HSK 3.0 exam date: 13 December 2026
The first official worldwide sitting of HSK 3.0 is on 13 December 2026, 63 days away. The exam body announced it in September 2026. Registration closes on 16 November for the paper test and on 3 December for the computer test, both at 24:00 Beijing time.
| What | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Paper test registration closes | 16 November 2026, 24:00 Beijing time | 36 days away |
| Computer test registration closes | 3 December 2026, 24:00 Beijing time | 53 days away |
| HSK 3.0 first official sitting | 13 December 2026 | 63 days away |
Registration is online at chinesetest.cn, where you pick a test center in your country. The steps are the same as for the current exam: how to register for the HSK.
How we got here
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2021 | The nine-level Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards are published. |
| 2022 | The combined HSK 7-9 exam starts on the new standard. |
| November 2025 | The exam syllabus for the new HSK is published. |
| 31 January 2026 | Global pilot of the new levels 1 to 6. |
| September 2026 | The exam body announces the official start. |
| 13 December 2026 | First official worldwide sitting of HSK 3.0. |
The full account of what the new exam changes is in the new HSK, explained.
What is confirmed and what is not
- Confirmed: the date, the two registration deadlines, and that registration runs through chinesetest.cn.
- Confirmed: the new word lists and the exam syllabus, published in November 2025. Level 1 now asks for about 300 words where the old exam asked for 150.
- Confirmed by the official sample papers: levels 3 to 6 each have their own speaking paper. The HSK 3.0 speaking test.
- Not yet published: the score scale and pass mark for the new papers.
- Not yet stated: how long centers will keep offering the old six-level format after December.
This page is updated when the exam body publishes more. Where something is not confirmed, it says so.
What to do before the exam
- Find your level on the new scale. The levels kept their names and changed their word lists, so an old HSK 3 is not a new HSK 3. The free placement test takes about ten minutes.
- Confirm it. Each level has a free 20-question test on that level's own HSK 3.0 words.
- See what moved. The word-by-word comparison shows which words are new at your level, and the level checker marks any text you paste against the new list.
- Register before the deadline for your test type, and check that your booking names the new format.
Sources
- The official HSK account's announcement of the 13 December 2026 sitting and both registration deadlines.
- 神州学人, 9 September 2026: the notice text in Chinese.
Frequently asked questions
When does HSK 3.0 start?
The first official worldwide sitting of HSK 3.0 is on 13 December 2026. The exam body announced the date in September 2026. Before that, the new levels 1 to 6 ran as a global pilot on 31 January 2026.
When does registration for the December 2026 HSK 3.0 close?
At 24:00 Beijing time on 16 November 2026 for the paper test, and at 24:00 Beijing time on 3 December 2026 for the computer test. Registration is on chinesetest.cn. How to register for the HSK.
Is the old HSK still available?
The official 2026 calendar lists sittings before 13 December, and centers have continued to run the six-level format during the transition. What happens to the old format after December has not been set out in the notice, so check what your own test center offers and which version your booking names.
Is my old HSK certificate still valid?
An HSK score is valid for two years from the test date for applications to Chinese institutions. Nothing published so far says existing certificates stop counting. If an institution asks for a level, ask which standard it means, because a new level 4 asks for more words than an old one.
How many words do I need for HSK 3.0?
On the HSK 3.0 list as this site holds it: 302, 500, 991, 1,982, 3,562 and 5,340 words in total for levels 1 to 6, and 10,902 across all nine. The syllabus rounds those to about 300, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 3,600 and 5,400.
How do I know which HSK 3.0 level to register for?
Take the free HSK placement test. It asks four questions at every HSK 3.0 band and returns an estimated level, and each level has a 20-question test to confirm it.
GraphChinese teaches Chinese as a graph of 829 topics, each one unlocked by the ones it depends on, so the weeks before an exam go on what you have not mastered yet. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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