Austria's B1 Integrationsprüfung: one sitting, five subtests, and Sprechen you cannot miss

§ 10a Abs. 1 Z 1 StbG makes every grant of citizenship conditional on German gemäß § 7 Abs. 2 Z 2 IntG, which is Modul 2 of the integration agreement: independent use of German at B1. § 10a Abs. 4 then counts the proof as made if German is your mother tongue, or if you have met Modul 2 under § 10 Abs. 2 IntG.

That list is short. Its first line is the ÖIF's Integrationsprüfung (§ 10 Abs. 2 Z 1 IntG). The rest are Austrian routes: primary or secondary school German, five years of compulsory school, four years of German at a foreign secondary school, an apprenticeship exam, or two years of German-taught study with 32 ECTS (Z 3 to 8). The line that used to admit other language diplomas, Z 2, was repealed in 2019 (BGBl. I Nr. 41/2019). Neither act names Goethe, telc or ÖSD.

The ÖIF itself describes the B1 Integrationsprüfung as recognised proof for Modul 2, for both the Daueraufenthalt – EU residence permit and Austrian citizenship. It describes its language-only B1 exam, the Deutsch-Test für Österreich (DTÖ), only as recognised proof of B1, without naming citizenship. Our reading: if citizenship is the goal, book the Integrationsprüfung, and ask the authority before relying on anything else.

If you want citizenship after six years instead of ten, the level is B2. § 11a Abs. 6 Z 1 StbG lets a foreigner with six years of lawful, uninterrupted residence naturalise with German at B2 in place of the B1 proof. The ÖIF lists its B2 Integrationsprüfung, B2 ÖIF-Test and C1 test as recognised for that route, and says the B2 Integrationsprüfung and the C1 test are offered only within its Startpaket Deutsch & Integration programme.

The B1 Integrationsprüfung has five subtests: Hören, Lesen, Schreiben, Werte- und Orientierungswissen and Sprechen. The written part, with the values questions, takes 140 minutes. The oral part takes about 16 minutes and is a paired exam (Paarprüfung): you speak with another candidate in front of the examiners.

Under the IntG-DV the values questions are single- or multiple-choice, set at the exam's language level, and the ÖIF's exam rules say they are marked centrally from a single-choice sheet. Two qualified examiners run each sitting, at least one appointed by the ÖIF, and both stay in the room throughout (§ 14 Abs. 3 IntG-DV). The exam rules require a break of at least 15 minutes between the written and the oral part.

Sprechen is marked on the spot by the two examiners and recorded; the recording and the sealed written papers go to the ÖIF, whose markers score the rest and check the speaking marks by sample (§ 18 IntG-DV). At least one marking in twelve is re-checked by a marker who was not involved.

This is the rule most candidates have never read. Under section 16 of the ÖIF's exam rules, you receive the B1 Integrationsprüfung certificate if, in one sitting, you reach B1 in the Sprechen module and in one of the other two modules (either Hören/Lesen or Schreiben), and score enough on the values questions.

The reading is ours: you can fall short of B1 in Schreiben, or in Hören/Lesen, and still pass. You cannot fall short in Sprechen, and you cannot fail the values part. So the speaking module is the one that decides the exam, and a candidate who writes well but freezes in a paired conversation is the one most at risk.

There are no partial passes. The law, the ordinance and the exam rules all say it: both the language and the values content must be shown in one sitting, no part certificate is issued, and no single part can be repeated (§ 12 Abs. 2 IntG, § 19 Abs. 3 IntG-DV). The exam as a whole can be retaken as often as you like.

Memorised model texts score zero. The exam rules say that if a Schreiben text closely matches the expected solutions, another candidate's text or a template, so that it is not your own work, the Schreiben subtest is marked 0 points, even if a few passages differ. Learn to write the task, not a text.

At an ÖIF location the exam costs €176. You register online at least three weeks before the date and pay at least ten days before it; your transfer slip is your booking confirmation, and you may not register for several dates at once. If fewer than six candidates register, the sitting is cancelled two days ahead and you are offered another date.

At a certified course provider, the price is the provider's. The ÖIF charges the provider €98 per candidate with one ÖIF examiner or €139 with two; what the provider then charges you is not in the rules. Under the IntG-DV, registration through a provider must reach the ÖIF at least five working days before the exam. The ÖIF says its exams run at more than 500 locations in Austria.

On the day, bring the photo ID you registered with. It must be valid on the day, though the ÖIF accepts a passport for up to a year after it expires. Phones must be off and in your bag, even as a watch.

The result arrives by email within 15 working days, and the certificate is valid only with its security features and electronic signature. Within three months of the result you can ask the ÖIF in writing to see your written work, under supervision, and then to have it re-marked by a different marker (§ 19 Abs. 4 IntG-DV).

The Integrationsprüfung covers German and values. Citizenship asks for something else as well: § 10a Abs. 1 Z 2 StbG requires basic knowledge of the democratic order and of the history of Austria and of your federal state, proved by a separate exam that the state government holds (§ 10a Abs. 5). An Austrian school certificate in history and social studies at the stated level replaces it (§ 10a Abs. 4a).

Minors under fourteen, and people whose lasting physical or mental condition makes the proofs impossible, certified by an official doctor, are exempt from both (§ 10a Abs. 2). How Austria's language rule compares with other countries is in citizenship language requirements by country.