Registering for the Einbürgerungstest: the Prüfstelle, the 25 euro fee and your certificate
Vishwen Labs
You register for the Einbürgerungstest at one of BAMF's Prüfstellen, most of them Volkshochschulen, which set the dates, take the 25 euro fee and run the sitting under supervision. BAMF's page says it in one line: you can register for the test at the Prüfstellen of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. Afterwards BAMF sends you a Bescheinigung with your personal result; with 17 or more correct you attach it to your naturalisation application, and with fewer you can take the test again. The fee is fixed by § 2 of the Einbürgerungstestverordnung as a flat 25 euros per participant.
Finding a Prüfstelle
BAMF does not run the sittings itself; it licenses test centres, zugelassene Prüfstellen, and most of them are Volkshochschulen and other adult education providers. BAMF's website carries a search for centres by postcode, and your naturalisation office will usually name the nearest. Dates are the centre's: large cities offer sittings every few weeks, smaller towns less often, and places fill, so register several weeks ahead rather than the week you want to sit. The Prüfstelle also tells you what to bring and how it takes payment.
What to bring, and how the sitting runs
A valid identity document, your passport or residence document, and the fee if the centre takes it on the day. The sitting is 60 minutes under supervision: you receive a Testheft with 33 questions, 30 general and 3 for the Land, mark one of four options for each, and hand it in. No aids, no dictionary, no phone. The centre sends the Testhefte to BAMF for evaluation; it does not give you a result on the spot.
The fee
Twenty-five euros. § 2 of the Einbürgerungstestverordnung lets BAMF conduct the test through licensed centres and charge a Kostenpauschale of 25 euros per participant, and BAMF's page repeats the figure: taking part in the Einbürgerungstest costs 25 euros. The fee is per attempt, so a repeat costs it again. The free alternatives are the test Leben in Deutschland at the end of an Integrationskurs, and BAMF's Online-Testcenter, which is practice, not the test.
Results and the certificate
BAMF evaluates the Testhefte and sends each participant a Bescheinigung über das persönliche Testergebnis, the uniform certificate that § 1 of the regulation provides for. Centres commonly tell candidates to allow a few weeks. The certificate states your number of correct answers; 17 or more is a pass, and the document goes into your naturalisation file at the Einbürgerungsbehörde. Neither the regulation nor BAMF's pages set an expiry date for it.
Failing, and repeating
BAMF's page is short on this too: if you answered fewer than 17 questions correctly, you can repeat the test. There is no published limit on attempts and no waiting period in the regulation; you register again at a Prüfstelle and pay 25 euros again. A failed sheet is worth reading before the retake, because the questions are drawn from the same 310 and the ones you missed will come round again in some form.
Einbürgerungstest bestehen is an independent study aid and is not affiliated with the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) or any other German authority. The test questions are BAMF's published Gesamtfragenkatalog, which anyone may practise free at BAMF's Online-Testcenter; the app's lessons, explanations and translations are its own.
Questions people also ask
How much does the Einbürgerungstest cost?
25 euros per participant, a flat rate set by § 2 of the Einbürgerungstestverordnung and confirmed on BAMF's pages. The naturalisation itself carries a separate fee, as a rule 255 euros per adult.
How long is the Einbürgerungstest certificate valid?
The Einbürgerungstestverordnung and BAMF's pages set no expiry for the Bescheinigung, so a pass remains proof of knowledge for a later application. If your certificate is many years old, confirm with your naturalisation office before relying on it.
