Danish language proficiency requirements are being politically abused

From a political perspective, it is interpreted unilaterally as a lack of will or a lack of effort when a foreigner has not succeeded in becoming fluent in Danish after a number of years in Denmark. Therefore, Danish lessons have been made mandatory if you, as a new arrival, want to receive benefits from the municipality. And you have to pay yourself if you need an interpreter after 3 years in the country.

At the same time, documentation of good Danish skills has been made an admission requirement to obtain certain rights. This applies in particular to permanent residence, family reunification and citizenship, but also as a measurable element in cases of attachment to Denmark.

Here things go wrong, and incentives become barriers.

For a decade, a majority in Parliament has structured the legislation as if Danish language education were a ladder with three steps – but they are actually three different ladders.

The result is that the Danish language tests exclude vulnerable people from obtaining full rights. In concrete terms, this means that a certain portion of adults who come to the country – most of them women and/or refugees – will not be able to meet the Danish language requirements no matter how hard they try. The Danish exam that they have proudly passed is not recognized by the political majority.

This is structural discrimination based on disability and gender, which is a violation of a whole series of international conventions.

We must begin to ask ourselves whether the purpose of teaching foreigners Danish today is really to make them “become participating and contributing citizens on an equal footing with other citizens of society”, as stated in the Danish Language Education Act.

Act on Danish language education for adult foreigners

Learning the Danish language is an obvious advantage for refugees and immigrants living in Denmark. Everyone wants to be able to communicate in everyday life, understand letters from the public authorities and keep up with the media. Improvements in educational opportunities have meant that newcomers are now learning Danish to a much greater extent than 20 years ago. However, there is still a huge difference in how far each individual reaches. For children, learning Danish is rarely a problem, but for adults it can prove to be an impossible task.

The Act on Danish language education for adult foreigners was passed in 2003 and was last regulated in 2022. The area falls under the Ministry of Immigration and Integration, not the Ministry of Education. The purpose is broader than simply learning the Danish language, as described in Section 1 of the Act:

“The purpose of education in Danish as a second language (Danish education) is to contribute to adult foreigners, based on their individual qualifications and integration goals, acquiring the necessary Danish language skills and knowledge of cultural and social conditions in Denmark, so that they can become participating and contributing citizens on an equal footing with other citizens of society.”

There are three parallel Danish language courses, each of which is designed based on the student's prerequisites and each concludes with its own exam.

"Danish language course 1 is designed for students with no or little schooling and for students who have not learned to read and write in their native language and for students who do not know the Latin alphabet. Danish language course 2 is designed for students who normally have a short school and educational background from their home country, and Danish language course 3 is designed for students who normally have a medium or long school and educational background from their home country." 

The municipality of residence must offer Danish language courses no later than one month after arrival, either at the municipality's own language schools or by entering into agreements with private providers.

The three Danish language courses

The language schools choose which one of the three courses will be right for the new student. The ministry supervises the placement. It is possible to change during the course if the teachers recommend it.

There are two types of students: Integration students (refugees and family members of those displaced from Ukraine) and Self-supporting students (family members of Danes, EU citizens, migrant workers). The tuition is free for both groups, but self-supporting students must pay a deposit of DKK 2,000, which is refunded later.

All three courses have so far consisted of 6 modules, but after 1 January 2025, Danish Language Course 1 had the sixth module removed. Danish Language Course 1 (DU1) and Danish Language Course 2 (DU2) are concluded with the Danish Language Test 1 and Danish Language Test 2 (PD1 and PD2), respectively. Danish Language Course 3 (DU3) concludes with exams at two levels, respectively the Danish Exam 3 (PD3) and the Study Exam. Read more about the content and level of the exams here.

Once you have taken the final exam, you are no longer entitled to free Danish language education, and you must pay for it yourself if you want to take another exam afterwards as a self-study student. Some continue to take a 9th grade at FVU after completing PD2, but the jump from PD1 will be too big.

“I would like to emphasize that you cannot progress from one Danish language education to another. They are three parallel education programs, and you only complete the one program you have been admitted to. Furthermore, there are very limited opportunities to expand your Danish skills after completing PD1, because the jump to other adult education programs is too big.” 
   - Katja Pakalski, school principal and teacher of Danish as a second language for 25 years

(All figures taken from the ministry's annual report 2024). There are more women and older people on the DU1 programme than on the other two. Students on DU1 need more time to reach their goals. Nevertheless, the decision has been made to cut the last module out of political considerations. When the last module disappears, it also means a bigger gap for continued Danish teaching after PD1. For example, the FVU programme is not intended for foreigners, and it places much more emphasis on reading and writing, where DU1 places more emphasis on oral skills.

The chance of passing the exam as a self-study student is much smaller than if you have followed the lessons. A large proportion of self-study students only take the exam in an attempt to meet a legislative requirement.

Each of the three Danish language programs has a scope that corresponds to 1.2 years of full-time study. Normally, the Danish language program is completed within 3 years, but there may be the possibility of continuing for up to 5 years. The number of hours is a maximum of 15 hours per week, it can be adjusted in relation to work, internships, etc., and it can be both day and evening hours.

If you fall under the Integration Act, are unemployed and receive benefits, it is a requirement that you follow the Danish language lessons. Illegal absence is sanctioned by reducing the benefit.

Language requirements for permanent residence permit and Danish citizenship

It is a requirement for entry to most education programs that you have passed the Danish 3 or 9th grade exam. Higher education programs require passing PD3 + the Study Test or equivalent. It makes good sense that educational institutions require a certain language level to admit a student when teaching is conducted in Danish.

However, based on a rational mindset, a passed exam from any of the three Danish programs should give the same access to permanent residence, family reunification and Danish citizenship. You are placed by a professional in one of the three programs based on your qualifications from your home country, and a completed program with a passed final exam is an expression that you have done your best to learn Danish.

It does not make sense when a majority in Parliament insists on legislating as if the three programs were an extension of each other, and that only a passed PD2 or PD3 proves that you have reached your goal. You are also on target with a passed PD1.

“As a rule, DU1 students have no real chance of passing the Danish 2 exam. The level difference is simply too great for that.”
   - Katja Pakalski, school principal and teacher of Danish as a second language for 25 years

Permanent residence permits require a passed PD2, as does the right to family reunification for residents (refugees are usually exempt, however). Danish citizenship requires a passed PD3 as a starting point, but it is possible to obtain it with a PD2 if you have managed without receiving benefits for many years. However, those who have completed DU1 do not have access to anything at all.

In addition to the language requirement itself, there is also a requirement to pass the Danish Citizenship test (Indfødsretsprøven); it consists of 45 questions about Danish history and culture. One of the additional requirements for obtaining permanent residence is the Active Citizen test (Medborgerskabsprøven), which contains 25 questions and is at a slightly lower level. Both tests are practically impossible to pass if you do not read and understand Danish at a fairly high level. It is obvious that a DU1 student has very poor chances, even with special aids, if you see the examples below.

Examples of multiple choice questions from the 2025 Active Citizen Test:
• What was the average life expectancy for men in 2024?
• How was the limit for free abortion changed in 2025?
• How big is the voter turnout usually in elections to the Danish Parliament?
• Which part of the world receives the majority of Danish development aid?

– and from the 2025 Citizenship Test:
• Over which body of water did a bridge open in 1935?
• When was it decided in a referendum in Iceland to establish a republic that was independent of Denmark?
• Who are the legislative, executive and judicial powers divided between?
• Did women get the right to vote for the Danish Parliament with the constitution in 1849?

In other words: if you, as a girl, were not allowed to go to school in your home country and came to Denmark as an adult, where you learned to speak and understand Danish for everyday needs with persistent effort, and have worked hard for many years, you will still never be able to meet the conditions for permanent residence or citizenship. However, your husband may be able to, because he went to school in his home country for 9 years.

Difficult to obtain a dispensation from the language requirement

The law provides for the possibility of obtaining a dispensation if you cannot meet the language requirement. However, only a few get through this loophole, and illiteracy is not considered a disability, as it is not considered irreversible.

For permanent residence, cases of dispensation are processed by caseworkers at the Danish Immigration Service based on guidelines and medical certificates. If it can be documented by doctors that illness or mental problems make the applicant completely unable to learn the language and pass PD2 or equivalent both now and in the future, a dispensation is possible. However, practice is very restrictive, and if there is the slightest theoretical chance that one could eventually improve one's Danish, the application is rejected.

If you do not suffer from an illness that completely precludes learning, in practice you are required to submit documentation that you cannot pass PD2. This means that an applicant who has completed DU1 and passed the PD1 exam must subsequently try to pass PD2 as an independent student and submit a failed exam – and the exam must have been taken with “special aids”. The prospect of passing an exam as an independent student at a higher level than the one you are assessed for is naturally poor.

“If you have to take a Danish 2 Exam [and fail it, ed.] to have documentation that you have tried, it must be a test under special conditions. It can be difficult to get special conditions if you do not have a specific diagnosis, dyslexia test or similar. Special aids are typically longer time or reading aloud (in the case of dyslexia), which does not help a DU1 student who does not have the necessary skills to pass the reading and writing test,” writes Katja Pakalski.

The authorities are thus forcing the weakest students to take an exam that they have no qualifications to pass – and suffer a completely predictable defeat. Something that doctors and psychiatrists strongly advise their patients against, as it can worsen or reactivate a trauma.

For citizenship, it is even more difficult to get a dispensation, if not impossible. Here, a statement from a specialist about learning abilities is required, and dispensations are not given by civil servants based on guidelines, but by members of the Parliaments Citizenship Committee. Elected MPs who have no qualifications to assess the cases, and who are allowed to vote according to their gut feelings and, in some cases, outright racist attitudes. Several members from Danish People’s Party and Denmark Democrats have stated that they consistently vote no to applicants from “Muslim countries”. Refusals do not have to be justified.

Only 15 (fifteen) dispensations were given for the language requirement due to illness in 2024, 116 were refused. A total of 4,068 people were granted Danish citizenship in 2024.

Illiterates are excluded

The language requirements constitute a particularly large barrier for the group of illiterate people who have never learned to read and write because they have not gone to school. Illiteracy is not a disease in itself, but is included in various diagnostic tools. Illiterate adult immigrants are usually enrolled in DU1, but even targeted programs have limited success. No matter how many resources are used to help this group, the acquisition of Danish is limited.

In 2015, the Danish National Board of Health made an official note on illiteracy for the use of the Parliaments Citizenship Committee, which decides whether an exemption from the citizenship requirements can be granted. Here, the board writes:

"It is the assessment of the Danish National Board of Health that illiteracy constitutes an intellectual disability regardless of the cause. It is also assessed that being illiterate in Denmark constitutes a disability, as it prevents the person from fully and effectively participating in social life on an equal footing with others. However, this will always depend on a specific assessment of whether the inability to read and write is permanent/long-term, or whether the person can learn to read and write with relevant educational opportunities."

However, the board does not answer whether people who cannot read and write in their own language will be able to learn another language: “The Danish Health Authority cannot answer this question, but recommends that the question be answered by experts in the field of education.”

And what do the experts say? Well, it’s complex. Linguist Gunna Funder Hansen wrote in 2009 that “second language reading acquisition in adult illiterates [is] almost untouched in terms of research.”

Funder Hansen also points out that being illiterate does not only mean that one has not learned to read and write. It also affects the perception of concepts, structure, patterns and methods of remembering. Researchers and language teachers do not entirely agree on how important these factors are. But it is obvious that schooling in childhood does not only mean reading and writing, but also provides a larger vocabulary, trains one in abstract thinking, provides techniques for extracting meaning, methods for structuring and reproducing a chronological sequence – not to mention mathematics and other subjects that one needs in everyday life.

Experienced language teachers interviewed for this article explain that there are several different types of illiterates: Latin illiterates and functional illiterates – and then there are those with physical limitations in their IQ or memory. Some of the functional illiterates have been incorrectly placed on DU2, including Ukrainians. The language teachers also point out that age has an enormous impact on learning, and that the cognitive capacity and ability of the individual to learn a language is very individual.

It is an almost insurmountable task for an adult to learn the alphabet, to learn to read and write, and to understand the difference between written and spoken language – when all this has to be done in a completely new language, i.e. Danish, and at the same time learning all the new words, word order, grammar, pronunciation, etc. It is difficult enough in the students' mother tongue. Research indicates that using the mother tongue in language teaching gives significantly better results for the learning outcomes of low-educated people in particular than when only the target language is used – and this applies to both oral and written skills. However, the inclusion of the mother tongue meets massive political resistance in Denmark.

An Australian study by John Benseman from 2012 concluded that “(…) the learning process for illiterate people is extremely slow. The traditional mindset of automatic step-by-step learning constantly to a new higher level should be challenged, as it does not make sense in this context.”

Prerequisites for language learning

Adult refugees arrive with widely varying backgrounds – from professors to illiterates. In addition, things other than schooling affect future learning, including trauma and stress. It is therefore very positive that the Danish language courses are designed based on different levels of academic experience, and that the student's age and cognitive abilities are also taken into account when placing them in one of the three courses. A severely traumatized person can end up in DU1 even though she has a normal education, and a young person with very little schooling can be moved from DU1 to DU2 if she quickly gets a handle on the basics of the language.

Trauma and PTSD can make it completely impossible to learn a new language. This was described by Professor Morten Sodemann in a literature review for the Parliaments Citizenship Committee in 2014. Both concentration and memory are severely impaired by mental problems and stress. Sodemann mentions, among other things, that women with PTSD and little or no schooling are particularly vulnerable to learning a new language. There are also examples of Bosnian refugees who succeeded in learning Danish, but lost it again when the trauma caught up with them after a number of years. Doctors can describe their patients' mental problems, but it puts them in an unfair situation when the authorities demand that they can completely rule out any chance of future progress for the person to learn more Danish.

Breach of conventions?

Denmark has signed a number of international conventions and agreements that protect citizens against discrimination by the state, ensure the right to fair treatment and access to democratic influence. These include the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the European Convention on Human Rights. The Danish state may not exclude a citizen from obtaining rights and influence because he or she suffers from a disability, and there may be no discrimination on the basis of gender, nationality or ethnicity. With current legislation and practice, this nevertheless happens when it comes to language requirements for foreigners.

There is a need for a review of the requirements for permanent residence, family reunification and citizenship from a political perspective, where passed tests from all three Danish language programs should be equated. This should be done with respect for the language teachers' professionalism and the students' individual backgrounds, which they have not had control over. The decisive factor must be that one has made a serious effort to learn Danish and get to know Danish society based on one's personal circumstances.