How to test a candidate's English level

B2 and C1 in plain words

The Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) describes language levels from A1 to C2. For remote office work, two levels matter most:

• B2 (upper intermediate): handles most work conversations and emails on familiar topics, understands the main points of fast speech, makes some mistakes that rarely block meaning, sometimes searches for words in unfamiliar situations.
• C1 (advanced): communicates fluently and flexibly, writes clear and well-structured texts, understands implied meaning and tone, adjusts style to the audience, rarely searches for words.

In practice, the gap shows in nuance: declining a request politely, writing to a senior person, handling an upset customer, or following a call with several native speakers talking at once.

Which level each role needs

• Executive assistant writing in your name: C1, or a strong B2+ with excellent writing. Every email reflects on you.
• Customer support by email and chat: B2+ with clear, warm, correct writing. Templates help, but real conversations go beyond them.
• Phone support or client calls: B2+ to C1 spoken English with clear pronunciation.
• Bookkeeping or back-office work: B2 is often enough if most communication is written and with you.

Silkstaff's candidates do a written English task and a recorded voice answer when they apply, each profile shows the English level, and we check English on a live call before any client interview.

The written check

Use short tasks that look like the job, and ask for them during the process, not as homework that can be polished for hours:

• A two-line reply declining a meeting on your behalf, typed during the video call.
• A reply to a short customer complaint, five minutes in the chat.
• A three-sentence summary of a paragraph you paste in.

Look at clarity first, then tone, then grammar. Small slips are normal at B2; unclear or rude-sounding messages are a bigger problem than a missing article. AI tools can polish written English at home, which is one more reason to include a short live writing task.

The live call check

Do the whole interview in English, on video, and include moments that go beyond prepared answers:

1. Warm-up: a few easy questions about their current work.
2. Explain a process: “Walk me through how you prepare for a busy Monday.” This shows structure and range.
3. A scenario: a role-play with an upset client or customer. This shows tone under pressure.
4. Something unexpected: a question they cannot have prepared, such as explaining a tool to a new colleague.
5. Speed and comprehension: speak at your normal speed for a minute and ask them to summarise what you said.

Ask the same tasks to every candidate so you compare like with like. Our interview guides for executive assistants and customer support include questions that double as English checks.

What to listen for

• Comprehension: do they answer the question you asked, including follow-ups?
• Clarity: can you follow them without effort? An accent is fine; unclear speech is not.
• Range: do they explain things in different ways when you ask again?
• Repair: when they do not understand, do they ask a clarifying question or guess? Asking is a strong sign for remote work.
• Tone: polite, natural, appropriate to the situation.

A simple English scorecard

Write down your impressions straight after the call, on the same scale for every candidate:

• Written clarity: one if the message is unclear, two if it is clear with slips, three if you would send it as it is.
• Spoken comprehension: one if you had to repeat often, two if follow-ups were sometimes missed, three if they followed everything.
• Spoken clarity: one if you struggled to follow, two if it took some effort, three if effortless.
• Tone: one if it sounded abrupt or stiff, two if neutral, three if natural and appropriate.

Decide in advance which minimum the role needs, for example twos everywhere and a three in written clarity for an assistant who writes in your name.

Certificates and self-assessment

Certificates such as IELTS, TOEFL or the Cambridge exams are useful evidence, especially if recent, but they do not show how someone writes a client email or handles a tense call. Self-assessed levels on CVs vary a lot. Treat both as a starting point and rely on your own written and live checks. Suspicious gaps between written and spoken English are covered in our remote hiring red flags guide.