically.
Facts verified Oct 29, 2026 against National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health. Dates that have passed are removed automatically.
| Item | Detail | Official source |
|---|---|---|
| Number of questions | 2 units: GIC1 open book scenario assessment with closing interview, and GIC2 practical risk assessment | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Time limit (GIC1) | Approximately 4 hours | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Time limit (GIC2) | 3 hours (practical risk assessment) | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Passing score (GIC1) | 45% | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Passing score (GIC2) | 60% | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Exam fee | Set by each accredited Learning Partner | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Retake policy | Re-sits allowed for referred units arranged via Learning Partner within the 5-year period | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Validity | 5 years to pass all units | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Delivery | Online digital assessment via NEBOSH Assessment Platform; Learning Partners in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Eligibility | No formal entry requirements; English language standard equivalent to IELTS 6.0 recommended | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Score release | 60 working days after GIC1 assessment | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Next exam date (GIC1) | November 4, 2026 (subsequent dates: December 2, 2026; January 6, 2027; February 3, 2027; March 3, 2027) | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Registration deadline | Set by each accredited Learning Partner | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
| Testing window (GIC1) | 24 hours starting from 11:00 AM UK time | National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health |
Facts verified Oct 29, 2026 against National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health. Dates that have passed are removed automatically.
Interactive NEBOSH IGC Gulf resources on PracticeTestGeeks, free to start:
According to National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health, “The provisional pass mark for GIC1 is 45%”[3] Practice with the free NEBOSH IGC Gulf practice test on PracticeTestGeeks (6 questions with answer explanations).
The NEBOSH International General Certificate is awarded by the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health. In the Middle East and North Africa it is delivered through Learning Partners, including in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. Assessment is online, through the NEBOSH Assessment Platform.
The qualification has 2 units. GIC1 is an open book scenario assessment that ends with a closing interview, where you are asked questions about your own submission. The learner guide gives approximately 4 hours to complete it. Learners have a 24-hour window to access, complete and submit it, starting from 11:00 AM UK time on the exam date. The provisional pass mark for GIC1 is 45%. GIC2 is a practical risk assessment lasting 3 hours, with a pass mark of 60%.
There are no formal entry requirements. NEBOSH does recommend an English standard equivalent to IELTS 6.0, because you need to understand and explain the syllabus ideas in writing. Results for both units are issued on the same day, 60 working days after the GIC1 assessment.
A referred unit can be re-sat, arranged through your Learning Partner. All units must be passed within 5 years. Fees and registration deadlines are set by each Learning Partner, so ask yours directly and check the NEBOSH website for current details.
The content areas below are copied from the official NEBOSH content outline published by National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health. The right-hand column shows which of our practice sets covers it.
| Official content area | Practice on this site |
|---|---|
| Chemical and biological agents[3] | NEBOSH Chemical Hazards Practise matching a substance or organism to its route of exposure, health effect and sensible control, including Gulf-specific cases such as Legionella and silica dust. |
| Electricity[3] | NEBOSH Workplace Hazard Identification and... Practise spotting electrical hazards in a scenario and choosing the control that removes or reduces the danger before relying on equipment or behaviour. |
| Fire[3] | NEBOSH Fire Safety Practise fire classes, matching the extinguisher to the fuel, and how prevention, detection and escape fit together. |
| General workplace issues[3] | NEBOSH Construction and Process Safety Practise recognising everyday workplace hazards such as housekeeping, access, heat and transport, and picking proportionate controls. |
| Health and safety monitoring and measuring[3] | NEBOSH Legal Framework and Incident Invest... Practise telling proactive measures such as inspections from reactive ones such as incident investigation, and what each tells a manager. |
| How health and safety management systems work and what they look like[3] | NEBOSH IGC - Gulf Region Health & Safety M... Practise the plan, do, check, act cycle and the roles of policy, organisation, and review in a working system. |
| Managing risk – understanding people and processes[3] | NEBOSH Workplace Hazard Identification and... Practise the steps of a risk assessment and how human factors and process design affect the controls you choose. |
| Musculoskeletal health[3] | NEBOSH Manual Handling and Construction Sa... Practise assessing a manual handling task by load, task, individual and environment, then choosing controls that reduce the lifting. |
| Physical and psychological health[3] | NEBOSH Occupational Health Practise linking noise, heat, vibration and stress to their effects on workers and to realistic controls. |
| Why we should manage workplace health and safety[3] | NEBOSH UAE and Gulf Health and Safety Regu... Practise explaining the moral, legal and financial reasons for managing safety, and how regional regulations shape employer duties. |
| Work equipment[3] | NEBOSH Work Equipment and Fire Safety Practise machinery hazards, guarding, maintenance and safe use, and choosing the control that deals with the hazard at source. |
Prepare for the NEBOSH IGC - Gulf Region exam with our free practice test modules. Each quiz covers key topics to help you pass on your first try.
These are practice questions written for this site, not questions from the real exam. Each explanation shows why the right answer is right and why the others are wrong.
Question: What biological hazards are relevant to Gulf region workplaces?
Answer: B. Legionella from poorly maintained cooling systems, food-borne illnesses in worker camps, heat-related bacterial growth in stored water, and vector-borne diseases
Explanation:
Option B is right because it names real hazards that follow from Gulf conditions: Legionella in poorly maintained cooling systems, food-borne illness in worker camps, bacterial growth in warm stored water and vector-borne disease. Option A is wrong because heat can make some biological risks worse, not remove them. Option C is wrong because it treats a single infection as the whole category. Option D is wrong because biological hazards reach workers in many sectors, not only healthcare.
Rule to remember: biological hazards come from living organisms and their products, and local climate and living conditions decide which ones matter. Beware of options that say a hazard cannot exist or only applies to one group.
Question: What type of fire extinguisher is used for class B fires (flammable liquids)?
Answer: A. Foam or CO₂ extinguisher
Explanation:
Option A is right. Class B fires involve flammable liquids, and foam smothers and seals the surface while CO₂ displaces oxygen. Option B is wrong because water can spread the burning liquid and make the fire larger. Option C is wrong because it presents dry powder as the first choice and says water is acceptable. Dry powder can work, but it leaves residue, and water is never suitable. Option D is wrong because ordinary workplace fires do not call for specialist military equipment.
Rule to remember: identify the fuel first, then choose the extinguishing method that suits it. Any answer that puts water on flammable liquid should be rejected immediately.
Question: What are the health effects of exposure to respirable crystalline silica dust in Gulf construction?
Answer: B. Silicosis (irreversible lung scarring), increased lung cancer risk, kidney disease, and autoimmune disorders from inhaling fine silica particles during sandblasting, cutting, and drilling
Explanation:
Option B is right. Breathing in fine silica particles during cutting, drilling and sandblasting can cause silicosis, which is irreversible lung scarring, along with a higher risk of lung cancer, kidney disease and autoimmune disorders. Option A is wrong because the dust is a serious hazard. Option C is wrong because the damage is lasting, not a passing cough. Option D is wrong because construction work that cuts or grinds stone and concrete creates exposure too, not only mining.
Rule to remember: dust that reaches deep into the lungs can cause harm that builds up over time and cannot be reversed, so controls should stop exposure at source rather than rely on treating the effects.
Start with the official material. Read the learner guide and the sample paper from NEBOSH, then ask your Learning Partner how your own assessment will be run and when your registration closes. This tells you what the open book assessment and the closing interview actually look like.
Next, take the main practice test once without notes to find your weak areas. Compare the result against the list of content areas on this page and pick the sets that match your gaps, such as fire, work equipment, or health and safety management systems. Work through one set at a time, and for each wrong answer write a sentence on why the correct option fits and why yours did not.
Because GIC1 is scenario based, practise explaining your reasoning in your own words. Read a scenario, name the hazards, say who could be harmed, and state the control you would choose and why. Say it aloud as if answering an interviewer, since the closing interview asks about your submission.
For GIC2, practise walking around a real workplace, such as your own, and noting hazards and controls. Our questions are written by us for practice and are not real exam questions, so use them to build understanding, not to predict what appears.
Assessment has 2 units. GIC1 is an open book, scenario-based assessment that includes a closing interview about your submission. GIC2 is a practical risk assessment lasting 3 hours. Both are completed through the NEBOSH Assessment Platform and arranged with your accredited Learning Partner.
The provisional pass mark for GIC1 is 45%. The pass mark for GIC2 is 60%. A pass must be obtained in all units within a 5-year period for you to achieve the qualification. Check the NEBOSH website for any updates to these figures.
You have a 24-hour window to access, complete and submit the digital assessment, starting from 11:00 AM UK time on the exam date. The paper itself is expected to take approximately 4 hours, including reading, researching and completing the tasks.
The next listed GIC1 date is November 4, 2026. Later dates are December 2, 2026, January 6, 2027, February 3, 2027 and March 3, 2027. Your Learning Partner sets its own registration deadline, so contact them early.
Results for both units are issued on the same day, 60 working days after the GIC1 assessment. If a unit is referred, you can re-sit it by arranging this through your Learning Partner, within the 5-year period allowed to pass all units.
There are no formal entry requirements, but an English standard equivalent to IELTS 6.0 is recommended so you can understand and explain the syllabus. Fees are set by each accredited Learning Partner, so ask yours for a current figure.