What to bring to the A2 check and how the day runs
6 min read
You must bring an identity document and a blue or black pen to the state language proficiency check; your phone and smartwatch stay in your bag, and no aids are allowed. All four parts are taken on the same day, and all of them have to be taken — if any part is skipped or abandoned, none of them is marked.
This article is about the day itself: what to take, in what order everything happens, and which rules are the expensive ones to break.
What to take with you
| Item | Why |
|---|---|
| Identity document | you show it on arrival, and again before the speaking part |
| A blue or black pen | the writing part is done on paper; other colours are not provided for |
| Document confirming low-income or needy-person status | only if the state fee was waived on that basis — without it you are not let in |
The third row causes the nastiest misunderstandings. If you are exempt from the fee because of your status, the document proving that status has to be shown on the spot. If the fee has not been paid and the document is not produced, the candidate is not admitted to the check — even if the application itself was correct and on time.
For the fee itself and its deadlines, see applying and paying for the A2 check.
What to leave in your bag
No aids are allowed. That means your phone and smartwatch stay in your bag, and so do dictionaries, phrasebooks, notes and anything else that could be counted as an aid.
This is worth taking seriously, because the consequence is wildly out of proportion to the gain: breaking the rules of the check can get a candidate removed from it, and then a single day costs everything — the state fee is not refunded, the result is not marked, and you can only apply again after six months. For comparison: simply failing creates no waiting period at all. More on that in retaking the check after a failure.
The smartwatch is singled out here for a reason: it is the thing people most often forget to take off, because it is not "a phone" and stays on the wrist by itself.
How the day runs
All four parts are taken in one session, and the order is fixed:
- Listening (klausīšanās) — 25 minutes, on a computer, in the information system.
- Reading (lasītprasme) — 30 minutes, in the same place at the same computer.
- Writing (rakstītprasme) — 35 minutes, on paper; the sheets are handed out after both computer parts.
- Speaking (runātprasme) — 10–15 minutes, one candidate at a time, in person or by video call, with an audio or video recording.
The written parts together take roughly an hour and a half, after which the candidate leaves the room; speaking is done individually.
For the written parts there are no more than ten candidates in one room. That is fewer than many people expect — this is not a lecture hall.
Speaking: the document is shown again
Before the speaking part the identity document is shown a second time. The reason is simple: this part is taken individually, apart from everyone else, and it is recorded.
The practical consequence is that you should not bury the document deep in your bag after arriving — you will need it again the same day.
The recording itself is nothing unusual: speaking can be assessed live or from the recording, and it is precisely the recording that makes it possible to review the mark later if the result is disputed.
All four parts have to be taken
This is the rule that surprises people most often. Marking happens only if the person takes every part of the check. If a part is not taken or is abandoned, no part is marked — not even the ones already done well.
One very practical decision follows from that. If halfway through you feel that one part is going badly, stopping is the worst option: it turns a partly unsuccessful day into a completely unmarked one. It is better to finish everything and receive a decision with the points for each skill — that at least shows how much was missing, and in which skill.
How to plan the day
The check is not long, but it is not short either, and time passes between the computer parts, the paper part and the wait for speaking.
- Arrive early. Showing your document and taking your seat happen before the start, not instead of it.
- Eat beforehand. There is no long break planned between the parts, and for some candidates speaking comes after a wait.
- Bring a second pen. One pen running out in the middle of the writing part is far too expensive a problem for one euro.
- Do not plan anything important straight afterwards. Your speaking slot depends on how many candidates are ahead of you.
What cannot be said in advance
Two things are deliberately left unanswered, because they are not published in any uniform way: how often a year the checks are held and how many candidates there are on a given day. The only deadline the regulations set is that the time and place are made public at least two months in advance, and the specific dates are in the published schedule.
The marking bands are not published either, so nobody can say in advance how "strictly" a particular mistake will be marked.
The short list to print out
- Identity document — and keep it within reach all day, because you will need it twice.
- A blue or black pen, preferably two.
- The document confirming your status, if the fee was waived on that basis.
- Phone and smartwatch — in the bag, not in a pocket, not on your wrist.
- No dictionaries, notes or other aids.
- Spare time: arrive early and keep the evening free.
Before the day of the check
The day of the check looks best when the format is already familiar and only the room is new. All four parts in the official format can be tried free of charge in the exam section, and writing and speaking in training mode. For how many points each skill needs, there is the article how many points you need to pass the A2 check, and short answers to the most common questions are here.
This article is not legal advice. The procedure and the requirements may change — before the check, confirm the current information in the version of Cabinet Regulation No. 157 (MK noteikumi Nr. 157) that is in force and in your invitation to the check.