B1 for Einbürgerung: what is actually required
6 min read
For Einbürgerung (German naturalisation) the Nationality Act requires sufficient knowledge of German, and the Act itself says what that means: § 10 Abs. 4 StAG turns on your having “met the requirements of a language examination at level B 1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages”. So what counts is B1 — in writing and in speech. Which certificates prove that has been set out by the BAMF (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees) in a list of its own.
Data checked: 3 September 2026. The sources are the text of § 10 StAG on gesetze-im-internet.de and the BAMF list of recognised proofs of German at B1 (as of July 2023). This article describes only the language requirement and is not legal advice. Whether you can be naturalised is decided solely by your Einbürgerungsbehörde (naturalisation authority). For legal questions, turn to the authority or to a lawyer.
Which B1 do you need for Einbürgerung?
There is no single recognised exam. The BAMF keeps a list of recognised proofs of German at B1; every certificate named on it meets the requirement equally:
| Provider | Recognised exams |
|---|---|
| Goethe-Institut e. V. | Goethe-Zertifikat B1 · Goethe-Zertifikat B1 (Jugendliche) |
| telc gGmbH | Deutsch A2-B1 · Zertifikat Deutsch / telc Deutsch B1 · Deutsch B1+ Beruf · Deutsch B1-B2 Beruf · Deutsch B1-B2 Pflege · Deutsch-Test für den Beruf (DTB) B1 |
| Kultusministerkonferenz | Deutsches Sprachdiplom DSD I Niveau B1 · DSD I PRO Niveau B1 |
| Österreichisches Sprachdiplom | ÖSD Zertifikat B1 · ÖSD Zertifikat B1 / Jugendliche |
| Österreichischer Integrationsfonds | B1 Deutsch-Test für Österreich (DTÖ) · B1 Integrationsprüfung |
| ECL | Deutsch B1 |
| G.A.S.T. e. V. | Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer (DTZ) B1 |
Two things about this are important.
First: the Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer is on the list too — but only with the overall result B1. Anyone who finishes an Integrationskurs (integration course) with a DTZ at B1 level already holds the language proof and needs no second exam. A DTZ with the result A2 is not enough. How that overall result is arrived at, and why speaking is decisive in it, is explained in DTZ or B1?.
Second — and many people miss this: in the same overview the BAMF writes expressly that “certificates of internal examinations by university language centres and other language course providers are not recognised by the BAMF”. A certificate of attendance from your language school, an internal placement test or a “B1 course completion” from an institute that does not administer any of the exams named above is not a language proof. When booking, make sure that you are sitting one of these exams — not some test “at B1 level”.
Does a higher certificate count as well?
As a rule yes: anyone who can show B2, C1 or C2 has obviously gone beyond B1, and authorities usually accept that. Because the BAMF list expressly enumerates B1 exams, however, the same rule applies here as everywhere in this procedure: ask your Einbürgerungsbehörde beforehand whether your particular document will be accepted. Asking costs one email; a wrongly booked exam costs money and months.
The same applies to other proofs that some authorities recognise in addition — a German school-leaving qualification, say, or a degree taught in German. Whether and in what form that is enough in your case is decided by the authority, not by this article.
Can you be naturalised without B1?
The Act provides for narrowly defined exceptions. They are not general loopholes but apply to clearly described situations:
- Children under 16. For a child who is not yet 16 at the time of naturalisation, age-appropriate language development is sufficient.
- The former guest-worker and contract-worker generation. For people who came under the earlier recruitment agreements or as contract workers, it is enough under § 10 Abs. 4 StAG if they can “communicate orally in German in everyday life without significant problems”.
- Cases of hardship. § 10 Abs. 4a StAG permits: “In order to avoid hardship, the requirement of subsection 1 sentence 1 number 6 may be limited to the foreign national being able to communicate orally in German in everyday life without significant problems.” This limitation is tied to conditions on which the authority decides in the individual case.
- Illness, disability, age. Under § 10 Abs. 6 StAG the language requirement is waived “if the foreign national cannot meet it because of a physical, mental or psychological illness or disability, or on account of age”.
For all four cases: whether an exception applies is examined and decided solely by your Einbürgerungsbehörde. Do not rely on information from a forum or from acquaintances — get advice from the authority or from a lawyer before you build on it.
For everyone else the practical advice stays simple: the safest route to Einbürgerung is a recognised B1 certificate. It is unambiguous, it is accepted nationwide, and it removes any discussion about exceptions.
The language proof and the Einbürgerungstest are two different things
These are often confused. Alongside the language proof, the procedure generally requires knowledge of the legal and social order — demonstrated by the Einbürgerungstest (citizenship test). It consists of 33 multiple-choice questions, of which you must answer at least 17 correctly. The BAMF provides a question catalogue and a practice run for it.
The Einbürgerungstest is not a language test and does not replace the B1 certificate — nor the other way round. As a rule you need both. The Einbürgerungstest also has statutory exceptions; which of them apply in your case is something the authority will tell you.
How to get to the certificate
- Ask your Einbürgerungsbehörde first which proof it wants to see and whether the document you already have is enough. Some people already hold the proof without knowing it — from a completed Integrationskurs, for instance.
- Choose an exam from the BAMF list and a Prüfungszentrum (examination centre) near you. The differences between the two most common exams are explained in telc B1 or Goethe-Zertifikat B1.
- Register early. In many cities dates are booked out weeks to months in advance. How registration works is set out in Registering for the B1 exam.
- Prepare deliberately. A practice pack in the format of the B1 exam will show you in a little over two hours where you stand. Close gaps in writing with the writing training, and catch up on the basics in the German course.
- Allow time for the result. Several weeks pass between the exam and the certificate, depending on the provider and the centre. If an application depends on it, that is the time you have to allow for.
Common misunderstandings
- “I understand everything, that is enough.” What is required is B1 in writing and in speech. Understanding alone is not enough — you also have to write and speak.
- “But my course certificate is B1.” Only if it is one of the recognised exams. Internal certificates are expressly not recognised by the BAMF.
- “I will buy a certificate.” That is a criminal offence, not a shortcut — why, is set out in B1 not passed — what now?.
- “The Einbürgerungstest is the language test.” No, those are two separate pieces of proof.
To say it once more with complete clarity: this text explains the language requirement. All the other conditions of naturalisation, deadlines, exceptions and questions about individual cases belong with the Einbürgerungsbehörde or with legal advice — not in a guide article.