A2Inburgering level
Dutch A2 exam: what is tested, sample questions, and a 12-week reading plan
The A2 exam has four language parts (reading, listening, writing, speaking) plus the society test KNM. The reading part is a computer exam of 65 minutes with multiple-choice questions about everyday texts. Here is what each part asks, a sample text in the exam format, and a plan built on reading.
What the A2 exam tests
The inburgeringsexamen at A2 is a set of separate exams, taken on different days at a DUO location. You pass them one by one, and you can retake a single part. The language parts test the four skills; KNM tests what you know about Dutch society. People under the Wet inburgering 2021 also complete the participation parts (PVT and MAP) through their municipality.
| Part | Format | Time | What it asks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lezen (reading) | Computer, multiple choice | 65 minutes | Questions about letters, emails, adverts, signs and short articles. |
| Luisteren (listening) | Computer, multiple choice, with video | 45 minutes | Short conversations and announcements: at work, at school, at the counter. |
| Schrijven (writing) | On paper | 40 minutes | Fill in a form, write a short note or email, finish sentences. |
| Spreken (speaking) | Computer, you record your answers | 30 minutes | Answer questions about a situation, say what you see, give a short reaction. |
| KNM (society) | Computer, multiple choice, with video | 45 minutes | Work, health, education, housing, history and how people deal with each other. |
Each part costs about 50 euro in 2026. If you are inburgeringsplichtig under the 2021 law and came as a refugee, your municipality pays the course and usually the first two attempts per required exam. Everyone else pays per attempt, and a DUO loan can cover it.
Lezen A2: how the reading part works
You sit at a computer, read a text on the left and answer a multiple-choice question on the right. The texts are the Dutch you meet every week: a letter from the school, an advert for a flat, a sign at the station, an email from a colleague, a short piece from a free newspaper. There are about 25 questions and you have 65 minutes, so time is not the problem. Reading too slowly and looking for the answer in the wrong place is.
The questions follow a pattern. Most ask you to find one fact (when, where, how much, who). Some ask what the writer wants from you (bring something, call, come on a date). A few ask for the main point of the text. The wrong answers are always in the text too, so the trick is to read the question first, then look for exactly that in the text.
A sample text in the exam format
Read the text, then answer the four questions. Tap an underlined word for its meaning. The answers are under each question.
Bericht van de schoolA2
Beste ouders,
Op donderdag 5 maart is er een op school. De avond begint om 19.00 uur en duurt tot 20.30 uur. U kunt dan praten met de van uw kind. Elk gesprek duurt tien minuten.
Wilt u komen? Stuur dan vóór 1 maart een e-mail naar de school. Schrijf in de e-mail de naam van uw kind en de . U krijgt dan een tijd voor uw gesprek.
Heeft u geen tijd op 5 maart? Bel dan naar school. We zoeken samen een andere dag.
Met vriendelijke groet,
Anja de Vries, van basisschool De Regenboog
Wanneer is de ouderavond?
Show the answer
Op 5 maart
Hoe lang duurt een gesprek met de leerkracht?
Show the answer
Tien minuten
Wat moet u doen als u wilt komen?
Show the answer
Een e-mail sturen
Wat moet in de e-mail staan?
Show the answer
De naam van het kind en de groep
A 12-week reading plan
This plan assumes about five hours a week, with reading as the backbone. Reading is the one skill you can practise alone, and the words you meet in texts are the words you will hear in the listening exam and need in the writing exam.
| Weeks | Reading | The other skills |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | One free A2 text a day, twice: once alone, once with the audio. Learn the five words you did not know. | Listen to the audio of each text once more without reading. Write five sentences a week about your day. |
| 5 to 8 | Read an A2 book, one chapter a week. Answer the questions after each chapter. | Do one official DUO practice exam per skill at inburgeren.nl. Note what kind of question you get wrong. |
| 9 to 11 | Practice texts in the exam format, timed: four texts in 20 minutes. | Speak for two minutes a day about a picture or your plans; record it and listen back. |
| 12 | Read something easy and enjoy it. Do not learn new words this week. | One full practice exam per part, on the days of the week you have your real exams. |
Common traps
- Reading the whole text before the question. Read the question first, then find the sentence that answers it.
- Choosing an answer because the words are in the text. All three answers use words from the text. Only one answers the question.
- Missing the small words: niet, geen, vóór, na, alleen. They turn a sentence around.
- Spending five minutes on one question. Mark it, move on, come back at the end.
- Not knowing the format. Do at least one official practice exam on the computer before the real one.
Costs and registration
You book each part yourself in Mijn Inburgering (DUO), pay per part, and get the result within about eight weeks. The official practice exams are free at inburgeren.nl and look exactly like the real ones. Do them.
A book for the exam level
The reading exam asks for stamina as much as vocabulary: 25 questions in 65 minutes, text after text. A whole book at A2, read a chapter a week in the middle of the plan, builds that stamina with words the exam uses.
Read at A2
- A2
Saïdjah en Adinda
Three chapters at the exam level, a glossary after each, five questions per chapter with the answers, free audio. The first chapter is free on this site.
Out on 15 December 2026
How many questions do I need right to pass Lezen A2?
DUO does not publish a fixed number. Aim for at least 18 of the 25 questions. In the official practice exams you can see your score, which tells you where you stand.
Can I use a dictionary during the exam?
No. All the words you need are everyday words, and at A2 the texts are written so that you can answer without knowing every word.
Is the A2 exam the same as the Staatsexamen NT2?
No. The Staatsexamen NT2 tests B1 (Programma I) or B2 (Programma II). The A2 exam is the inburgeringsexamen, which is easier and shorter.