Sproochentest 2026: Format, Scoring and How the Pass Rule Works

The Sproochentest (in full, the Sproochentest Lëtzebuergesch) is the Luxembourgish language test you pass to become Luxembourgish by naturalisation and in several option cases. It is organised by the INLL, the Institut national des langues Luxembourg, under a Grand-Ducal regulation of 22 July 2019. It has two parts: a short speaking test at level A2 with two examiners, and a listening test at level B1 taken on a tablet. There is no reading or writing. You pass with half the points in speaking, or, if speaking falls short, through an average with your listening mark. This guide sets out who needs it, both tests in detail, the exact pass rule with worked examples and a checker, what preparing takes, and who is exempt. ProSyllabus is an independent study site, not affiliated with the INLL (Institut national des langues Luxembourg), the Ministry of Education or the Ministry of Justice; the rules below are summarised from their published pages and the 2019 regulation, and they decide every case.

INLL Sproochentest page and FAQ; guichet.lu prerequisites page.

For naturalisation, lifelong-learning.lu, the state’s adult-learning portal, says your knowledge of Luxembourgish is documented by the certificate awarded on passing the assessment examination, which is the Sproochentest. guichet.lu’s general sentence also names a certificate of participation in a Luxembourgish course; that is the route for 20-year residents applying by option (below). For option, lifelong-learning.lu says the Vivre ensemble certificate and the assessment of your Luxembourgish are required as the parent of a Luxembourgish minor, after marriage to a Luxembourger, as an adult who fulfilled the Welcome and Integration Contract or the introductory modules of the citizens’ pact, as an adult who settled in Luxembourg before 18, or as an adult with stateless, refugee or subsidiary protection status; guichet.lu gives the same list. INLL’s page says the test concerns only people covered by Article 14 of the law of 8 March 2017 on Luxembourg nationality.

The same people also need the Vivre ensemble au Grand-Duché de Luxembourg certificate (see the last section). One group is treated differently: an adult who has lived in Luxembourg for at least 20 years and applies by option needs only 24 hours of Luxembourgish lessons, and is exempt from the Sproochentest and from the Vivre ensemble course or exam (guichet.lu, lifelong-learning.lu).

The speaking test is pitched at A2 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for spoken production and interaction. INLL and guichet.lu describe it the same way: you can introduce yourself and talk in simple terms about your family, other people, your living conditions, your education or your job, and you can describe and compare people, things and activities simply.

It has two parts. First, an interview with an examiner on an A2 topic; INLL gives work, family and leisure as examples, and you choose between two themes the examiner proposes. Second, the description of a visual (INLL’s sample page calls it a photo): you choose one of three. INLL gives the duration as 10 minutes (2 × 5 minutes).

The regulation (art. 5) puts two examiners in the room. The interlocutor leads the conversation and gives you one global mark. The observer marks you on repertoire, use of basic grammatical structures, fluency and clarity, completion of the tasks, coherence, the ability to make yourself understood, and interaction. Your final speaking mark is out of 100 points: the interlocutor’s mark counts for 20% and the observer’s for 80%.

What that means in practice is our reading: the person talking to you is not the one who gives most of your mark. The observer is listening for the criteria, all the way through, including the part where you describe the picture. An illustration with numbers we made up: if each examiner’s mark were expressed out of 100, a global mark of 60 and an observer mark of 45 would give 0.2 × 60 + 0.8 × 45 = 12 + 36 = 48, just under half. The regulation does not say on what scale each examiner marks; only the weights are fixed.

The listening test is at B1. INLL’s description: you understand the main points of clear standard speech on familiar matters such as work, school and leisure. guichet.lu adds the main points of radio or TV programmes on current affairs or on topics of personal or professional interest.

You hear three recordings: a radio news item, an everyday conversation, and an exchange or presentation on a set topic. The regulation (art. 6) says each recording is played twice and that you answer a questionnaire with binary or multiple-choice questions, ticking one answer per question; the answer sheets are marked out of 100. INLL’s page says the listening test is done on a tablet, and that speaking and listening take place in half a day.

On duration the two official texts differ. The regulation gives the listening test a total of 25 minutes; INLL’s page prints 35 minutes next to the tablet line. We print both and cannot tell you which is current; your convocation email gives the timing for your session.

guichet.lu states the rule in full. You pass if you score at least 50% in the speaking test. If your speaking mark is below 50%, it can be offset by your listening mark: you still pass if the arithmetic average of the two marks, rounded up to the next whole number if applicable, is 50% or more. INLL’s own page gives the same rule but without the words about rounding.

Three consequences follow, by our arithmetic on that rule. Speaking at 50 or more meets the rule without any need for compensation. Below 50, what counts is the total: with whole marks you pass when speaking plus listening reaches 99 (an average of 49.5 rounds up to 50). And the rounding only ever matters at exactly 99: there the guichet.lu wording passes you and INLL’s shorter wording would not. None of the official pages we read sets a separate minimum for either test.

The practical lesson: listening is not a side test. A candidate who is nervous in the interview and lands at 45 in speaking needs 54 in listening to pass; at 40 in speaking, 59. Because the listening test is multiple choice and the recordings are played twice, it is the part many people can push up most with practice. The rule still starts from speaking: 50 or more there meets it without compensation.

The pass certificate is issued as a single original and sent to you by registered letter; a failure is also notified by registered letter (regulation, art. 12). INLL’s FAQ says the certificate has no expiry date, and that the number of registrations is not limited, but you can register again only once the results of your previous test are out. On written request you may consult, at the INLL, the recording of your speaking test and the questionnaire you filled in (art. 11(4)). Registration, dates, the EUR 75 fee and its refund are covered in detail in our registration guide.

Start with the descriptors above, because they are what the examiners mark against, and with INLL’s own sample materials, which are free on its Sproochentest page: three example interviews, two example photos, the assessment grid, and for listening the tablet instructions, an mp3 file (3.2 MB), an answer sheet and the key. Open INLL’s sample tests. Our speaking guide walks through each of them.

How long it takes depends on where you start. lifelong-learning.lu, the state’s adult-learning portal, says someone with no knowledge of Luxembourgish needs an average of 400 hours of lessons to reach the required levels. Courses run at the INLL, in classes organised by communes, and by other bodies and private schools; the Ministry of Education says preparatory courses are organised by the INLL, the Service de la formation des adultes and its partners. guichet.lu also links llo.lu, a platform for learning Luxembourgish.

Course fees can be partly reimbursed later. The 2019 regulation (art. 15) refunds registration fees for Luxembourgish courses up to EUR 750 (up to EUR 1,500 for courses with reasonable accommodation), (art. 15(2)). Two kinds of course qualify: the Article 28 introductory course, and other Luxembourgish courses organised by the INLL or with a programme approved by the Minister of Education, provided you attended them before filing for nationality. Keep every receipt.

There are three ways out of the test. Medical: if your physical or mental state does not allow you to learn Luxembourgish, you can ask the Minister of Justice for an exemption, with a certificate from a specialist doctor (guichet.lu). Twenty years of residence: the 24-hour course replaces the test for an adult resident of at least 20 years applying by option. Certificates: under art. 13(2) of the regulation, holders of certain Luxembourgish certificates are exempt on request, and INLL then issues the pass certificate. The list includes the Zertifikat Lëtzebuerger Sprooch a Kultur, the Master in Luxembourgish language and literature, and the Lëtzebuergesch als Friemsprooch (LaF) diplomas at A2, B1, B2 and C1 in speaking and listening, among others. A pass certificate from the earlier test under the 2008 nationality law counts as equivalent.

One point is contradictory in the official texts. The regulation’s list also exempts a person who passed the preliminary Luxembourgish test for recruitment to the State administration, provided A2 speaking was reached. INLL’s FAQ says that passing the State’s Luxembourgish test before entering the civil service does not exempt you. If this is your case, ask INLL (nationalite@inll.lu) in writing before you rely on either.

For naturalisation and the option cases above you need both the Sproochentest pass certificate and the Vivre ensemble au Grand-Duché de Luxembourg certificate. The second covers fundamental rights, state and communal institutions, and history and European integration. You get it by attending a 24-hour course or by passing an exam without the course, and registration for either is free (guichet.lu). It is run by the Ministry of Education’s adult-education department, not by the INLL, so it has its own registration. Read our guide to the Vivre ensemble exam or 24-hour course. There is no official question bank for that exam; we wrote 15 free practice questions of our own on its three subjects.

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Everything about this exam on ProSyllabus is on the Sproochentest exam page.