DELE in the UAE: Which Level You Need, and When the Sessions Run

The DELE 2027 calendar, by session

Registration for every 2027 session opens on 18 November 2026. These are the sessions and the levels each one carries.

There are also two school sessions, DELE escolar, on Friday 21 May and Friday 12 November 2027, covering A1, A2/B1 and B2/C1.

The oral exam may fall on the same day as the written papers or on a nearby date. Which it is depends on the centre, and you are told in your exam summons rather than at registration.

Read that table by your level, not by the month

This is where people lose time.

• C2 is examined twice in 2027, on 22 May and 13 November. If you miss May, the next opportunity is nearly six months away
• C1 has four dates, and is not offered in the October session
• A1 has three, in April, May and November
• A2 is examined in every single session, because it is the level required, alongside the CCSE, for Spanish nationality
• B1 and B2 have five dates each, the widest practical choice

So the planning order is: establish your level first, then read the calendar, then set the preparation timeline. Doing it the other way round is how a C1 candidate ends up training for a session that does not examine C1.

One more thing to build in: official results take approximately three months. If the diploma has to be in hand for an application or a nationality file by a fixed date, count backwards from that date and not from the exam.

There is still a 2026 session, and it closes imminently

If you are ready now, the November 2026 session is still open: Friday 13 November 2026 for the school levels and A2, and Saturday 14 November 2026 for A1, B1, B2, C1 and C2.

Registration closes on 30 September 2026. If you are reading this at the end of September 2026, that is a matter of days, and the October session has already closed.

Which level do you actually need

Most people overestimate the level they need for study and underestimate the one they need for work.

• A2 is the nationality level in Spain, taken with the CCSE test. It is also where most school programmes and beginners' courses land
• B1 is enough to live and function in Spanish, and is accepted for some vocational routes
• B2 is the standard requirement for Spanish taught undergraduate programmes, and the level most employers mean when a job advertisement says Spanish required
• C1 is what Spanish taught master's programmes generally expect
• C2 is near native command, for research and professional practice

There is a second decision underneath this one, which is DELE against SIELE. SIELE is faster and modular, scored rather than pass or fail, and its report is time limited. The DELE is a permanent diploma. If your timeline might slip by a year, that difference decides it. We set this out in full on our Spanish programmes page.

You do not need to have passed the level below. You can register directly for whichever level is yours, which makes an honest diagnostic more valuable than it sounds.

Sitting the DELE from the UAE

The DELE is available in the Emirates through Instituto Cervantes accredited centres, and registration is handled through the Instituto Cervantes system. Outside Spain some centres take registrations directly, so the exact route depends on where you sit.

Three practical points that catch UAE candidates:

• Places run out before the deadline. The May and November sessions are the largest of the year and the busiest centres fill early. The registration deadline is the last date, not the safe date
• Fees vary by country, centre and level. Check the price for your level through the official portal rather than assuming a figure you read elsewhere
• Your registration details must match your identification. This is the most avoidable reason to be turned away on the day

We handle the level diagnostic, the preparation and the registration guidance as part of the programme, in Dubai Silicon Oasis and Gurgaon, in person and online. We do not send you to work out the calendar alone, because as the table above shows, that is the part that goes wrong.