Skip to content
If you’re moving to Japan to study Japanese, chances are you’ll be looking to take the JLPT — the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (日本語能力試験). The JLPT is a standardized test that evaluates and certifies Japanese language proficiency. In Japan and select other countries it’s held twice a year. In other countries, it is held only once a year. Once you pass, certificates of completion never expire.
Please note: Japanese immigration rules for student visas have officially changed. For those applying for long-term courses, the 150 hour language requirement is no longer accepted as the standalone qualification, but some schools may still require it.
As of the October 2026 intake, student visa applicants are now typically expected to demonstrate their language level through an official exam result (such as JLPT N5 or equivalent) or by completing a school assessment/interview. Please note that some schools may require both. If you have a university degree, you may be exempt from some of these requirements.
The format
Organized from N5 (easiest) to N1 (advanced), the JLPT covers grammar, vocabulary, reading, and listening. At N5 and N4, candidates should be able to understand some basic Japanese. This means being able to read hiragana, katakana, and basic kanji, as well as comprehend basic conversation in daily life. At N3, one should be able to get a grasp of summary headlines on newspapers and understand everyday conversations at a natural speed. N2 and N1 are much more advanced levels.
N2 test takers should be able to read newspapers and magazines as well as be able to comprehend TV news at a natural speed. N1 encompasses reading complex articles that cover a variety of topics and being able to listen in, and go into detail about, lectures, or conversations.
How the JLPT is scored
To pass the JLPT, you have to clear two hurdles:
- Earn enough total points to meet the overall passing mark.
- Score above the minimum threshold for each individual section.
If you ace two sections but completely bomb the third, you will fail the entire exam — even if your total score is high.
The exact score you need to pass depends on the level you are taking. For example:
- N5 (Beginner): Requires an overall score of 80/180 (44.44%)
- N1 (Advanced): Requires an overall score of 100/180 (55.55%)
Now that you know how the layout and scoring work, let’s get into the best ways to study.
Studying for the JLPT
Though everyone has different ways of studying, an important and certain part of this test will be kanji. There’s no easy way about this. It’s memorization. There are, however, smart methods we can use.
The Heisig Method, developed by James Heisig, teaches readers to create their own mnemonic devices and stories to associate the meaning with the written kanji. A kanji’s “primitives,” the parts that make up the whole of the kanji, are given a story that connects to the actual meaning of the character. Because the stories are specific to each reader, it’s this personal method that will help you recall the characters you memorize.
Beyond character memorization, the JLPT heavily tests your ability to recognize sentence patterns in real-time. Instead of trying to translate every single word in your head, focus on learning grammar structures as single units. Pair this study with daily passive listening — like Japanese podcasts, news broadcasts, or JLPT audio drills — to train your ears to pick up these structures naturally. When you learn to spot the grammar patterns instantly, you save massive amounts of time on the reading section and drastically reduce your panic during the fast-paced listening portion of the test.
Online JLPT courses
Our 12-week beginner course, developed in partnership with Akamonkai Japanese Language School in Tokyo, follows a language school curriculum designed to help you build basic Japanese ability and reach JLPT N5 level. It can support your preparation for exams, interviews, or assessments, and provides documented evidence of around 150 hours of structured study. Check out our Akamonkai Beginner Online Course.
For those who have already studied some Japanese, our Tokyo Galaxy JLPT N3 Exam Preparation course is designed to help ready you for the N3 exam, while the JLPT N4 course by Tokyo Galaxy is for those wanting to pass N4.
To learn more about the JLPT and learning Japanese, make sure to check out our blog.
