According to the Japan Foundation, new Japanese language proficiency test (nihongo nouryoku shiken) 日本語能力試験　will lanuch the new standard of the test in this coming 2010. And they will choose Japan China, Taiwan and Korea as the pilot places for conducting test twice per year (normally this test held only once a year)

The level will change from 4 levels to 5 levels and will change the name from 1 - 4 to N1-N5

The new level expected to fulfill the gap between level 2 and 3 in the new system.

For more details: http://www.jlpt.jp/e/info/index.html

In the past there have been requests for revisions to address the fact that examinees who have passed the Level 3 test often have trouble with passing the Level 2 test because of the large gap in those two levels, as well as to address the need to measure abilities more advanced than those targeted by the current Level 1 test. In fact, advances in Japanese-language education and societal changes have produced a more diverse range of needs among examinees than existed when the test was introduced. To better address such needs, the test levels will be revised and a 5-level format will be established to replace the current 4-level format.

The existing test incorporates 4 levels, or kyu: 1-kyu (Level 1), 2-kyu (Level 2), 3-kyu (Level 3), and 4-kyu (Level 4), in descending order. The new test will have 5 levels: N1, N2, N3, N4, and N5; the "N" may stand for both "Nihongo" and "New."

N1: Approximately the same passing level as the existing Level 1 test, but designed to enable slightly more advanced abilities to be measured as well.

Approximately the same passing level as the existing Level 1 test, but designed to enable slightly more advanced abilities to be measured as well.

N2: Approximately the same passing level as the existing Level 2 test.

N3: Positioned at a level bridging existing Level 2 and Level 3 tests.

N4: Approximately the same passing level as the existing Level 3 test.

N5: Approximately the same passing level as the existing Level 4 test.

Note:There will be a Reading Test (yomu shiken) and a Listening Test (kiku shiken). The former will incorporate the Writing-Vocabulary and Reading-Grammar sections of the existing tests, while the latter will take the place of the Listening section of the existing tests.

I'm not sure whether this is one of the plan to support the new policy of the government stated that the foreigners who want to get Japanese Visa for long period supposed to have enough Japanese Language Proficiency?