EPSO sent the AD5 invitation letters on 19 October. They confirm the test week, 9 to 13 November 2026, but not your day or your hour. Between now and the test there are three more steps, each with its own deadline, and two more deadlines come straight after it. Here is the whole sequence, what to do at each step, and what can no longer be changed.
The calendar at a glance
| When | What happens | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| 19 October | Invitation letter in your Single Candidate Portal account. It confirms your test week and gives instructions, but not your date and time. | Log in and read the letter and the instructions for online testing in full. |
| 20 October – 6 November | The TAO test platform opens for the pre-requisite test. Your own test date and time are shown there too. | Note your slot. Do the pre-requisite test on the computer you will use, well before 6 November. |
| 9 – 13 November | Part 1: verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning, in one session on your assigned day, at home under remote proctoring. | Log in a few minutes before your start time. |
| The day after your test, 23:59 CET | Only if your ID document does not show your name and photo on the same side: deadline for the two-sided PDF. | Upload it and notify EPSO through the portal. |
| 3 calendar days, counted from the day after your test | Deadline to complain about a question or to report a technical problem to EPSO in writing. | Write through your candidate account, with evidence. |
| After scoring (no date yet) | Part 1 results are notified to candidates. | Check your candidate account at least every three days. |
| 2027 | Part 2 for candidates who pass: EU knowledge, digital skills and the EUFTE essay. | See what is known about Part 2. |
Now: read the letter, then check two things
The letter is in your Single Candidate Portal account. Everything that follows runs through that account: the link to the test platform, any message from EPSO, and your results. EPSO asks every candidate to make sure they can log in, so if you cannot, fix that first.
Then check two things the general rules of the competition ask for:
- The e-mail address behind your EU Login. It must stay valid until the reserve list is published. The rules name the usual risk: a work address that can be switched off when a contract or an assignment ends.
- How often you look. EPSO sends time-sensitive information to the candidate account and asks candidates to check it at least every three calendar days.
From 20 October: the test platform and your slot
From 20 October you open the TAO platform from the link in your letter: the portal, then the TAO link, then EU Login. Under My Sessions you see your sessions, with the date and time of your test. A session stays greyed out until its start time, which is normal.
Check that what you see matches your invitation, the test language for instance. If something does not match, EPSO’s instructions say to contact TAO support straight away and, if that does not solve it, to inform EPSO through the Single Candidate Portal.
Then write your slot down and protect it. When EPSO split the AD5 testing into two parts, it said that rescheduling will not be possible. Its instructions add that professional and private obligations, such as meetings, conferences, business trips and private travel, are not unforeseeable events. If something genuinely beyond your control stops you on the day, such as illness or a power or internet outage, the route is force majeure: notify EPSO through the portal at once, and no later than the complaint deadline, with evidence covering the test date.
If you saw a test session on TAO before 19 October: EPSO explained on 12 October that its test provider was preparing the platform on 11 October, that some candidates could see test sessions that were not theirs to take, and that those sessions have been switched off. Your slot is the one TAO shows you from 20 October.
Before 6 November: the pre-requisite test
The pre-requisite test is a technical check, not part of your result. It confirms that your computer, camera, microphone and connection work with the test software, and it takes you through the same identity check and room scan as on the day. No score is recorded. Three things about it matter more than its length:
- One attempt, on the real set-up. EPSO’s instructions allow it once per competition, unless your invitation letter says otherwise, and ask you to use the same computer, devices and settings as on the day, ideally in the same room.
- Early, not on the last evening. TAO support answers Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 18:00 CET. A problem found on 20 October can be fixed. One found on the evening of Friday 6 November may not be.
- It decides whether a complaint is heard. If you skip it and then have a technical problem during the test, the instructions say the complaint will be dismissed.
The six steps, the settings to fix first and what to do if it fails are in our guide to the EPSO pre-requisite test.
The days before: set up once, then rehearse
Many problems on test day are set-up problems, and each of these can be settled days in advance. From the instructions for online testing:
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| A computer you have administrator rights on | The proctoring software needs them, and work laptops rarely give them. Phones and tablets are not supported. |
| Chrome or Edge, version 148 or later, with the Proctorio extension from getproctorio.com | TAO and Proctorio run together in the browser. |
| Antivirus, firewall, VPN and any web proxy switched off; the system clock on your time zone | They can block the camera or the connection, and using a proxy during the test ends it. |
| One screen only, with the laptop lid closed if you use an external monitor; no docking station | Connecting an extra screen during the test ends it. |
| The laptop plugged in before the test starts | Plugging a charger in after the start can end the test automatically. |
| A valid ID card or passport, ideally with name and photo on the same side | Otherwise you owe EPSO a two-sided PDF the day after. |
| An empty desk: phone out of reach, no paper or pens, no headphones or earplugs | All forbidden. Allowed: up to two tissues and one clear drink in a container without a label. |
| A cable or a strong, uncrowded Wi-Fi connection | Losing the connection to Proctorio for more than two minutes ends the test. |
One detail from the October instructions is worth practising: the on-screen calculator accepts only a dot as the decimal separator. A comma is not supported. The full desk rules and the actions that end a test are in our test-day guide, and the revision plan for these weeks is in the last three weeks before your reasoning tests.
Rehearse the format you will sit
Timed EPSO-style verbal, numerical and abstract questions, with a worked explanation for every answer. Do them with an empty desk, all three back to back.
Start practising → First 25 questions free · no account needed to tryTest day
Log in a few minutes before your start time: the portal, the TAO link, EU Login, then Start when the session becomes active. Proctorio takes a photo of your ID and asks for the room and desk scan, you accept the exam agreement, and the test starts automatically after its instruction pages.
All three reasoning tests are in the same session: verbal reasoning (20 questions, 35 minutes), numerical reasoning (10 questions, 20 minutes) and abstract reasoning (10 questions, 10 minutes).
If something goes wrong, restart the computer first and then call TAO support. You may stand up to fetch your phone, but you must stay seated in front of the camera for the whole call. Afterwards, the problem must also go to EPSO in writing, as described below.
After you submit
- Keep the proof. Log in to TAO again and open Finished sessions: you can download a PDF certificate of attendance there.
- Three days for complaints. A complaint about a question, or a written report of a technical problem, must reach EPSO through your candidate account within 3 calendar days, counted from the day after your test. If you sit the test on Monday 9 November, the last day is Thursday 12 November.
- Results. Under the notice as amended on 30 June 2026, the reasoning tests are scored after Part 1 and candidates are notified of their results. EPSO has not given a date. To pass you need 10 out of 20 in verbal reasoning and 10 out of 20 for numerical and abstract reasoning combined. What follows is in AD5 Part 1 results.
What can no longer be changed
- Your slot. No rescheduling, as above.
- Your languages. The reasoning tests are in your language 1, the main language you declared at level C1 or above. Part 2 will be in your language 2.
- Your documents. The deadline for supporting documents was 7 October 2026. EPSO checks eligibility later, and only for the candidates who rank highest after Part 2. Our supporting-documents guide explains that check.
Frequently asked questions
When will I know my exact AD5 test date?
From 20 October, on the TAO test platform. The invitation letter of 19 October gives only the week, 9 to 13 November 2026. Your individual date and time appear when you log in to TAO through the link in the letter.
Is the pre-requisite test compulsory?
EPSO calls it required, and you should treat it as compulsory. EPSO’s October instructions say you can still sit the test without it, but if you then have a technical problem, your complaint will be dismissed. It can be done once per competition, between 20 October and 6 November 2026, unless your letter says otherwise.
Can I change my AD5 test day?
No. EPSO has said that rescheduling will not be possible, and professional or private obligations are not accepted as unforeseeable events. Only something beyond your control, such as illness or an outage, reported to EPSO through the portal with evidence and no later than the complaint deadline, is considered as force majeure.
When will the AD5 Part 1 results be published?
EPSO has not given a date. Under the notice as amended on 30 June 2026, the reasoning tests are scored after Part 1 and candidates are notified of their results. Candidates who pass are later invited to Part 2, in 2027.
What if my ID shows my name and photo on different sides?
Upload a single PDF with images of both sides and notify EPSO through the Single Candidate Portal by 23:59 CET on the calendar day after your test. If you miss it, your test session can be invalidated.
I saw a test session on TAO before 19 October. Was that my slot?
No. EPSO explained on 12 October that its test provider was preparing the platform on 11 October, that some candidates could see sessions that were not theirs to take, and that those sessions have been switched off. Your slot is the one TAO shows you from 20 October.
Based on EPSO’s announcements of 18 September, 12 October and 13 October 2026, EPSO’s instructions for online testing (TAO) for EPSO/AD/427/26 (October 2026 edition) and the notice of competition as amended on 30 June 2026, read on 19 October 2026. Advice marked as ours is exactly that.