Free ILR Self-Assessment (FSI / Diplomat Proficiency Test)

Free 11-level ILR Speaking self-check used by US diplomats and FSI graduates. 33 can-do statements give you an ILR estimate, a CEFR mapping, and a 30-day plan. No signup, all local.

Pick the can-do statements that describe you

Tick every statement you can do reliably, not just on a good day. The tool returns an ILR estimate and a CEFR mapping live as you check. Your selections are saved locally to localStorage key preplearnio.assess.v1 — nothing is uploaded.

ILR 0No proficiency · CEFR Pre-A1
  • I cannot construct an intelligible sentence in this language without coaching.
  • I recognise only isolated words (greetings, numbers under 10, a country name).
  • When the language is spoken to me I cannot tell where one word ends and the next begins.
ILR 0+Memorized proficiency · CEFR A1
  • I can produce ~10 rehearsed survival phrases (yes/no, please/thank-you, sorry, name, age).
  • I can read aloud single words I have seen many times (menu items, transport signs).
  • I can count 1–20 and tell the time on the hour.
ILR 1Elementary proficiency · CEFR A2
  • I can introduce myself in 5–6 sentences without rehearsing first.
  • I can order food, ask for directions, and pay at a shop.
  • I can answer simple WH-questions about my daily routine in the present tense.
ILR 1+Elementary proficiency, plus · CEFR A2/B1
  • I can sustain a 2–3 minute conversation on a familiar topic without long silences.
  • I can describe events in past or future tense, sometimes mixing them up.
  • I can paraphrase when I don't know a word ('the thing you use to open a door').
ILR 2Limited working proficiency · CEFR B1
  • I can handle routine work tasks (schedule a meeting, give a status update, ask follow-ups) in the target language.
  • I can describe my job and last week's activities for 1–2 paragraphs without rehearsal.
  • I can follow most TV news on familiar topics, missing 10–20% of the detail.
ILR 2+Limited working proficiency, plus · CEFR B1/B2
  • I can argue my position in a meeting when the topic is familiar.
  • I can deliver a 5-minute prepared presentation followed by unscripted Q&A.
  • I can sustain phone calls with native speakers even when the audio is poor.
ILR 3Professional working proficiency · CEFR B2
  • I can chair a cross-cultural meeting in the target language.
  • I can give an off-the-cuff presentation on a familiar topic with no preparation.
  • I can switch register from formal to informal mid-sentence when context demands.
ILR 3+Professional working proficiency, plus · CEFR B2/C1
  • I can negotiate a contract or policy detail in the target language.
  • I can field hostile or unexpected questions from a foreign-language audience.
  • I can read editorials in serious media and discuss them at the same depth in speech.
ILR 4Full professional proficiency · CEFR C1
  • I can deliver an academic or technical lecture for 45–60 minutes.
  • My errors are rare enough that educated native speakers don't notice them.
  • I can read literary works for pleasure at near-native pace.
ILR 4+Full professional proficiency, plus · CEFR C1/C2
  • I can deploy stylistic devices (irony, understatement, rhetorical hedges) that natives recognise as such.
  • I can serve as a working interpreter into the target language for a 30+ minute session.
  • Native speakers initially assume I grew up using the language until I disclose otherwise.
ILR 5Functionally native proficiency · CEFR C2 / native
  • My speech is indistinguishable from a well-educated native speaker in all respects.
  • I can play with the language (puns, dialect humour, archaic register) like a native.
  • I could teach this language to native-speaker university students of linguistics.

How this tool works

This self-check is grounded in the ILR Speaking Skill Level Descriptions published by the US Interagency Language Roundtable (public domain). We paraphrased each level into 3 can-do statements (33 in total).

Algorithm: find the highest contiguous level where you have ticked ≥ 2/3 of the statements; if the next level shows ≥ 1/3 partial coverage, bump by a half step (the "+" tier). Levels can't be skipped — to reach 2+ you must already satisfy 2.

This does not replace an OPI or ACTFL proficiency test — those need trained interviewers and a 20–40 minute one-on-one. But as a starting-point baseline and as a before/after check for a 30/60/90-day training camp, this self-tool is enough. See also: /method/ · /method/camp · Why OPI matters more than IELTS.