How to Fill Out the LSAT Candidate Form: Sections, Documents, and Deadline

The LSAT Candidate Form is the document you complete when asking the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) for testing accommodations on the LSAT and LSAT Argumentative Writing. It collects your background, disability diagnosis, prior accommodation history, a list of the accommodations you want, and a personal statement of need. You can fill it out inside your JD Services account or download the PDF, complete it, and upload it with your supporting documentation.¹ It is not part of standard LSAT registration; only candidates requesting accommodations submit it.²

You have to be registered for an upcoming LSAT before you can submit the form.³

What Each Section Asks For

The form has five sections, and every field matters. A checkbox without the follow-up detail counts as incomplete.

Section I: Background Information

Name, LSAC account number, date of birth, and mailing address. No Social Security Number is required. You also identify the month and year of the test administration you are requesting accommodations for, and note whether you have asked LSAC for accommodations before. If you have, list those earlier test dates.¹

Section II: Disability History

Check every category that applies and write in the specific diagnosis for each. The categories are Visual, Physical/Medical, Neurological, Psychological, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, ADHD, Learning Disability, and Other. If you have more than one diagnosis, list each. LSAC wants the actual condition, not just the broad category.¹

Section III: Prior Testing Accommodations

Say whether you have previously been approved for accommodations on any eligible test, not just the LSAT. If yes, indicate whether the accommodations you are asking for now are identical or equivalent to what you had before, and whether you still experience the functional limitations that justified them. If you answer yes to all three, you can streamline documentation by submitting proof from the earlier test sponsor showing the specific accommodations you received.¹

Section IV: Accommodations Requested

Select every accommodation you need, separately for the multiple-choice LSAT and for LSAT Argumentative Writing. Options include:

Additional test time at 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, or another amount you specify
Scheduled breaks after each section (you choose the length) or stop/start breaks as needed during sections
Human reader
Amanuensis/scribe
Braille (UEB)
Paper-and-pencil format: regular print, large print, alternate answer sheet, or permission to mark answers in the test book
Assistive technology: JAWS screen reader, ZoomText Magnifier, Dragon Speech Recognition, or another program you specify
Other items: non-water beverages, unlimited scratch paper, writing utensils, and diabetic supplies that need prior approval

Ask only for what you need. Each item you check can require increasingly detailed documentation to support it.¹

Section V: Statement of Need

Write a personal statement explaining, in your own words, why you need the accommodations you selected. Be concrete rather than clinical. Describe what actually happens when you try to work under time pressure, in a crowded room, or without the tools you are requesting.¹

Documentation You Attach With the Form

The Candidate Form is one piece of the request. LSAC sorts accommodation requests into three categories, and each one requires different supporting evidence on top of the form and your statement of need.²

Category 1 is satisfied by any one of: a record of similar accommodations from a prior IEP, Section 504 Plan, Summary of Performance, private school formal plan, or postsecondary accommodations record; attendance records from a specialized school that provided accommodations to all students; or documentation from a qualified professional, which can be a completed Qualified Professional Form, a signed letter on official letterhead verifying your diagnosis, or a clinical evaluation indicating your diagnosis.²

Category 2 accepts the same prior-accommodations evidence as Category 1, or documentation from a qualified professional that goes further by giving a reasonable explanation of why you need the specific accommodations you requested for the LSAT. A generic diagnosis letter that never connects to the test environment will not be enough.²

Category 3 covers exceptional-need accommodations. Your qualified professional must provide an objective rationale, grounded in your history and clinical evidence, for why those accommodations are necessary. A signed letter has to detail your condition, your functional limitations as they relate to test-taking, and a direct explanation of why the exceptional-need accommodations are required. A full clinical evaluation with objective data will also satisfy the requirement.²

LSAC does not publish a rigid definition of “qualified professional,” but the credentials should match the disability: a psychologist for a learning disability, an ophthalmologist for a visual impairment, and so on. Give your clinician weeks, not days, to prepare a thorough letter.

How to Submit

Once you are registered for a test, the easier path is through your JD Services account at os.lsac.org. Start the “Request or Modify Accommodations” process and the system walks you through it. Step 2 is the Candidate Form itself, filled in on screen with nothing to download. Step 3 is where you upload your supporting documentation. Everything can be submitted electronically.⁴

You can also download the Candidate Form PDF from LSAC’s document library, fill it out offline, and upload the completed PDF with your supporting documents through JD Services.² This is useful if you want to draft your Statement of Need at your own pace, or share the form with a clinician who is preparing the Qualified Professional Form at the same time.

Uploaded files must be legible, in English (or accompanied by an official translation), and no larger than 10 MB per document. Accepted formats are PDF, DOC, DOCX, JPG, PNG, GIF, RTF, HTM, HTML, and TXT. Do not upload the same document twice.⁴

If the online system fails, you can email your complete request and documentation to LSAC’s Accommodated Testing Department at accom@LSAC.org. The email must arrive by 11:59 p.m. ET on the deadline day.⁵

Deadline

The accommodation request deadline is the same as the registration deadline for that LSAT administration, and the online system will not accept submissions after it passes.⁵ For the January 2027 LSAT, that deadline is Tuesday, December 1, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET.⁶ Treat the published date as a hard cutoff for having everything uploaded: the completed form, your Statement of Need, your qualified professional’s documentation, and any proof of prior accommodations.

After You Submit

You will receive a confirmation email, and the status of your request appears in JD Services under LSAT Status.⁷ LSAC does not publish a guaranteed processing timeline; requests are reviewed as quickly as possible, with upcoming test dates prioritized over future ones, so early submission helps.⁵

If your request is approved, an approval letter is posted to your JD Services account. If it is denied in full or only partially approved, LSAC posts a letter explaining the rationale. You then have two business days to tell LSAC you intend to appeal, and five calendar days from the date the letter was posted to submit additional documentation supporting the appeal. Appeal results are provided within one week of submission, barring unforeseen circumstances.⁵

A denial or a late decision does not remove you from the test. You remain registered and would sit for the LSAT under standard conditions unless you withdraw yourself.

Items You Do Not Need to Request

Some medical items are allowed for every test taker with no paperwork: non-tinted eyeglasses, hearing aids, medication such as pills or inhalers, insulin pumps, glucose tablets, heart monitors, canes, crutches, walkers, wheelchairs, arm slings, casts, braces, TENS units, service animals, and non-electronic, non-corded noise-canceling earmuffs. Bluetooth-enabled medical devices are the exception and still require pre-approval as a testing accommodation.⁷

1
Law School Admission Council. LSAT Candidate Form
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Law School Admission Council. Documentation Requirements
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Law School Admission Council. Register for the LSAT
4
Law School Admission Council. How to Request Accommodations on the LSAT
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Law School Admission Council. LSAT Accommodations
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Law School Admission Council. January LSAT
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Law School Admission Council. FAQs About LSAT Accommodations