The overall requirements for learners from the new HSK levels are:

• Understand simple Chinese texts
• Make daily conversations on limited topics
• Use simple communication strategies to help
• Have some knowledge of Chinese culture and cross-cultural communication skills

We can tell there are two major difference compared to old HSK 1 to 4/5:

• Chinese characters are required right away from the very beginning, while the old HSK1 and HSK2 only required Pinyin on exams
• Culture and cross-cultural communication are included

Language topics B2
Basic social life, family life, school life, shopping, dining, personal feelings, etc.

Students should be able to do tasks like smoothly order food in Chinese restaurants while having nice conversations with Chinese friends over the meal; fill in a personal information form.

Listening B2
Understand simple dialogues of daily simple topics (within 150 words), and understand standard, clear and slow Chinese Mandarin, but the speed will be no slower than 140 characters per minute.

Also, students need to understand more complicated dialogues with the help of gestures or facial expressions.

Speaking B2
Pronounce 468 pinyin syllabus correctly (example:ān, chūn, liáng, yú ). Students must be able to hold short conversations or monologue, and be able to make appropriate small talks in different social situations.

Reading B2
Recognize 468 pinyin syllabus, 600 Chinese characters and 1272 vocabulary.
With the help of pictures, pinyin or dictionary, be able to read texts (with 200 Chinese characters) at a speed no less than 100 Chinese characters per minute.
Be able to get information from more formal materials like announcements and emails.

Writing B2
Know how to handwrite 200 basic characters from memory. Example: 肉(ròu meat), 慢(màn slow). Students must be familiar with strokes, stroke orders, and common punctuations, and be able to copy characters correctly at a speed of no slower than 15 characters per minute.

Students must also be able to compose a paragraph of no less than 100 characters on familiar topics.