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2016 JLPT dates and test site cities
Dates
- 1st test Sunday, July 3
- 2nd test Sunday, December 4
Scheduled test site cities of the July test
- Japan: 45 prefectures
- Overseas: 120 cities in 32 countries/areas
Scheduled test site cities of the December test
- Japan: 45 prefectures
- Overseas: 218 cities in 69 countries/areas
Test sections and test times
| Level | Test sections 〈Test time〉 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| N1 | Language Knowledge(Vocabulary/Grammar)・Reading 〈110min〉 | Listening 〈60min〉 |
|
| N2 | Language Knowledge(Vocabulary/Grammar)・Reading 〈105min〉 | Listening 〈50min〉 |
|
| N3 | Language Knowledge(Vocabulary)〈30min〉 | Language Knowledge(Grammar)・Reading 〈70min〉 | Listening 〈40min〉 |
| N4 | Language Knowledge(Vocabulary) 〈30min〉 | Language Knowledge(Grammar)・Reading 〈60min〉 | Listening 〈35min〉 |
| N5 | Language Knowledge(Vocabulary) 〈25min〉 | Language Knowledge(Grammar)・Reading 〈50min〉 | Listening 〈30min〉 |
*The time allotted for each section may change. The time allotted for the Listening section may differ slightly according to the length of the recorded materials.
Composition of test items
Questions in each test section are categorized into type of test items according to competence to be measured. Each test item type contains multiple questions. Purposes of test item types are determined for each level.
| Test section | Type of test items | N1 | N2 | N3 | N4 | N5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Language Knowledge ・ Reading |
Vocabulary | Kanji reading | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ |
| Orthography | ― | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Word formation | ― | ○ | ― | ― | ― | ||
| Contextually-defined expressions | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Paraphrases | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Usage | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ― | ||
| Grammar | Sentential grammar 1 (Selecting grammar form) |
○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | |
| Sentential grammar 2 (Sentence composition) |
○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Text grammar | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Reading | Comprehension (Short passages) |
○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | |
| Comprehension (Mid-size passages) |
○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Comprehension (Long passages) |
○ | ― | ○ | ― | ― | ||
| Integrated comprehension | ○ | ○ | ― | ― | ― | ||
| Thematic comprehension (Long passages) |
○ | ○ | ― | ― | ― | ||
| Information retrieval | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Listening | Task-based comprehension | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | |
| Comprehension of key points | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Comprehension of general outline | ○ | ○ | ○ | ― | ― | ||
| Verbal expressions | ― | ― | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Quick response | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ||
| Integrated comprehension | ○ | ○ | ― | ― | ― | ||
| Links to purposes of test item types for each level | N1 | N2 | N3 | N4 | N5 | ||
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- ＊Outside Japan, the test may be held only in July or December in some cities. Click here for the test schedule in your city.
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