How long does it take to get inburgering exam results in 2026?

Hi, I'm Maksim 👋 Once you've taken an inburgering exam, waiting for the result can be its own kind of stressful — even when the exam itself felt fine.

The waiting time is not the same for every part. Some results came back within a week for me, while one took three months. Here's what I actually experienced for each exam, and what I'd recommend doing while you wait.

Reading exam results 📖

For me, the Reading result came after about 1 week. It felt quite fast, even though I was still nervous while waiting.

The first result was important for me because it gave motivation to continue. When you pass the first exam, the whole inburgering process starts to feel more real and more manageable — it is like proof that you are moving forward.

Listening exam results 🎧

My Listening result took about 3 weeks — slower than Reading, and slower than I expected. That can happen when DUO has a high workload.

Writing exam results ✍️

My Writing result took about 1 month. That makes sense, because you write the exam by hand on paper, so it needs manual checking.

I was not completely confident after finishing the Writing exam — it's hard to know exactly how good your answers were, and that uncertainty makes the waiting period more emotional.

KNM exam results 🇳🇱

For me, the KNM result came after about 1 week — compared with some other exams, this felt quite fast.

KNM felt completely different from the language exams while waiting. With Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking, you're wondering 'how good is my Dutch?' With KNM, the feeling was different: 'did I know enough of the required topics?'

Speaking exam results 🗣️

My Speaking result took the longest by far — around 3 months. DUO needs to check the answers manually and listen to the recordings, which takes time. In my case, there was also a strike of education workers, so the process became even longer than usual — your result can be faster.

The hardest part was the uncertainty. When you don't know why a result is taking so long, it's easy to start checking every day, which can be exhausting.

What to do while you wait 📚

Across all five exams, my advice is the same: don't stop your preparation while waiting for one result. Continue preparing for the next exam instead of waiting emotionally for each one.

If a result comes back as a fail, treat it as feedback, not a disaster — it simply shows which skill needs more work.

And for the slower results, especially Speaking, try to forget about it for a while and focus on normal life. Checking the result every day can drain you emotionally without making it arrive any faster.

Keep preparing

• Tips and tricks for passing the exam
• Best order and timing for the exams
• Inburgering exam: full A2 & B1 guide
• Reading (Lezen) exam guide
• Listening (Luisteren) exam guide
• Writing (Schrijven) exam practice
• Speaking (Spreken) exam practice
• KNM exam: practice questions

Frequently asked questions