What Is JFT? JFT-Basic Test Explained for Nepali Takers

You keep hearing "JFT" from friends, consultancies and Facebook groups, and nobody has told you plainly what it is or whether you actually need it. This page answers that: what JFT-Basic tests, who it is designed for, what score counts as a pass, and what changed in August 2026. Everything below comes from the Japan Foundation and Prometric Japan, the two bodies that own and run the test.

What Is JFT-Basic, Exactly

JFT stands for the Japan Foundation Test for Basic Japanese, usually written as JFT-Basic. It measures the level of Japanese you need to communicate in everyday situations in Japan shopping, workplace instructions, asking for help, reading simple notices. It is not an academic exam and it does not test advanced grammar or kanji-heavy reading.

The test has been running since April 2019. It is aligned to the CEFR framework, the international scale that describes language ability in levels like A1, A2 and B1.

Think of it as a yes-or-no check on one question: can you handle daily life in Japan without serious difficulty?

Who Should Take JFT-Basic

The test is for foreign nationals who are not native speakers of Japanese. Officially, it targets people who are about to reside in Japan mainly for work, to confirm they can take part in everyday conversation to some extent and manage daily life.

In practice, you should be looking at JFT-Basic if you fall into one of these groups:

• You are applying for a Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) visa. JFT-Basic was launched to satisfy the Japanese-language requirement for the SSW No. 1 residence status a status created to accept foreign nationals with certain skills or expertise as workers in Japan.
• You need to prove an A1 level for the Employment for Skill Development Program. Under that programme, a Japanese level equivalent to A1 or higher is generally required at the start of employment, and an A1 result from JFT-Basic can be used when applying to come to Japan under that status of residence.
• You want a fast, low-stakes checkpoint on your Japanese. The score appears on screen the same day, which is useful if you are deciding whether to keep studying or apply now.

If your plan is university study rather than work, JFT-Basic is probably not the test being asked of you. Confirm the requirement with the institution before you pay for anything.

How the Test Is Structured

There are four sections: Script and Vocabulary, Conversation and Expression, Listening Comprehension, and Reading Comprehension. Together they hold roughly 50 questions and the total test time is 60 minutes.

Everything happens on a computer in a booth. Questions appear on screen and audio plays through headphones, and you answer by clicking on screen.

1. There is no separate time limit for each section.
2. Inside a section, you may review and change your answers.
3. Once you move to the next section, you cannot go back.
4. In Listening Comprehension you cannot move between questions to review at all.

So treat the Listening section as one-pass. Decide, click, move on.

How JFT-Basic Is Scored

Your total score sits somewhere between 10 and 250 points. If your total is at or above 200 points, you are assessed as able to engage in everyday conversation to a certain extent and handle daily life without difficulties that is the result the SSW route is built around, shown as A2.2.

Two details change how you should study. First, there is no minimum score for any single section; all four sections are added together. Second, the score is not a raw count of correct answers it is a scaled score calculated using a statistical method called "equating", so the same number of correct answers can produce slightly different scores on different test versions. The percentage of correct answers per section is also shown for your own reference.

The August 2026 Change You Need to Know

From August 2026, JFT-Basic can assess A1 and A2.1 as well, not only A2.2. Within the 10–250 range the bands are:

Here is the part people get wrong. If you took the test by July 2026 and scored 200 or above, your notification proves A2.2 (A2). But if you need to prove A1 or A2.1 for Employment for Skill Development or another purpose you must take the test from August 2026 onward. An older notification simply does not show those levels.

Read the official announcement on the Japan Foundation notices page before you rely on an old score slip.

How to Book the Test from Nepal

Nepal is an official JFT-Basic country. Prometric's country list includes Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Pakistan and Japan.

1. Start at the official site. Registration, booking and result notification for SSW tests run through prometric-jp.com/en/ssw. Some Nepali blogs point readers to a similar-looking Prometric address; the JFT-Basic and SSW announcements and test listings are published on prometric-jp.com, so treat that as your starting point and ignore lookalike domains that promise "fast registration".
2. Create your own Prometric account. You are officially responsible for managing your Prometric ID, password and registered email, and for not disclosing them to a third party.
3. Check your registration details carefully before you log in to book spelling of your name especially, since a photograph is taken at the test centre and you will not be tested if you refuse it.
4. Watch for the reservation opening. Bookings open in windows, and Nepal gets its own opening time. For the April–May 2026 round, reservations opened on 7 April 2026 at around 12:45 PM Nepal time, while most other countries opened around 10:00 AM Japan time.
5. Expect a queue. Reservations open in stages by test date, time and centre. Right after opening, traffic can be so heavy that login is impossible and you are placed in an online "virtual waiting room" with an estimated wait. Seats are limited.
6. Confirm your test date and centre, then note the change deadline (see below).

For a step-by-step walk-through of the form itself, use our guide on how to fill out the JFT application form online.

Two things the official sources did not give us: the fee for Nepal and the list of test centres in Nepal. The Japan Foundation states only that the fee and payment method vary by country, and that fees were revised upward starting with the May 2024 test because of rising administration costs. Coaching and consultancy sites quote wildly different amounts do not trust any of them. Check the exam fees page on Prometric's official SSW test listing for the figure that applies to you.

Changes and Cancellations

This is where Nepali candidates lose money most often. Cancellations are not possible. Reservations and changes can be made until 23:59 Japan time three business days before the test date, and four business days in advance if your test date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or a Japanese holiday.

Business days here exclude Saturdays, Sundays, Japanese holidays and the Japanese New Year holidays. Count Japan's calendar, not Nepal's a Dashain or Tihar day is a normal business day for this rule, and a Japanese holiday you have never heard of can push your deadline earlier.

Getting Your Result

Your total score and assessment result appear on the computer screen right after you finish. The formal notification of assessment results is then issued on Prometric's registration website within 5 business days of your test date.

That notification is the document employers and authorities will look at. If a government body, university, company or similar organisation wants to verify it, the Japan Foundation will respond to authenticity inquiries made for appropriate reasons at jft-basic@jpf.go.jp. Note that inquiries must be written in Japanese or English other languages are not accepted, so do not email in Nepali and wait for a reply.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Treating a mid-range score as a "pass". Under 200 is not the A2.2 result the SSW route needs, even though 145–174 now displays as A1 and 175–199 as A2.1. Some agents will show an A1 slip and call it a JFT pass.
• Using an old result to prove A1 or A2.1. If you need those levels, you must sit the test from August 2026 onward.
• Skipping a section because you are strong elsewhere. There is no minimum per section only the total counts so neglecting Listening or Reading directly costs you points you cannot recover.
• Letting a consultancy create and hold your Prometric login. Official instruction is that you manage your ID, password and email yourself. If a broker controls the login, they control your booking and your result notification and can charge you again just to "get" the result that is sitting in your own account.
• Paying extra for a "reserved seat". Seats really are limited and the rush really does create a virtual waiting room, but that queue is automated. Nobody can sell you a guaranteed slot.
• Believing "guaranteed pass" or "we will arrange the certificate" offers. Result notifications can be verified directly with the Japan Foundation, so a fake one is worse than useless.
• Name and spelling mismatches between your registration and the ID you bring on test day. Check your details before booking.
• Confusing JFT-Basic with JLPT, or with the skills test. JFT-Basic covers only the language side of SSW. The SSW route also requires a skills evaluation test for your sector, which Prometric lists separately.
• Trusting Bikram Sambat dates on posters. Both jpf.go.jp and prometric-jp.com publish dates in the AD calendar only, so any BS date on a consultancy notice is that consultancy's own conversion. Verify the AD date on the official site.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the JFT pass mark?

200 points out of a 10–250 range. At 200 or above you are assessed as able to handle everyday conversation to a certain extent and manage daily life without difficulties, shown as A2.2.

Is JFT the same as JLPT?

No. JFT-Basic is a computer-based test focused on the basic Japanese needed for daily life and work, launched in 2019 and used to meet the language requirement for the Specified Skilled Worker No. 1 status. Do not assume one substitutes for the other confirm which one your employer or programme asks for.

How much does the JFT test cost in Nepal?

The official position is that the fee varies by the country where you take the test, and payment methods vary too. No NPR figure is published in the sources we could verify, and the amounts floating around on coaching sites contradict each other. Check the exam fees information on Prometric's official SSW site before you pay anyone anything.

How long does it take to get the JFT result?

You see your total score and assessment on screen the same day. The official notification of assessment results is issued on Prometric's registration website within five business days of your test date.

Can I cancel my JFT booking if I am not ready?

No. Cancellations are not possible. You can only change your reservation up to 23:59 Japan time three business days before the test four business days if your date is a Saturday, Sunday or Japanese holiday.

Where are the JFT test centres in Nepal?

Nepal is confirmed as an official JFT-Basic country, but we could not verify the centre list from an official source, and third-party claims are unconfirmed. Check the test listing on prometric-jp.com/en/ssw when reservations open, since available centres appear there with the available dates.

Your Next Step

JFT-Basic is a short, focused test with a clear target: 200 points, spread evenly across four sections. That is very reachable with steady practice, because nothing here asks for academic Japanese it asks whether you can cope in a Japanese workplace and neighbourhood.

Set a study routine, then measure yourself honestly before you book a seat. Start with our JFT mock test and JFT-Basic prep guide to see where your weakest section is, and always confirm dates, fees and rules on jpf.go.jp and prometric-jp.com rather than on a poster.