Where German learners fail the exam

Exam bodies publish their rules, rarely their results. One body publishes both: the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF). It reports every year on the Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer (DTZ) and on the job-related Deutsch-Test für den Beruf (DTB), split by level and by skill.

How many reach B1

The DTZ ends every integration course in Germany. It is a scaled test: you do not pass or fail, you get A2, B1 or a result below A2. B1 is the course goal.

Source: BAMF, Integrationskursgeschäftsstatistik 2025, table IV-3.

• 45 percent miss the goal. Of 318,550 candidates in 2025, 143,357 did not reach B1 (BAMF, 2025).
• The share is falling. In 2014, 69.6 percent reached B1; in 2024, 56.3 percent (BAMF, 2024).
• Best attempt only. BAMF counts each person once, with their highest result. First-attempt rates are not published.

B2 and C1: the job exams

The DTB closes the state-funded job courses from A2 to C1. Unlike the DTZ, it is passed or failed, and BAMF reports a near miss on its own.

Source: BAMF, Statistik der Berufssprachkurse 2024, table 17c. “Narrowly missed” means at least 120 of the 144 points needed.

• The pass rule. 144 of 240 points, at least 36 of 60 in three skills, and at least 24 in the weakest.
• One in four is close. At B2 and C1, about a quarter score 120 points or more and still miss (BAMF, 2024).
• Results are rising. Just over 40 percent reached their level in 2022, 56 percent in 2024 (BAMF, 2024).

Which part fails

BAMF also reports the DTB skill by skill. A skill counts as reached at 36 of its 60 points.

• Writing is lowest at every level. The same holds in 2023 (BAMF, table 16b).
• The gap is widest at C1. 85 percent reach the level in reading, 55 percent in writing.
• Listening comes second. It is the next weakest skill at every level.
• Speaking holds up best. Seven to eight in ten reach the level at every step.

Why those parts fail

The statistics show where marks are lost, not why. These are the usual causes; each fits the pattern above.

Reading is rarely where you fail. Writing is.

Before your exam

1. Sit one full mock, timed Learn the format before it costs you points.
2. Get every text corrected Rewrite it with the corrections, then write a new one.
3. Write, don’t pick Use new words in your own sentences, not in multiple choice.
4. Listen every day Short recordings, with the questions first.
5. Speak with a person A teacher, a tandem partner or a study group.

Numbers that do not exist

• Goethe, telc, ÖSD. None publishes pass rates by level or by part that I could find.
• DTZ by part. BAMF reports the overall level, not the result per part.
• TestDaF by part. g.a.s.t. reports only totals: since 2001, 22.8 percent reached TDN 4 in all four parts, 65.4 percent TDN 3 (2024).
• Who sits these tests. DTZ and DTB candidates are in state-funded courses. Private Goethe or telc candidates may score differently.

Sources: BAMF, Bericht zur Integrationskursgeschäftsstatistik für das Jahr 2025, tables IV-1 and IV-3; BAMF, Bericht zur Integrationskursgeschäftsstatistik für das Jahr 2024, table IV-1; BAMF, Bericht zur Statistik der Berufssprachkurse für das Jahr 2024, tables 16b, 16c and 17c, 2025; BAMF, Abschlussprüfung; Bundesregierung, Drucksache 20/14557, 2025; asyl.net, Neue Anforderungen beim Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer, 2026; g.a.s.t., Daten kompakt 2024.