EPSO’s verbal reasoning test gives you a short passage and asks one question: which of the following statements is correct? Exactly one option is supported by the text. The other three are built to look supported. Each takes a true sentence from the passage and changes one small thing, such as a word like “only”, a date or who does what. Learning to see that one change is most of the skill.
How to use this page. The real test gives you 20 passages in 35 minutes: about
1 minute 45 seconds each. Time yourself, choose an answer, then open the explanation. It names the trap behind every
wrong option, and those names are the point: the same eight or nine traps come back in every EPSO verbal test.
How EPSO builds the wrong answers
Almost every wrong option is a near-paraphrase of the passage with one of these changes:
- An absolute word where the text hedges. The passage says “normally” or “can be extended”; the option says “every” or “always”.
- A scope shift. A limited statement becomes a general one, or the other way round.
- Roles swapped. Two countries, bodies or dates in the passage, and the option gives one the other’s attribute.
- Wrong time or sequence. Signed versus entered into force; “in the next step” versus “in the same step”.
- A necessary condition treated as sufficient. The passage lists two requirements; the option meets one.
- A plausible outside fact. Something that may well be true, but that the passage does not say.
- A category swapped. “Living in” becomes “a national of”; a regulation is treated like a directive.
- A direct contradiction. The easy one, and rarely more than one per question.
The correct option is usually not a copy of a sentence. It is a small inference: a sum of two numbers in the text, a consequence of a condition, or what follows from “renewable” or “cannot be renewed”. For a full introduction to the test, see our verbal reasoning guide.
The eight passages
The passages are about EU institutions and policies, as many real ones are, and every fact in them is checked against the treaties and regulations as of September 2026. You do not need any of that knowledge: the answer must follow from the passage alone. A candidate who reasons from what they know rather than what they read is the target of the “outside fact” trap.
Passage 1 · The European citizens’ initiative
Passage. The European citizens’ initiative allows EU citizens to invite the European Commission to propose legislation in an area where the Commission has the power to do so. An initiative is launched by a group of at least seven EU citizens living in at least seven different Member States. Once the Commission has registered it, the organisers have twelve months to collect statements of support. To succeed, an initiative needs at least one million signatures, and at least seven Member States must each reach a minimum number of signatories, calculated as the number of Members of the European Parliament elected in that country multiplied by the total number of Members. A successful initiative is presented at a public hearing in the European Parliament, and the Commission then has six months to set out which action, if any, it intends to take. The Commission is under no obligation to propose a law.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- An initiative succeeds once it has one million signatures, wherever in the EU they come from.
- An initiative signed by one million people from six Member States does not meet the requirements.
- After a successful initiative, the Commission must present a proposal for a law within six months.
- The seven organisers of an initiative must be nationals of seven different Member States.
Show answer
Answer: B. The text requires at least seven Member States to reach their minimum. With signatures from six countries, that condition cannot be met, however many signatures there are.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Necessary condition treated as sufficient. One million is necessary but not enough: at least seven countries must also reach their minimums.
• C — Direct contradiction. The six months are for saying which action, if any, the Commission will take, and the last sentence rules out any obligation.
• D — Category swapped. The text says the organisers must live in seven Member States. Residence has been swapped for nationality.
Habit to take away. Numbers in a passage usually come with a condition attached. When an option quotes the number (“one million”) but drops the condition (“in at least seven Member States”), it is a trap.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Necessary condition treated as sufficient. One million is necessary but not enough: at least seven countries must also reach their minimums.
• C — Direct contradiction. The six months are for saying which action, if any, the Commission will take, and the last sentence rules out any obligation.
• D — Category swapped. The text says the organisers must live in seven Member States. Residence has been swapped for nationality.
Habit to take away. Numbers in a passage usually come with a condition attached. When an option quotes the number (“one million”) but drops the condition (“in at least seven Member States”), it is a trap.
Passage 2 · The European Ombudsman
Passage. The European Ombudsman investigates complaints about maladministration by the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the European Union. The Court of Justice of the European Union is covered too, except when it acts in its judicial role. Any citizen of the Union can complain, as can any person living in a Member State and any company or association with a registered office there. A complaint must be made within two years of the date on which the complainant became aware of the facts, and only after the institution concerned has been contacted about the problem. The Ombudsman can also open inquiries on her or his own initiative. Complaints about national, regional or local authorities fall outside the mandate, even when those authorities apply EU law. The Ombudsman is elected by the European Parliament after each European election, for the duration of the parliamentary term, and can be re-elected. The Ombudsman’s recommendations are not legally binding.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- The Ombudsman cannot look into any of the activities of the Court of Justice of the EU.
- A complaint about how a national ministry applies an EU regulation can go to the Ombudsman.
- The Ombudsman can only open an inquiry after a complaint has been received.
- A complaint made three years after the complainant learned of the facts would be out of time.
Show answer
Answer: D. Complaints must be made within two years of the complainant becoming aware of the facts. Three years is beyond that limit.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Absolute word where the text hedges. The Court is covered except in its judicial role. “Any of the activities” turns a partial exclusion into a total one.
• B — Scope shift. National authorities are outside the mandate “even when those authorities apply EU law”. The option stretches the mandate from EU bodies to national ones.
• C — Direct contradiction. The text says the Ombudsman can also act on her or his own initiative.
Habit to take away. Watch the small exceptions: “except when”, “even when”, “also”. Each one in the passage is usually the anchor of a wrong option.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Absolute word where the text hedges. The Court is covered except in its judicial role. “Any of the activities” turns a partial exclusion into a total one.
• B — Scope shift. National authorities are outside the mandate “even when those authorities apply EU law”. The option stretches the mandate from EU bodies to national ones.
• C — Direct contradiction. The text says the Ombudsman can also act on her or his own initiative.
Habit to take away. Watch the small exceptions: “except when”, “even when”, “also”. Each one in the passage is usually the anchor of a wrong option.
Passage 3 · The European Court of Auditors
Passage. The European Court of Auditors is the EU’s external auditor. Despite its name, it is not a court of law: it has no judicial powers, and when its auditors suspect fraud they pass the information to the EU bodies that investigate it, such as the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Court has one member from each Member State. Members are appointed by the Council, after consulting the European Parliament, for a renewable term of six years, and they elect one of their number as President for three years. Each year the Court publishes an annual report on the EU budget, which includes a statement of assurance on the reliability of the accounts and on the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions. It also publishes special reports on specific policies and programmes. Its audits can take place on the spot in the Member States, in liaison with national audit institutions.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- Because its members are appointed by the Council, the Court is part of the Council.
- Each year, the statement of assurance has found the EU accounts free of any errors.
- When it detects fraud in EU spending, the Court can impose penalties itself.
- A member of the Court of Auditors may serve for more than six years.
Show answer
Answer: D. The six-year term is renewable, so a member who is reappointed serves longer than six years.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Classification the text does not allow. Being appointed by an institution does not make you part of it. The text never classifies the Court that way.
• B — Plausible outside fact. The text says what the statement covers, not what it has found. The option adds an outside claim that sounds plausible.
• C — Direct contradiction. The Court has no judicial powers and passes suspected fraud to OLAF and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Habit to take away. A “renewable” term, a deadline that “can be extended”: the passage is telling you the number is not a ceiling. Options that treat it as one are traps, and an option that exploits it is often the key.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Classification the text does not allow. Being appointed by an institution does not make you part of it. The text never classifies the Court that way.
• B — Plausible outside fact. The text says what the statement covers, not what it has found. The option adds an outside claim that sounds plausible.
• C — Direct contradiction. The Court has no judicial powers and passes suspected fraud to OLAF and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Habit to take away. A “renewable” term, a deadline that “can be extended”: the passage is telling you the number is not a ceiling. Options that treat it as one are traps, and an option that exploits it is often the key.
Passage 4 · The ECB’s Governing Council
Passage. Monetary policy for the euro area is decided by the Governing Council of the European Central Bank. It is made up of the six members of the ECB’s Executive Board and the governors of the national central banks of the euro area countries, of which there have been 21 since Bulgaria adopted the euro on 1 January 2026. Executive Board members are appointed by the European Council for a single term of eight years, which cannot be renewed. To keep decision-making efficient as the council grew, a system of rotating voting rights has applied since the number of governors exceeded eighteen, in 2015: the governors take turns to vote, while the six Executive Board members always vote. The Governing Council takes its monetary policy decisions every six weeks. Since its 2021 strategy review, the ECB has aimed for inflation of 2% over the medium term, treating deviations above and below that level as equally undesirable.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- The Governing Council now has 27 members, not all of whom vote at every meeting.
- The rotation of voting rights began when Bulgaria joined the euro area.
- Members of the Executive Board can be reappointed if the European Council agrees.
- The ECB sees inflation above 2% as more harmful than inflation below 2%.
Show answer
Answer: A. Six Executive Board members plus 21 governors make 27. Governors take turns to vote, so not all of them vote at every meeting.
Why the other options are wrong:
• B — Wrong time or sequence. The rotation started in 2015, when the governors exceeded eighteen. Bulgaria joined in 2026.
• C — Direct contradiction. The eight-year term “cannot be renewed”.
• D — Direct contradiction. Deviations in both directions are “equally undesirable”.
Habit to take away. When a passage gives you two numbers that belong together (six board members, 21 governors), expect an option that adds them up. Do the sum, then check the rest of the sentence: the second half is where traps hide.
Why the other options are wrong:
• B — Wrong time or sequence. The rotation started in 2015, when the governors exceeded eighteen. Bulgaria joined in 2026.
• C — Direct contradiction. The eight-year term “cannot be renewed”.
• D — Direct contradiction. Deviations in both directions are “equally undesirable”.
Habit to take away. When a passage gives you two numbers that belong together (six board members, 21 governors), expect an option that adds them up. Do the sum, then check the rest of the sentence: the second half is where traps hide.
Passage 5 · The Schengen area
Passage. The Schengen area takes its name from the village in Luxembourg where five countries — Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands — signed an agreement in 1985 to abolish checks at their common borders. The checks were actually lifted in 1995. Today the area covers 29 countries: 25 of the 27 EU Member States and four countries outside the Union, namely Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Of the two EU countries outside it, Ireland has chosen not to take part, while Cyprus is legally bound to join but does not yet apply all the rules. Bulgaria and Romania joined in two steps: checks at air and sea borders ended in March 2024, and checks at land borders in January 2025. Within the area, a country may reintroduce controls at its internal borders only as a last resort, when there is a serious threat to public policy or internal security, and only for a limited period.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- Ten years passed between the signing of the agreement and the lifting of the checks.
- Ireland stays outside the Schengen area because it cannot yet apply all the rules.
- Romania’s land-border checks ended at the same time as those at its airports.
- A Member State can reintroduce internal border checks whenever it considers it useful.
Show answer
Answer: A. Signed in 1985, checks lifted in 1995: ten years.
Why the other options are wrong:
• B — Roles swapped. That is Cyprus’s situation. Ireland has chosen not to take part. The option swaps the two countries.
• C — Wrong time or sequence. Air and sea checks ended in March 2024, land checks only in January 2025.
• D — Scope shift. Only as a last resort, for a serious threat, and for a limited period. “Whenever it considers it useful” removes all three limits.
Habit to take away. Two countries in one sentence, each with its own reason, invite a swap. Before accepting an option about one of them, check that the reason given belongs to that country.
Why the other options are wrong:
• B — Roles swapped. That is Cyprus’s situation. Ireland has chosen not to take part. The option swaps the two countries.
• C — Wrong time or sequence. Air and sea checks ended in March 2024, land checks only in January 2025.
• D — Scope shift. Only as a last resort, for a serious threat, and for a limited period. “Whenever it considers it useful” removes all three limits.
Habit to take away. Two countries in one sentence, each with its own reason, invite a swap. Before accepting an option about one of them, check that the reason given belongs to that country.
Passage 6 · The General Data Protection Regulation
Passage. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has applied throughout the EU since 25 May 2018. As a regulation, it applies directly in every Member State without having to be transposed into national law. It covers not only organisations established in the EU but also those outside it that offer goods or services to people in the Union or monitor their behaviour there. When personal data are breached, the organisation responsible must normally notify the national supervisory authority within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach, unless the breach is unlikely to put people’s rights and freedoms at risk. The most serious infringements can be fined up to €20 million or 4% of the company’s total worldwide annual turnover in the previous financial year, whichever is higher. Where a company processes data in several Member States, the authority of the country where it has its main establishment normally acts as the lead authority.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- A company outside the EU must apply the GDPR as soon as people in the EU can read its website.
- Every breach of personal data must be reported to the supervisory authority within 72 hours.
- With a worldwide turnover of €1 billion, a firm risks a fine of up to €40 million.
- Before it applied, the GDPR had to be written into law by each national parliament.
Show answer
Answer: C. 4% of €1 billion is €40 million, which is higher than €20 million, and the higher amount applies. (The option is about the most serious infringements, the only fines the passage mentions.)
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Necessary condition treated as sufficient. The text requires offering goods or services to people in the Union, or monitoring them. Being readable is not enough.
• B — Absolute word where the text hedges. The text says “normally” and makes an exception for breaches unlikely to create a risk.
• D — Category swapped. A regulation applies directly “without having to be transposed”. Transposition is what a directive needs.
Habit to take away. “Whichever is higher” and “whichever is lower” are invitations to calculate. Work out both amounts; the option that takes the wrong one is the trap.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Necessary condition treated as sufficient. The text requires offering goods or services to people in the Union, or monitoring them. Being readable is not enough.
• B — Absolute word where the text hedges. The text says “normally” and makes an exception for breaches unlikely to create a risk.
• D — Category swapped. A regulation applies directly “without having to be transposed”. Transposition is what a directive needs.
Habit to take away. “Whichever is higher” and “whichever is lower” are invitations to calculate. Work out both amounts; the option that takes the wrong one is the trap.
Passage 7 · The European Public Prosecutor’s Office
Passage. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), based in Luxembourg, began operating on 1 June 2021. It is an independent EU body that investigates and prosecutes crimes against the financial interests of the Union, such as fraud involving EU funds, corruption and money laundering. For VAT fraud, it is competent only when the fraud is connected with two or more Member States and involves total damage of at least €10 million. The EPPO was set up through enhanced cooperation, so it acts only in the Member States that take part: 24 of the 27, after Poland and Sweden joined in 2024. Its cases are not heard by an EU court. Instead, European Delegated Prosecutors working in each participating country bring them before that country’s national courts. The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), by contrast, carries out administrative investigations and cannot prosecute anyone.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- The EPPO brings its cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union.
- Poland and Sweden were among the Member States that set up the EPPO in 2021.
- A VAT fraud causing €12 million of damage in one Member State alone is outside its remit.
- OLAF prosecutes the fraud cases that the EPPO decides not to take on.
Show answer
Answer: C. VAT fraud falls to the EPPO only when two or more Member States are involved and the damage is at least €10 million. The amount is enough, but one country is not.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Direct contradiction. Its cases are heard by national courts; the text says no EU court hears them.
• B — Wrong time or sequence. Both joined in 2024, three years after the EPPO started work.
• D — Roles swapped. OLAF “cannot prosecute anyone”. The option gives it the EPPO’s role.
Habit to take away. Two conditions joined by “and” give EPSO two ways to build a trap and one way to build a key: meet one condition but not the other. Check each condition separately.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Direct contradiction. Its cases are heard by national courts; the text says no EU court hears them.
• B — Wrong time or sequence. Both joined in 2024, three years after the EPPO started work.
• D — Roles swapped. OLAF “cannot prosecute anyone”. The option gives it the EPPO’s role.
Habit to take away. Two conditions joined by “and” give EPSO two ways to build a trap and one way to build a key: meet one condition but not the other. Check each condition separately.
Passage 8 · The ordinary legislative procedure
Passage. Under the ordinary legislative procedure, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU adopt EU laws jointly, on a proposal from the European Commission. At first reading, Parliament adopts its position. If the Council approves that position, the act is adopted; if not, the Council adopts its own position and sends it to Parliament. Parliament then has three months, which can be extended to four, for a second reading. It can approve the Council’s position, in which case the act is adopted, or reject it by a majority of its component members, in which case the procedure ends and the act is not adopted. If Parliament amends the text and the Council does not accept all the amendments, a conciliation committee made up of equal numbers of Council and Parliament representatives has six weeks to agree on a joint text. In practice, most acts are now agreed at first reading, after informal negotiations known as trilogues.
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
Question: Which of the following statements is correct?
- After a rejection at second reading, a conciliation committee tries to agree a joint text.
- An act can be adopted without Parliament ever voting on a position of the Council.
- Trilogues can be counted among the formal stages of the ordinary legislative procedure.
- Parliament always has four months in which to complete its second reading of a text.
Show answer
Answer: B. If the Council approves Parliament’s first-reading position, the act is adopted there and then. Parliament never has to vote on a Council position.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Wrong time or sequence. A rejection ends the procedure. The committee is for amendments the Council does not accept.
• C — Classification the text does not allow. The text calls them “informal negotiations”.
• D — Absolute word where the text hedges. It has three months, which can be extended to four. “Always” turns a possibility into a rule.
Habit to take away. A procedure with branches (“if… if not…”) is best read as a small flow chart. Most traps attach one branch’s consequence to the other branch.
Why the other options are wrong:
• A — Wrong time or sequence. A rejection ends the procedure. The committee is for amendments the Council does not accept.
• C — Classification the text does not allow. The text calls them “informal negotiations”.
• D — Absolute word where the text hedges. It has three months, which can be extended to four. “Always” turns a possibility into a rule.
Habit to take away. A procedure with branches (“if… if not…”) is best read as a small flow chart. Most traps attach one branch’s consequence to the other branch.
These passages are written by EU Testing in the EPSO format. They are not official EPSO questions.
A method for every passage
- Read the passage once, marking the hedges and conditions in your head: “normally”, “only when”, “except”, “can be extended”, “at least”. Nearly every trap is anchored on one of them.
- Take each option and find its sentence. Do not ask “is this true?”. Ask “which sentence would prove it, and does that sentence say exactly this?”.
- Eliminate three rather than find one. A wrong option has a specific defect you can point to. If you cannot find the defect in an option, keep it.
- Watch the numbers. Two figures in a passage often combine into the answer (six plus 21 in passage 4), and a threshold often decides it (two years in passage 2).
Among the eight keys above, three depend on a small calculation and five on a one-step inference; none copies a sentence of the passage word for word. Matching words is how candidates fall into traps, not how they find the answer.
60 passages at the real test’s level
The Verbal Reasoning Focus II card has 60 passages built the same way, with every wrong option explained by its trap type.
Open Verbal Focus II → First 5 questions free · all 60 with PremiumFrequently asked questions
How many questions are in the EPSO verbal reasoning test?
In the AD5 competition (EPSO/AD/427/26), 20 questions in 35 minutes, scored from 0 to 20, with a pass mark of 10 out of 20. It is taken in your first language.
Do I need to know about the EU to answer the questions?
No. The answer must follow from the passage alone. Knowledge can even hurt you: an option that is true in the real world but not stated in the passage is a classic wrong answer.
Is the correct answer always a paraphrase of one sentence?
No, and that is why matching words is a poor strategy. Most correct options are small inferences: a consequence of a condition, a sum of two figures, or what a word like “renewable” implies.
Why are the options so similar in length?
Because a real test cannot let length give the answer away. Picking the longest or the most detailed option is no better than guessing, so the only way through is to check each option against the text.
Passage facts checked against the EU treaties and the EU regulations on each subject, as of 29 September 2026. Pass marks: EPSO notice of competition EPSO/AD/427/26.