telc B1 exam format: all parts, timings and points

What is the telc B1 exam pattern?

telc Deutsch B1 is also called Zertifikat Deutsch. It has two parts that are marked separately: the written exam (schriftliche Prüfung) with four sections, and the oral exam (mündliche Prüfung) with a partner. The questions are numbered 1 to 60, plus one email and three speaking tasks. telc says you can take the exam on a computer or on paper; your exam centre tells you which format it offers when you register.

The detail most guides miss: reading and Sprachbausteine share one block of 90 minutes. Nobody tells you when to move on to the grammar gaps. Then the supervisor collects that answer sheet and the listening starts; the recording is not stopped. Last, you have 30 minutes for the email.

How many points is each part worth?

Not every question is worth the same. The exam booklet does not say this directly; we worked it out from telc's official points table. It shows you where your time pays most.

What is the passing score for telc B1?

Um die Prüfung zu bestehen, müssen die Teilnehmerinnen und Teilnehmer sowohl in der Schriftlichen als auch in der Mündlichen Prüfung jeweils 60 % der möglichen Höchstpunktzahl erreichen.

So you need at least 135 of 225 points in the written exam and at least 45 of 75 in the oral exam. A strong written result cannot make up for a weak oral one, or the other way round. Inside the written exam, though, only the total counts: a weaker listening score is fine if reading and writing go well.

Only if you pass both parts are the points added up and a grade given:

A worked example

• Pass: reading 60, Sprachbausteine 21, listening 55, writing 27 gives 163 written points (above 135). Oral 48 points (above 45). Total 211: befriedigend.
• Fail, with more points: written 170, oral 42. The total would be 212, but the oral result is below 45. You get a result sheet (Ergebnisbogen), not a certificate.

How is the writing task marked?

You reply to an email and must write something on all four Leitpunkte (the four content points in the task). Two licensed raters mark it on three criteria: task completion (Aufgabenbewältigung), organisation and register (Kommunikative Gestaltung) and accuracy (Formale Richtigkeit). Each gets A (5), B (3), C (1) or D (0); the sum is multiplied by 3, up to 45. If you miss the topic, all three criteria get D. No word count is printed in the task. Details: telc B1 writing: word count and how it is marked.

How does the telc B1 speaking exam work?

You get all task sheets and have 20 minutes to prepare. You may only make notes on stamped sheets; you can take them in but should not read from them. Then you talk with a partner in front of two examiners. If nobody else is registered, one examiner plays the partner.

In telc B1, Teil 1 is marked; it is not a warm-up. The examiners rate range, task completion, accuracy, and pronunciation and intonation. For Teil 3, see German B1 speaking exam: the planning task.

How should I split the 90 minutes for reading and Sprachbausteine?

telc sets no time per part. Our suggestion, weighted by points and text length:

What if I fail one part?

You retake only the missing part: the whole written or the whole oral exam, not single sections. Under the telc exam regulations valid from 15 April 2025, this must be within twelve months, and you tell the centre at registration that your passed part should be credited. Older practice tests still print a different deadline; the regulations apply. More in Failed your German B1 exam? Retake rules.

Your next step

Sit the whole written exam once in one go: 90, 30 and 30 minutes. Only then do you know if your time is enough. You can do that in our telc Deutsch B1 practice exam, with the real timings and points.