National certificates of language proficiency (YKI)

The national certificate of language proficiency (YKI) is an official certificate of language proficiency. With the YKI certificate, you can officially prove your language skills.

Description of the certificate

The YKI certificate system is the official language certification system of the State of Finland. It assesses general language in practical situations. Omnia organises YKI certification in the following languages: 

• English (Advanced/Proficient and Intermediate level)
• Swedish (Intermediate level)
• Finnish (Intermediate level).

Who is the national certificate of language proficiency for?

The national certificate of language proficiency (YKI) is intended for adults. You can use the certificate for many purposes, such as

• applying for a job or a place to study,
• applying for Finnish citizenship (Finnish and Swedish language certificates), or
• to demonstrate language proficiency to an employer.

Content of the certificate

The certificate consists of four parts: reading comprehension, written skills, listening comprehension and oral skills. In order to apply for citizenship, it is sufficient to obtain at least level 3 of one of the following combinations:

• written and oral skills,
• oral skills and reading comprehension, or
• written skills and listening comprehension.

Language proficiency at Intermediate level gets you an official certificate at levels 3 to 4 (B1 to B2). Language proficiency at Advanced/Proficient level gets you an official certificate at levels 5 to 6 (C1 to C2).

Further information on YKI degrees is available on the website of the Finnish National Agency for Education (oph.fi)

Testing and registration for the YKI certificate

You can register for the test days at Studyinfo (studyinfo.fi).

Do you need coaching for the YKI certificate?

Are you planning to complete the national certificate of language proficiency and do you need coaching for it? Come and take an effective training course! The course will practice different parts of the national certificate of language proficiency. 

Apply for preparatory training for the national certificate of language proficiency (ilmonet.fi).