Siena and Perugia each publish their own calendar for the CILS and CELI exams, and the two do not line up. This page explains how each university schedules its sessions, which sessions carry which levels, how far ahead registration closes and when results arrive, so you can read the current calendars and pick a session that actually works for your level and your deadline.
One rule shapes everything below: the registration deadline matters more than the exam date. Both calendars close registration roughly four to six weeks before the exam, and you register through an exam centre, not with the university directly.
How Siena schedules CILS
Siena publishes a CILS calendar a year at a time, and its shape repeats rather than the dates themselves. Knowing the shape tells you what to look for when you open the current calendar.
- Around six sessions a year, and they all fall on a Thursday.
- Registration closes about a month before most sessions.
- Two sessions a year carry every level, A1 to C2. These are the ones to aim for if you need a level that the smaller sessions skip - and they are also the two with the longest lead time, closing roughly six weeks ahead rather than one month.
- The smaller sessions in between typically carry a narrower set, most often A2 integrazione and B1 C.
- B1 C, the citizenship exam, runs in every session. It is the one level you can count on finding whenever you look.
So the practical question is not "what are this year's dates" but "which of this year's sessions carries my level, and has its deadline passed". Open Siena's current calendar, find the sessions that list your level, and work backwards from the closing date.
CILS B1 Cittadinanza
B1 C is the citizenship exam; Siena's B1 C page carries the B1 Cittadinanza syllabus, sample booklet and answer key. It runs in every session on the calendar, which is why it is the one level you can always find a date for. That matters because Siena does not allow capitalisation for this level: if any ability is not passed, the whole exam has to be taken again in a following session. With six dates, a candidate who misses the mark in February still has five more chances in the same year.
How Perugia schedules CELI
Perugia's CVCL organises CELI by certificate type rather than by one flat calendar, and publishes sessions for each:
- General CELI - CELI Impatto (A1) through CELI 5 (C2).
- CELI Adolescenti - the a-suffixed levels for teenagers.
- CELI Immigrati - the i-suffixed levels, including CELI 2 i cittadinanza.
Two patterns hold from year to year. Perugia's exam regulations describe two complete general sessions a year, and the top general certificates, CELI 4 (C1) and CELI 5 (C2), appear only in those two. Everything else runs a narrower set of levels. Registration generally closes about a month before the session.
If you need C1 or C2 in Italian through CELI, your realistic choices in a year are those two sessions, so check the current calendar early and plan around them rather than hoping for a closer date.
CELI 2 i cittadinanza is for centres in Italy
The CVCL calendar states that CELI Immigrati sessions are available only at Italian centres. So the CELI citizenship sessions are an option only if you will sit the exam in Italy. If you are applying from abroad and want a citizenship-specific B1 exam, look at CILS B1 C: Siena quotes its fee for Italy and abroad, and the CILS calendar carries no Italy-only note. Confirm with your local centre that it runs B1 C on the date you want.
How centres abroad follow these calendars
Neither university takes registrations from candidates abroad directly. The mechanics differ slightly.
CILS. Siena's registration page tells candidates, in Italy and abroad, to contact the exam centre where they intend to sit and follow its instructions. The exams take place at centres that have signed an agreement with Siena; abroad, the Italian Cultural Institutes and other local partners coordinate and organise them. Siena's list of centres abroad is arranged by continent and country, and India appears in the Asia list. Siena sends the exam materials to the centre, the written tests start with listening, and the oral tests are usually held in the afternoon of the same day, depending on candidate numbers. Ask your centre for its own closing date, fee in local currency and start time. The official B1 C fee is 100 euros in Italy and abroad.
CELI. Perugia's regulations say CELI exams take place at the same time at all centres worldwide, time zones permitting, on the basis of the published calendar. Registration is handled by the centre, which sets its own deadline but must respect the CVCL deadline, and the calendar notes that centres may bring the deadline forward. Each centre tells candidates the fee and how to pay, and Perugia notes that registration procedures and fees differ between sitting the exam in Perugia and at another centre.
In practice: treat the dates on this page as the latest possible deadlines, and assume your centre may close earlier.
When results come out
Plan for a long wait after either exam, especially if a citizenship application depends on the certificate.
- CILS - Siena states results are available after about three months, with no early marking. You check them on the university's results portal using your matricola (registration number) and date of birth. If nothing appears, marking is still in progress. Certificates are collected from the centre where you sat the exam, and a request to view your papers can be made within 30 days of results being published.
- CELI - Perugia's regulations say results are communicated in about 90 working days from when the CVCL receives the papers, which is longer than three calendar months. Candidates see results in the reserved area of the CVCL site with their matricola. Digital certificates are sent to the exam centre, which distributes them, and a provisional document can be downloaded from the reserved area.
As a worked example of why this matters, take a CILS candidate sitting one of the smaller autumn sessions. On Siena's three-month guide, their result lands around the time registration closes for the next session. A candidate who needs to resit is therefore realistically looking not at the very next session but the one after it, so count three months forward from your exam date and see which session's deadline you can still meet.
Choosing your session
Work backwards from the date you need the certificate in hand:
- Add the results wait (about three months for CILS, about 90 working days for CELI) to the exam date.
- Pick the latest session whose result arrives in time, then one earlier as a buffer.
- Note that session's registration deadline, and ask your centre whether it closes sooner.
- Confirm the centre runs your exact level on that date. Not every level runs in every session, and not every centre runs every session.
Quick answers
When is the next CILS B1 Cittadinanza exam?
B1 C runs in every CILS session, so the next one is simply the next session on Siena's current calendar whose registration has not yet closed. Registration usually closes about a month before the exam, and about six weeks before the two full-level sessions.
Where are the current CILS and CELI dates published?
Siena publishes the CILS calendar for its university, and Perugia's CVCL publishes the CELI sessions by certificate type. Both are linked in Official sources below; a centre abroad follows those central dates but handles your registration.
Can I take CELI 2 i cittadinanza outside Italy?
Not according to the CVCL calendar, which says CELI Immigrati sessions are available only at Italian centres.
How long do CILS and CELI results take?
About three months for CILS, according to Siena. For CELI, Perugia's regulations give about 90 working days from when the papers reach the CVCL.
Does my centre abroad use the same dates?
The session dates are set centrally by each university. Your centre handles registration and, for CELI, may set an earlier deadline, so confirm the closing date with the centre itself.
