Resources for your inburgering
Guides to the process, the exams and the Netherlands. Written for A2, checked by an NT2 teacher, and available as a PDF.
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Inburgering: what it is and how it works
What is inburgering, how long do you get and which steps do you go through? The Dutch integration process explained, with a sample exam task and a timeline.Read the guide
Do I have to do inburgering?
Not everyone has to do inburgering. Check in one minute whether the duty applies to you, when you are exempt, and which integration act applies in your case.
What does inburgering cost?
What do you pay for your integration? The price per exam, when it is free, borrowing from DUO, and what changed about the fines back in 2025.All guides
Every guide the teacher has checked.
Inburgering: what it is and how it works
What is inburgering, how long do you get and which steps do you go through? The Dutch integration process explained, with a sample exam task and a timeline.
PDFInburgering · 10 min readNaturaliseren: heb je A2 of B1 nodig?
Voor naturalisatie is A2 nu genoeg, ook als je in de B1-route zit. Wat er verandert als je partner Nederlander wordt, en wat geldt voor een vaste vergunning.
PDFInburgering · 9 min readThe ONA exam
ONA is part of the Wet 2013: eight resultaatkaarten, six weeks of marking and then a final interview or 64 hours of course. How to build it in time.
PDFInburgering · 9 min readVrijstelling or ontheffing
When do you not have to do inburgering? The difference between vrijstelling and ontheffing, which diplomas exempt you, and how to apply at DUO.
PDFInburgering · 7 min readYour term and the fine
Your inburgering deadline is three years, but waiting times eat into it. How the term runs, when you get extra time, and who can no longer be fined.
PDFInburgering · 7 min readPVT, MAP and ONA
The participatieverklaring, the Module Arbeidsmarkt en Participatie and the ONA exam. Who does which part, how it works and which deadlines apply.
PDFInburgering · 8 min readDo I have to do inburgering?
Not everyone has to do inburgering. Check in one minute whether the duty applies to you, when you are exempt, and which integration act applies in your case.
PDFInburgering · 3 min readWhich law and which route?
Integration Act 2013 or 2021? One date decides. See the difference, the three learning routes, when you may drop from B1 to A2, and how long you have.
PDFInburgering · 5 min readWhat does inburgering cost?
What do you pay for your integration? The price per exam, when it is free, borrowing from DUO, and what changed about the fines back in 2025.
PDFInburgering · 5 min readThe A2 and B1 language exams
The inburgering exam is four language exams, KNM and sometimes ONA. What you do in reading, listening, writing and speaking, how long each takes, A2 or B1.
PDFThe language exams · 10 min readSchrijven A2: vier voorbeelden, nagekeken
Vier voorbeeldopdrachten voor het examen Schrijven A2, elk met een zwak en een beter antwoord. Zo zie je precies waarom een antwoord wel of geen punten krijgt.
PDFThe language exams · 9 min readWachten op je uitslag Spreken of Schrijven A2
De uitslag van Spreken A2 en Schrijven A2 duurt nu tot 16 weken. Wat dat betekent voor je termijn, je naturalisatie en een herkansing, en wat je zelf kunt doen.
PDFThe language exams · 7 min readThe language exam at level B1
You are in the B1 route. What is a staatsexamen NT2, how long are the four parts at B1, where do you sit them, and what if B1 turns out too high?
PDFThe language exams · 8 min readThe Lezen exam
How does the Lezen (reading) exam look at A2 and B1, how much time do you have per text, and which reading strategy helps you pass? Tips from an NT2 teacher.
PDFThe language exams · 9 min readThe Luisteren exam
Watch clips and listen to conversations, then answer questions. How the Luisteren exam works at A2 and B1, where the time goes and how to practise.
PDFThe language exams · 9 min readThe Schrijven exam
You take Schrijven at A2 with pen and paper: four tasks in 40 minutes. What the exam looks like, how it is marked and how to practise for it in a targeted way.
PDFThe language exams · 8 min readThe exam Spreken
You do Spreken on a computer with a microphone: videos and pictures with questions. How the exam works at A2 and B1, and how to practise out loud.
PDFThe language exams · 10 min readThe KNM exam
What is the KNM exam, which eight themes does it cover and how do you prepare? Learn about the content, the duration, the cost and the result of the KNM exam.
PDFKNM · 7 min readWork and income
Finding work, understanding your contract and payslip, dealing with discrimination at work and starting your own business. The KNM theme Work and income.
PDFKNM · 8 min readManners, values and norms
How do people in the Netherlands treat each other? About making appointments, directness, equality and making contact. The KNM theme Manners, values and norms.
PDFKNM · 7 min readHousing
Finding a home, renting or buying, connecting gas water and electricity, and sorting waste. The KNM theme Wonen explained in plain, simple English.
PDFKNM · 8 min readHealth and healthcare
How the huisarts works as your first step, referral to hospital, calling 112 in an emergency, your health insurance and eigen risico. KNM theme 4 explained.
PDFKNM · 9 min readHistory and geography
The main lines of Dutch history and where the provinces, cities and water are. The KNM theme History and geography, explained in simple terms.
PDFKNM · 8 min readInstanties
Gemeente, Belastingdienst, DUO, UWV, the police and Het Juridisch Loket. Who handles what, and where do you go? The KNM theme Instanties explained.
PDFKNM · 9 min readStaatsinrichting en rechtsstaat
How does Dutch democracy work? Learn about the government, parliament, elections, the Grondwet and the independent judge in the KNM theme Staatsinrichting.
PDFKNM · 8 min readEducation and parenting
The Dutch school system, leerplicht, contact with the teacher, school costs and children's rights. The KNM theme Onderwijs en opvoeding explained.
PDFKNM · 9 min read
From the blog
Shorter pieces on the exam and the process.
- The 8 mistakes people make on the A2 Writing examCapitals, commas, times and ‘u’ versus ‘je’: the eight mistakes an NT2 teacher sees every week when she marks A2 writing tasks.
- Want or omdat? Almost always choose ‘want’Want and omdat mean the same thing, but the word order after them is different. Why ‘want’ is almost always the smarter choice on the integration exam.
- Dutch reflexive verbs: me, je, zich‘Ik kan beter concentreren’ is wrong — it is ‘ik kan me beter concentreren’. How Dutch reflexive verbs work, with a table and 20 examples.
- Failed the integration exam? Here is what happens nowFailed one part of the Dutch integration exam? You only retake that part. How retakes work, what they cost and when your result arrives.