B1Intermediate
From A2 to B1 in Dutch: what changes and how long it takes
A2 to B1 is the biggest step on the Dutch ladder: from about 1,000 words to 2,500, from the present tense to the past, from short messages to articles with an opinion in them. It takes about 250 hours, a year at five hours a week. Here is what changes, a plan for that year, and the books that carry you up.
What changes between A2 and B1
| A2 | B1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Words you know | About 1,000 | About 2,500 |
| Tenses | Present, and the perfect for what happened | Also the simple past (ging, was, kwam), the tense of every story |
| Sentences | Four to twelve words, a sub-clause with als, dat or omdat | Up to about 18 words, sub-clauses with toen, terwijl, hoewel, zodat, die |
| Texts | A message, a notice, a short story of 300 words | An article, a letter from an organisation, an opinion, a story of 600 words |
| What you read for | The facts | The facts, and what the writer thinks |
| Exam | Inburgering A2, Lezen 65 minutes | Staatsexamen NT2 Programma I, Lezen 110 minutes |
The grammar is the smaller part of the step. The simple past is a list you can learn in a few weeks, and the sub-clauses are the same three word-order rules you met at A2. The big part is words and stamina: 1,500 new words, and the ability to read 600 words without losing the thread. Neither comes from a grammar book. Both come from reading.
How long it takes
About 250 hours of real contact with Dutch, on top of the 250 that got you to A2. At five hours a week that is about a year; at ten hours a week, about six months. The hours per level page has the numbers behind that estimate. Most learners feel stuck somewhere in the middle of the year: the course book is finished, the newspaper is still too hard, and progress is no longer visible every week. That is normal, and it is the moment to start reading whole texts and books instead of exercises.
A plan for the year
| Months | Read | Also |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | An A2 text every day, and the A2 texts you already read once more with the audio. Start one A2 book. | Learn the simple past of the 50 most common irregular verbs, ten a week. |
| 4 to 6 | Alternate: one A2 text, one B1 text. Finish the A2 book. | Write five sentences a week in the past tense about your week. |
| 7 to 9 | A B1 text every day. Read one news item a week on the NOS website or in a free paper. | Speak about an opinion: two minutes, recorded, once a week. |
| 10 to 12 | A B1 book, a chapter a day. B1 exam-format texts, timed. | One official practice exam per part, if you plan to take the Staatsexamen. |
The books that carry you up
A graded reader is the bridge across this gap: a whole book in the words and grammar of your level. The Dutch Readers series is built for exactly this step. Saïdjah en Adinda is the A2 volume to finish in the first half of the year; four B1 volumes are in preparation (Max Havelaar, Wij slaven van Suriname, Camera Obscura, Eline Vere). Until they are out, Dutch books for B1 and B2 lists the readers and easy originals you can buy today.
How you know you are at B1
- You read a B1 text of 500 words once, and you can say in two sentences what it was about and what the writer thinks.
- You meet the simple past and no longer translate it in your head.
- You read a letter from your municipality or your landlord and know what to do without a translation app.
- You pass the reading part of an official B1 practice exam.
Not sure where you are now? The free level test takes five minutes. Then start with the free B1 texts and see how far you get.
How many words do I need for B1 in Dutch?
About 2,500 words you recognise when you read them, against about 1,000 at A2. You do not need to use all of them when you speak; reading needs a bigger vocabulary than speaking.
Can I go from A2 to B1 in three months?
Only full time: about 20 hours a week of lessons and reading. At five hours a week it takes about a year, at ten about six months.
Is B1 enough to work in Dutch?
For most jobs where Dutch is used but is not the job itself, yes. That is why B1 is the level of the Staatsexamen NT2 Programma I and of the 2021 integration law. Jobs in care, education and offices often ask for B2 in writing.
And from B1 to B2?
The same kind of step again, a little longer: about 250 more hours, mostly reading newspapers, reports and novels. The Staatsexamen NT2 Programma II tests B2.