Who is exempt from the Italian A2 test: every case provided for

Not everyone applying for the EU long-term residence permit has to sit the Italian A2 test. The decree governing the test — the decree of the Minister of the Interior of 7 December 2021 — provides two groups of exceptions: those exempted for personal conditions (art. 1, co. 3) and those excused because their knowledge of Italian is already proven by a qualification or certificate (art. 4, co. 1). Let's go through all of them, with one practical rule in mind: an exemption must be documented, not just claimed.

Exemptions for personal conditions (art. 1, co. 3)

• Children under 14. Children under fourteen — your own and your spouse's, including those born outside marriage — do not take the test.
• Serious limitations on language learning. People with serious limitations on their capacity to learn the language due to age, illness or disability are exempt, but this requires a certificate issued by a public health facility — a note from your family doctor is not enough.

Exemptions based on qualifications and certificates (art. 4, co. 1)

1. An Italian language certificate at level A2 or higher issued by one of the recognised certifying bodies listed in Annex A of the decree: the Università per Stranieri di Perugia, the Università per Stranieri di Siena, the Università degli Studi Roma Tre, the Società Dante Alighieri and the Università per Stranieri «Dante Alighieri» di Reggio Calabria. Be careful: the decree also provides an accreditation mechanism that can update this list over time — before paying for an exam, check with your Prefettura that the certificate you hold (or are about to obtain) is recognised.
2. A course at a CPIA completed with a qualification at level A2 or higher. If you attended the public adult-education school and hold the final attestation, that counts.
3. Level A2 already recognised within the integration agreement. If A2 was already credited to you in the verification of your accordo di integrazione (DPR 179/2011), you do not repeat the test.
4. An Italian lower- or upper-secondary school diploma (including one obtained at a CPIA), or current enrolment at an Italian university, doctorate or master's programme. An Italian qualification absorbs the language requirement.
5. Certain professional categories who entered under art. 27 of the Immigration Act (co. 1, lett. a, c, d, q): managers and highly specialised staff, university professors, translators and interpreters, accredited journalists — provided they are actually carrying out in Italy the activity they entered for.

Who is outside this procedure by definition

• EU citizens have nothing to do with the A2 test: they do not hold a permesso di soggiorno (their residence is governed by d.lgs. 30/2007), so they never apply for the EU long-term residence permit.
• Family members under 14 included in the application, as seen above.

How to claim an exemption

The principle is simple: the qualification or certificate must be submitted together with the application, so the Prefettura and the Questura can verify it. In practice:

1. Retrieve the original document (language certificate, diploma, CPIA attestation, health certificate).
2. Check that it proves level A2 or higher, or the exempting condition.
3. Submit it in the way indicated by your Prefettura — the practical arrangements can vary from province to province, so check the website of the competent Prefettura or ask at the desk.

If none of these cases applies to you, the path is the test itself: read how to book it and how the scoring works.

Note: the B1 citizenship exemptions are a different thing

There is recurring confusion between the A2 test (long-term residence permit) and the B1 requirement for citizenship (art. 9.1 of law 91/1992). The B1 requirement has its own, different exemptions: those who signed the integration agreement and holders of the EU long-term residence permit are excused from producing the B1 certificate — the latter being precisely the people who already went through the A2 procedure. In addition, since 2025, following Constitutional Court judgment no. 25/2025, applicants with serious limitations on language learning due to age, illness or disability, attested by a public health facility, are also exempt. If your goal is citizenship, read more on our FAQ page.

Summary

Case	Legal basis	Test needed?
Child under 14	art. 1, co. 3, lett. a), decree of 7-12-2021	No
Serious limitations certified by a public health facility	art. 1, co. 3, lett. b)	No
A2+ certificate from a recognised body (Annex A)	art. 4, co. 1, lett. a)	No
A2+ qualification from a CPIA course	art. 4, co. 1, lett. b)	No
A2 recognised in the integration-agreement credits	art. 4, co. 1, lett. c)	No
Italian diploma or enrolment at university/doctorate/master's	art. 4, co. 1, lett. d)	No
Entry under art. 27, co. 1, lett. a), c), d), q) of the Immigration Act	art. 4, co. 1, lett. e)	No
All other applicants (and family members aged 14 and over)	art. 1, co. 2	Yes

The information in this guide is for general information only and is not legal advice. Exemptions must be assessed on your specific case and documented according to the instructions of the Prefettura of your province: always verify the current requirements on the official pages before filing your application.