test fide · French · Updated September 2026

The fide test in French: Switzerland’s language exam for permits and naturalisation

The fide test is written lowercase, it was built for the State Secretariat for Migration, and it is the certificate most people in Romandie end up sitting when a commune asks them to prove their French. Its defining feature is one almost nobody explains: speaking and writing are marked separately and get separate levels, so you can walk away with B1 in one and A2 in the other. This guide starts with the level your permit actually requires, then takes the exam apart task by task.

Sourced to fide and SEM, checked September 2026Federal levels for B permit, C permit, citizenshipFrench-speaking Switzerland

Mocko does not have practice tests for the fide test yet. This is our guide to the exam while we build them. What is live on Mocko today is French and English exam prep: TEF, TCF, CELPIP and Versant. If you want to practise for the fide test here, say so at the bottom of this page and we will prioritise it.

The fide test at a glance

Every figure below is the exam owner’s own, taken from the fide Secretariat and from the participation regulations in force since 1 January 2026, checked in September 2026.

Levels certified	A1, A2 or B1 on the CEFRNothing above B1 exists
What it certifies	One level for speaking and listening, a separate level for reading and writing
Certificate issued	Passeport des langues (language passport), A4 and credit-card size
Parts	Two: oral (Parler et Comprendre) and written (Lire et écrire)Sit both, or just one
Duration	Oral 40 minutes, written 60 minutes
Delivery	On paper, at an accredited centre. The oral is one to one with an examiner
Pass mark	No single pass mark. Each part is scored to a CEFR level of its own
Results	By post, about four weeks later (six weeks for mid-December to mid-January sittings)
Validity	In principle for life, though an authority may ask for a fresh assessment if it is old
Fee	Maximum CHF 250 for both parts, CHF 170 oral only, CHF 120 written onlyCentres may charge less
Minimum age	16, whatever your residence status
Languages	French, German or Italian. Romansh is covered by the Examens da rumantsch
Accepted by	Cantonal and communal migration and naturalisation authorities across Switzerland, as a SEM-recognised certificate

Which language region is this? The fide test is the same exam in three national languages. This page covers the French version, sat in Romandie and in the French-speaking parts of Bern, Fribourg and Valais. The German version (fide-Test, Sprachenpass) and the Italian version work identically, and Romansh speakers have their own Examens da rumantsch. What matters legally is the national language spoken where you live, not the one you find easiest.

The French level Switzerland asks for, permit by permit

This is why almost everyone sits the fide test, and it is the part worth getting exactly right before you book anything. Swiss law uses a graduated model that treats speaking and writing as two different requirements. The figures below are the federal minimums set by the Ordinance on Admission, Residence and Employment (OASA) for permits and by the Swiss Citizenship Ordinance (OLN) for naturalisation.

Your situation	Oral	Written	What it means
Family reunification, residence permit (B)Spouse of a B, C or F holder, art. 73a OASA	A1	None	With no certificate before you arrive, enrolment on a course that reaches A1 is accepted instead, and the certificate itself falls due within a year of entry. Unmarried children under 18 are exempt.
Staying on after a marriage endsArt. 77 OASA, after at least three years of marriage	A1	None	The integration criteria also have to be met.
Settlement permit (C) through family reunificationSpouse of a C holder or of a Swiss citizen, art. 73b OASA	A2	A1	The written requirement appears here, which the B permit route does not have.
Settlement permit (C), ordinary grantArt. 60 OASA, after the qualifying period of residence	A2	A1	The same A2 and A1 pairing covers a new C permit after a spell abroad (art. 61 OASA) or after a downgrade to a B permit (art. 61a OASA).
Settlement permit (C), early grantArt. 62 OASA, after five unbroken years	B1	A1	The single biggest jump in the table. Getting the C permit five years early costs you two CEFR levels of speaking, and nothing extra in writing.
Ordinary naturalisationArt. 6 OLN	B1	A2	The federal floor, in the national language spoken where you live. Cantons may demand more inside the ordinary naturalisation procedure, and some do.
Facilitated naturalisation, spouse living abroadSix years of marital union, assessed by the Swiss representation	Assessed at interview	Not tested this way	For spouses of Swiss citizens abroad the standard is everyday oral communication, judged in an interview at the competent Swiss representation rather than by a certificate.

Your canton can ask for more

These are floors, not targets. fide states plainly that cantons may set higher requirements inside the ordinary naturalisation procedure, and describes its own test as accepted for ordinary naturalisation in most cantons rather than all of them. We will not invent a number for your canton: ask your commune or cantonal office what they require, in writing, before you pay for a sitting.

You may be exempt already

A national language as your mother tongue, three to five years of compulsory school in one, or upper-secondary or tertiary study taught in one (anywhere in the world) all remove the certificate requirement. Unmarried children under 18 joining family are exempt, people covered by the free movement agreement with the EU and EFTA sit outside these rules, and disability or illness is grounds for a documented exception.

The format: two parts, and you can sit just one

The fide test is taken on paper at an accredited centre. It has an oral part called Parler et Comprendre, 40 minutes, and a written part called Lire et écrire, 60 minutes. You choose at registration whether to sit both or only one, and the two can fall on different days. The oral part is deliberately designed so that someone who can neither read nor write can still sit it and be certified.

Oral part: Parler et Comprendre

Parler (speaking)

About 15 minutes · two thirds of the oral result

You and an examiner sit facing each other and talk. A second examiner sits to the side and observes. There is no written prompt in front of you: everything is spoken, and the examiner explains each task as it comes. The part is adaptive. Everyone starts on the A2 tasks, and after those the examiners recommend continuing at A1 or at B1. You may refuse that recommendation and sit the other level, but you confirm it by signing a declaration, and you carry the risk.

A2, task 1: describe a situationA2 block: max 18 points

Describe the people, the situation and what is happening in a picture, then say where you think the person is and what is going on.

A2, task 2: telephone role play

Make, postpone or cancel an appointment by phone. The examiner plays the other side, picks up and answers as the letting agency, the surgery or the office.

A2, task 3: discussion

Talk about habits and preferences, describe an experience or an event, describe a process or the way something is done.

A1 route: two shorter tasksA1 block: max 8 points

Name the places, everyday situations and actions shown in pictures, then react in common contact situations such as greeting, asking and thanking.

B1 route: extended discussionB1 block: max 24 points

You pick one of two topics offered, then describe an experience, explain a process or a procedure, weigh the good and bad sides of a situation, and take a position on a hypothetical.

Comprendre (listening)

Same sitting · one third of the oral result

The examiner explains a situation and asks a question, a short recording is played from a computer, and the question is repeated. Pictures are on the table in front of you. There are two situations at each of the two levels being tested, three recordings in each. You may hear any recording twice.

A1 recordings6 points

Six texts of 25 to 35 words. Point to the one picture out of three that answers the question.

A2 recordings6 to 12 points, depending on the combination

Six texts of 30 to 45 words. Again a choice of three pictures.

B1 recordings12 points

Six texts of 35 to 55 words, and here the pictures stop: you answer the question out loud.

The A2 tasks are your audition. Everyone starts at A2, and your performance there decides whether you are routed towards A1 or towards B1. If your target is B1 for naturalisation or an early C permit, the practice that matters most is not B1 material at all: it is being fluent and detailed enough on the A2 picture description, phone role play and discussion that the examiners send you up rather than down.

Written part: Lire et écrire

Sixty minutes, six modules, two tasks per module. The first task in each module is a reading task and the second is mostly writing. You sit modules 1 to 3 or modules 4 to 6, and because modules 3 and 4 are the same module, A2 is the hinge that both combinations share.

Modules 1 to 3 (A1 to A2)

Max 48 points · A1 from 18.5 points, A2 from 36.5 points

Each module pairs a reading task with a writing task, and the tasks get harder and worth more as you go. Everything is explained before the clock starts and you can ask questions then.

Task 1 and 28 + 5 points

Find information in a text and copy it into a text message. Then fill in a form with your own personal details.

Task 3 and 45 + 11 points

Find information in a text and underline it. Then complete a form with personal information and add your own questions and remarks.

Task 5 and 65 + 14 points

Pull details out of two texts into a partly completed list. Then reply to an email, covering every point the instructions give you.

Modules 4 to 6 (A2 to B1)

Max 59 points · A2 from 23 points, B1 from 43 points

Module 4 is identical to module 3, so the A2 tasks are the same whichever combination you sit. What follows them is what separates an A2 result from a B1 one.

Task 7 and 85 + 14 points

The module 3 pair again: two texts into a partly completed list, then an email reply that answers every point.

Task 9 and 106 + 9 points

Twice, choose the correct summary of a text from three options. Then write a simple formal letter that covers the given points.

Task 11 and 128 + 17 points

For four texts, choose the correct statement from three options. Then write an informal email, again covering every point in the instructions.

Scoring: no pass mark, two separate levels

There is no overall pass or fail on the fide test. Each part produces its own CEFR level, and the thresholds are percentages of the points available in the combination you actually sat. These are published in fide’s own sample papers.

Oral result

Speaking counts for two thirds and listening for one third, combined into a single oral level.

A1 to A2 combination: at least 26% for A1, at least 65% for A2
A2 to B1 combination: at least 43% for A2, at least 79% for B1

Written result

Reading and writing are marked out of a points total that differs between the two module sets.

Modules 1 to 3: 48 points available, 18.5 for A1 and 36.5 for A2
Modules 4 to 6: 59 points available, 23 for A2 and 43 for B1

What a partial result gets you, and what gets you nothing

A language passport is only issued if you reach at least A1 in the A1 to A2 combination, or at least A2 in the A2 to B1 combination. Fall below the floor of the combination you sat and you receive a result notification but no passport, which is the real cost of overriding the examiners’ level recommendation. A split result is normal and is not a failure: B1 oral with A2 written is exactly the profile federal law asks of an ordinary naturalisation applicant.

SEM also publishes guidance that helps here. Where your reading and writing levels differ, authorities take the lower one, unless the gap is wide, in which case they take the level in between (B1 reading with A1 writing is read as A2 written). And if you do not pass overall but one part is good enough, that part can be recognised on its own. Result sheets from the passed parts of two different recognised certificates may even be combined.

ResultsRoughly four weeks, by post, and six weeks for sittings between mid-December and mid-January. Never by phone, never by email. If a deadline is closing in, ask your commune, your cantonal authority or SEM for more time, because fide cannot go faster.

ChallengesA paid third-marker recheck of the written part and B1 listening within 15 calendar days. A free supervised inspection of your papers within 30 days, up to 45 minutes. A free written objection within 40 days, then the fide Quality Commission, SEM, and the Federal Administrative Court.

ResitsUnlimited, each one paid. Repeat the whole test or just the part you need, and ask for multiple passports to be merged into one. A duplicate is available for 15 years, and a corrected passport is free if you report the error within 60 days.

What Switzerland accepts instead of the fide test

The fide test is recommended by SEM, not mandated. SEM maintains a list of recognised language certificates, refreshed every three months, and the certificate you present has to be on the list on the day you file your application. The French entries on the version dated 1 July 2026 are below.

Awarding body	Certificates	Levels
State Secretariat for Migration (SEM)	Test fide, Test fide edu, Dossier fideTest fide edu is only open to candidates entered by a vocational school. Dossier fide costs CHF 150 and caps at B1.	A1 to B1 oral and written (fide edu reaches B2 oral)
France Éducation international	DELF, DELF Junior, TCF (TP, DAP, Québec, IRN, Canada)TCF Tout Public counts only if you also sit both optional papers, writing and speaking. TCF DAP has no speaking paper at all, so it cannot prove your oral level on its own.	DELF A2 to B2, TCF A1 to C2
CCI Paris Île-de-France	TEF, TEFAQ, TEF Canada	A1 to C2 oral and written
CCI Paris Île-de-France	Diplômes de Français Professionnel Affaires	B1 to C1

That list is worth reading twice if you are already studying French for another country. Both the TCF and the TEF are recognised in Switzerland in several of their versions, so someone preparing for Canadian immigration and a Swiss C permit at once may be able to satisfy both with one exam. Check the current SEM list yourself rather than trusting any prep site, this one included.

Two more routes exist if the standard test does not fit. The dossier fide costs CHF 150 and suits people already at B1 or above who hold no recognised certificate: you submit evidence, then attend a validation meeting with an interview and a written task, and it certifies up to B1. And if you hold a recognised international certificate, you can ask for a Swiss language passport on the strength of it for CHF 20.

Booking a sitting, and what to bring

You register directly with an accredited centre, not with fide. There are more than 100 of them across Switzerland, and the French-speaking list covers Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Jura, Neuchâtel, Vaud and Valais, each publishing its own session dates. The current list and calendar live on the fide website.

DeadlinesRegistration closes at the latest 15 days before the exam date, and centres may close earlier. The centre confirms the place, date, time and duration of each part at the latest 10 days before. Cancellation terms are the centre’s own, and fide refunds nothing.

You cannot pick your levelAt registration you choose the full test, the oral part or the written part, and nothing else. Level combinations are not bookable: the recommendation is made during the test, and you can override it only by signing a declaration on the day.

Identity documentsValid photo ID: passport or national identity card, Swiss or Liechtenstein residence permit, Swiss driving licence (a learner permit does not count), travel document for refugees or foreign nationals, or a SwissPass. If the originals are with the authorities, bring a copy plus their letter.

On the dayWatches, phones and connected devices are silenced and handed in. Arriving late, having no usable ID, cheating, or using notes, dictionaries, earbuds or a smartwatch means exclusion with no refund and no new attempt for six months.

AccessibilityCentres arrange individual conditions for visual, hearing, reading or writing impairments. Declare it when you register and agree the arrangements with the centre. A medical certificate less than two years old, in French, German, Italian or English, is recommended.

Paying for itCHF 250, CHF 170 and CHF 120 are maximum prices, so centres can and do charge less. The language passport is included. Cantonal integration programmes fund language courses up to B1, so ask your commune what local support exists before paying for tuition.

How to prepare for the fide test

fide is unusually blunt about this: no preparation course is required, the tasks are all explained on the day, and the Secretariat warns candidates to be careful with internet offers of fide preparation, because it runs no courses itself and works with no course provider. Take that seriously, and spend your money on French rather than on exam coaching.

1Confirm the level you actually need, in writingStart at the table above, then ask your commune or cantonal office to confirm it for your case. A candidate who needs A2 oral and A1 written for a C permit is preparing for a very different sitting from one chasing B1 for naturalisation, and the difference is months of study.
2Download the version blanche and work through itfide publishes the complete sample test free: speaking, listening and written papers at both level combinations, the listening audio, and answer keys for the written part. It is the only practice material with any authority behind it. Record yourself doing the speaking tasks and listen back.
3Book the free speaking simulationfide runs a free simulation of the Parler part two to four times a year and sends an indicative A1 to B1 level about a week later. It is not official and produces no passport, but it is the cheapest way to learn whether examiners would route you towards B1, before you pay CHF 170 to find out.
4Practise the exact task shapes, not general FrenchDescribe a photo out loud for a minute. Phone a letting agency to cancel a viewing. Fill in a form and add two questions to it. Reply to an email covering three given points. Write a short formal letter. Those are the tasks, literally, and each is worth known points.
5Learn Swiss everyday vocabularyThe test is deliberately Swiss: the commune, the gérance, the caisse maladie, an apprentissage, a rendez-vous at the cabinet médical. International French courses skip most of this, and a fide-labelled course is built around exactly these situations.
6Decide which parts to sit, and whenThe parts are separable and separately priced. Holding a recognised certificate for writing already? Sit the oral alone for CHF 170. Short of B1 speaking but comfortable in writing? Sit the written part now and the oral once your speaking is ready, rather than paying for both and losing one.

Where Mocko fits, honestly

We do not have fide practice tests, and this guide is not a product page. What is live on Mocko is French and English exam prep for other certificates: TEF, TCF and CELPIP. Two of those, TEF and TCF, are on the SEM list of recognised certificates, so if your plans include Canada as well as a Swiss permit they are worth a look on their own merits. If your only goal is a Swiss permit or citizenship, the fide test is almost always the cheaper and better-fitting option, and you should sit that. Our French learning material and the Mocko blog are free either way.

fide test: frequently asked questions

What is the fide test?

Switzerland’s own language test for migrants, developed for the State Secretariat for Migration. It certifies French, German or Italian at A1, A2 or B1 through tasks taken from everyday Swiss life, and issues a language passport (passeport des langues) recording a separate level for oral and for written skills. This page covers the French version.

Can you fail one part of the fide test and pass the other?

Yes, and it is the most important thing to understand about this exam. The oral and written parts are assessed independently and each gets its own CEFR level. A passport reading B1 oral and A2 written is completely normal, and for ordinary naturalisation it is exactly what federal law asks for. You can also sit one part alone, at a lower fee, if a recognised certificate already covers the other.

What level do I need for a C permit in Switzerland?

Federal law asks for A2 spoken and A1 written in the national language spoken where you live, so French in Romandie. The early grant of a C permit after five years asks for B1 spoken and A1 written instead. These are OASA minimums applied by your canton, so confirm your own case with the cantonal migration office.

What level do I need for Swiss naturalisation?

The federal floor for ordinary naturalisation is B1 oral and A2 written in a national language, under article 6 of the Swiss Citizenship Ordinance. fide states plainly that cantons may set higher requirements within the ordinary naturalisation procedure, so check your canton and commune before you book.

How much does the fide test cost?

fide publishes the fee as a maximum: at most CHF 250 for both parts, CHF 170 for the oral part alone and CHF 120 for the written part alone. Centres set their own price up to that ceiling, and their own cancellation terms, so it pays to compare. The language passport is included. Fees checked September 2026.

When do I get my language passport?

About four weeks after the test, by post, or six weeks for sittings between mid-December and mid-January. Results are never given by telephone and the passport is never emailed. fide cannot speed this up, so if a deadline is closing in, ask your commune, your cantonal authority or SEM for an extension.

Can I choose to sit the A2 to B1 version?

Not at registration. You book the full test, the oral part or the written part, and nothing more. Everyone starts the speaking tasks at A2, and the examiners then recommend continuing at A1 or B1. You may override that by signing a declaration, but it is a genuine gamble: sit the A2 to B1 combination and land below A2 and no language passport is issued at all.

Can I retake the fide test?

As often as you like, paying each time, and you can repeat one part rather than both. Multiple passports can be merged into one on request. The only waiting period is punitive: a candidate excluded for cheating, a false identity or unauthorised aids cannot sit again for six months.

What if I think my result is wrong?

Three routes with short deadlines. A paid third-marker recheck of the written part and B1 listening within 15 calendar days of the passport date. A free supervised inspection of your own papers within 30 days, up to 45 minutes. And a free written objection within 40 days, which escalates to the fide Quality Commission, then SEM, then the Federal Administrative Court.

Does Switzerland accept the TCF or the TEF instead of the fide test?

Yes. SEM keeps a quarterly-updated list of recognised certificates, and its French section covers the TCF in its Tout Public, DAP, Québec, IRN and Canada versions, the TEF, TEFAQ and TEF Canada, and DELF and DALF. Two conditions catch people out: TCF Tout Public counts only if you also sit both optional papers, and TCF DAP has no speaking paper so it cannot prove an oral level. Your certificate must be on the list the day you file.

Do I need the fide test at all, and what if I need B2?

No certificate is needed if a national language is your mother tongue, if you attended compulsory school in a national language for five years (naturalisation) or three years (B and C permits), or if you completed upper-secondary or tertiary study taught in a national language. And if you need B2 or above, fide cannot give it: the test stops at B1 by design. Sit an international certificate instead, then request a Swiss language passport on the strength of it for CHF 20.

Fees, session dates, deadlines and cantonal requirements change. Everything here was checked against the fide Secretariat and the State Secretariat for Migration in September 2026, and the SEM list of recognised certificates is reissued every three months. Confirm the details that matter to your file with your exam centre and your cantonal authority before you book.

Other exams we are building

Guides to the other language certificates joining Mocko, with the format, the levels and what each one is accepted for.

DELE A2 · SpanishThe Instituto Cervantes A2 diploma, and the exam route to Spanish nationality.SLE · FrenchThe Government of Canada’s Second Language Evaluation, graded A, B, C and E.CILS B1 Cittadinanza · ItalianThe shortened B1 exam built specifically for Italian citizenship applications.CIPLE · PortugueseCAPLE’s A2 certificate, the language proof for Portuguese nationality.

Want to practise for the fide test on Mocko?

Practice tests for the fide test are not live yet. Email us and we will tell you the day they open, and we will use what you tell us about your exam date to decide what to build first.