How the SFI test is graded, and what passing means

EN Published September 27, 2026 · 5 min read · SverigeFokus-redaktionen

There is no published pass mark for the SFI national test, and the test does not set your grade. Your teacher grades the course as Pass or Not passed, weighing the test more than any other single piece of evidence but never letting it decide alone. Reading and listening are scored in points against a threshold for each test version, while writing and speaking are judged against a public rubric.

Two grades: Pass or Not passed

Since 1 January 2022, the Education Act (skollagen) has required every completed SFI course (svenska för invandrare, Swedish for Immigrants) to be graded Godkänt (G, Pass) or Icke godkänt (IG, Not passed). Older SFI grades may show letters from A to F, and the new 1–10 scale coming to Swedish schools does not apply to SFI.

To pass, you must meet all of the course’s grading criteria, which cover listening, reading, spoken interaction, spoken production and writing.

How much does the test count?

More than any other single piece of evidence, but it never decides alone. That is how Skolverket, the national education agency, reads the legal rule that the result must be “särskilt beaktas”, given special consideration. Your teacher may set the result aside only for special reasons, such as technical problems or cheating.

The test does not cover every criterion, so your teacher also weighs what you have shown during the course, and the grade can differ from the test result in either direction. Afterwards you may see your test and get a copy of your score sheet, but the teacher may not reveal the right answers to questions you missed.

Reading and listening: points against a threshold

You pass these parts (Läsa and Höra) by reaching the point threshold for your test version. Each threshold is set with the Angoff method and statistical equating, and it is not published: test material stays confidential even after a version is retired. A number from another version tells you nothing reliable about yours.

Stockholm University, which writes the tests for Skolverket, followed up the C and D tests issued in 2024: reading had 38–40 items across two booklets (Läsa A and Läsa B), and listening had 24, in multiple choice, open and matching formats. To practise the format, see practising with old SFI national tests.

Writing: does the text work?

The text must do its job, not be flawless. Course C has one more informal task; course D has two, one of them more formal. The teacher first judges the whole: is the content relevant and developed enough, and is the text suited to its reader and understandable? Structure, cohesion, vocabulary, grammar, spelling and writing conventions come next. In the C and D rubrics, everything ends in one of two outcomes: requirements met, or not.

The commentary on the C rubric says errors should generally not hinder understanding, and accuracy is weighed against how complex your language is. The rubrics are free PDFs, in Swedish, from Stockholm University. See our guides to the C test and the D test.

Speaking: two conversations

The teacher assesses, among other things, how understandable you are and how you move the conversation forward, and again the requirements are either met or not. In courses C and D, speaking (Tala) has two tasks: one on your own with the teacher leading, and one with another student. Course B has a narrative task. An accent does not count against you in itself: pronunciation is judged only on whether you are understood, and the C rubric calls deviations expected and natural.

If you do not reach the goals

You can keep studying, but the test is essentially a one-time event and your time in SFI is limited.

Skolverket says the test is used once, at the end of the course, and nobody may sit the same test twice. Stockholm University adds that in practice a second chance may be possible after further study, so ask your school.

Since 1 January 2026, the right to SFI lasts three years from the day you were first admitted, extendable by up to six months at a time for special reasons, to six years at most. If you were admitted before 2026, it runs until 31 December 2028. The body responsible for your SFI, usually the municipality, can also end your studies if you make too little progress, and that decision, like one on an extension, can be appealed to the Schools Appeals Board (Skolväsendets överklagandenämnd).

If you live in Sweden, you can also request a prövning, an assessment that leads to a grade without retaking the course. It is available for every SFI course, even one you already have a grade in.

What changes in 2027

Courses starting after 31 December 2026 follow new syllabuses, with separate courses for each study path and new national tests at the end of courses 1B, 2B, 1C, 2C, 3C, 1D, 2D and 3D. Courses started earlier keep the old rules, and the grade stays Pass or Not passed.

Summary

Your teacher grades each SFI course as Pass or Not passed. The test counts more than any other single piece of evidence but never decides alone, and the number of correct answers needed is not published. If you fall short, you can keep studying within the time limit or request a prövning.

You can practise in the SFI Prov app. It is free, with mock national tests for SFI C and D in reading, listening and writing, AI feedback on your writing and open answers, vocabulary with recorded audio, and an interface in Swedish, English, Arabic, Persian and Somali. Its results are practice estimates, not a grade or the official pass mark: the app cannot tell you your grade.

Download SFI Prov on the App Store → · Google Play →

Sources

SFI Prov is independent practice material from SverigeFokus and is not affiliated with Skolverket, Stockholm University or any other authority. Always confirm current rules with your SFI school.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a pass mark on the SFI test?

Not one that decides your grade alone. Reading and listening have point thresholds set for each test version, and neither Skolverket nor Stockholm University publishes them. Writing and speaking are assessed against a rubric.

What grades are used in SFI?

Two: Godkänt (Pass) and Icke godkänt (Not passed), since 1 January 2022. To pass, you must meet all of the course's grading criteria.

Can I pass the course if the test went badly?

It is possible: the test does not decide alone, and the grade can differ from the test result in either direction. But you must still meet every grading criterion.

Can I retake the SFI test?

It is meant to be taken once, and you may not sit the same test again, but Stockholm University says a second chance may be possible after further study. You can also request a prövning, an assessment for a grade.

Can I appeal my SFI grade?

No. Your teacher must explain the grade if you ask, and an obviously wrong grade can be corrected or changed, but a change can never lower it.

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