Citizenship Exams
Denmark has two civics tests: for citizenship and for permanent residence. Questions, pass marks, fees, 2026 dates, and why one does not replace the other.
Denmark runs two civics tests on the same day, for the same fee, in the same language centres, and people regularly prepare for the wrong one. Indfødsretsprøven is the citizenship test. Medborgerskabsprøven is linked to permanent residence. They have different question counts, different pass marks and different learning materials, and passing the harder one does not replace the easier one. This guide sets out both side by side.
Indfødsretsprøven is for citizenship and has 45 questions; you need 36 correct, including at least 4 of 5 values questions. Medborgerskabsprøven is one of the supplementary conditions for permanent residence and has 25 questions; you need 20 correct. Both cost 946 kroner in 2026 and are held on the same dates.
| Indfødsretsprøven | Medborgerskabsprøven | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Citizenship (naturalisation) | Permanent residence |
| Questions | 45: 35 on the learning material, 5 current affairs, 5 values | 25 |
| Pass mark | 36, including at least 4 of the 5 values questions | 20 |
| Time | 45 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Answer options | 2 or 3 per question | 2 or 3 per question |
| Learning material | Danish society, culture and history, 6 chapters | Democracy and everyday life, 26 fact sheets |
| Fee (2026) | 946 kr. | 946 kr. |
The test has 45 questions in three groups. 35 are based on the official learning material, "Læremateriale til Indfødsretsprøven", whose August 2026 edition runs to 246 pages in six chapters and applies to the winter 2026 and summer 2027 tests. Five are unprepared questions on current affairs from roughly the last six months. Five are unprepared questions on Danish values, introduced with the 2021 reform of the test.
You need at least 36 correct answers, and at least 4 of them must be values questions. That second condition matters: a candidate who scores 40 but gets only 3 values questions right fails. The test is written, takes 45 minutes, allows no aids, and each question has two or three answer options.
The test is written by the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration and held at language centres. Full details are on the official Danish tests portal, which also publishes past test papers with answer keys. There is no official question catalogue, so past papers and the learning material are the core of any preparation. Results arrive within up to four weeks.
Medborgerskabsprøven has 25 questions, and you need 20 correct within 30 minutes. It is based on a separate learning material about democracy and everyday life in Denmark, made up of 26 fact sheets, and the current version of the test has existed since 2016.
It is important to understand where it fits. For permanent residence, the test is one of four supplementary conditions, and it can be replaced by one year of active citizenship, for example serving on a board or doing organised volunteer work. According to New to Denmark, applicants after 8 years must meet two of the four supplementary conditions, while meeting all four can make permanent residence possible after 4 years.
It seems logical that passing the harder citizenship test would cover the easier one. It does not. The Danish immigration authorities state explicitly that a passed indfødsretsprøve cannot fulfil the supplementary condition about citizenship knowledge for permanent residence. The two tests cover different learning materials and serve different legal purposes.
In practice:
The free CivicPass Denmark quiz runs in your browser: practice questions with explanations, no account.
Start the free Denmark quizThe naturalisation application has its own separate fee, which rose to 6,270 kroner on 1 January 2026.
For citizenship, the standard language requirement is Prøve i Dansk 3 or an equivalent qualification; Prøve i Dansk 2 can be enough if you meet the self-support rule and have received public assistance for no more than three months in the last nine years. For permanent residence, Prøve i Dansk 2 is a basic condition, and Prøve i Dansk 3 counts as one of the four supplementary conditions.
For indfødsretsprøven, work through the six chapters of the learning material, then take past papers under a 45-minute limit. Give the values questions extra attention, because missing two of them fails the test regardless of your total score, and follow Danish news for the six months before your test for the current affairs questions. Our Danish-language guide, Indfødsretsprøven: sådan består du, goes further, and how to become a Danish citizen covers the rest of the application.
Indfødsretsprøven is the citizenship test: 45 questions in 45 minutes, and you need 36 correct including at least 4 of the 5 values questions. Medborgerskabsprøven is linked to permanent residence: 25 questions in 30 minutes, and you need 20 correct. They are based on different learning materials.
No. The Danish immigration authorities state that a passed indfødsretsprøve cannot fulfil the supplementary condition about citizenship knowledge for permanent residence. If you need medborgerskabsprøven for permanent residence, you must take it separately, or meet that condition through one year of active citizenship instead.
Both tests cost 946 kroner in 2026. The fee is paid again for a retake, and there is no free resit if you are ill on the test day. The naturalisation application itself is a separate fee of 6,270 kroner from 1 January 2026.
The tests are held twice a year, in May or June and in November or December. The winter 2026 test is on 25 November 2026, and the registration deadline is 21 October 2026. You register with a language centre, at the latest five weeks before the test.