No competence.

Can produce strictly limited repertoire of holophrastic phrases - i. e. isolated lexical items, fixed phrases (e. g. greetings). No grammatical knowledge and pronunciation based wholly on mother tongue.
Can be understood by native speaker used to dealing with foreigners.
Needs to support linguistic skill with paralinguistic (kinetic) devices.

Can attempt to construct grammatical sequences relevant to most pressing aspects of overall objectives. Only effective in meeting most easily identifiable and clearly statable needs. Generally dependent on memorization of well-rehearsed sentence-types with limited capacity for lexical substitution. No creative capacity, nor any likelihood of generalizing linguistic knowledge beyond already familiar situations. (Can read aloud a prepared written text).
Heavily dependent on understanding interlocutor.
Speech very hesitant, with repetitions, self-corrections and frequent grammatical and phonological/phonetic errors. Deliberate in actual articulation (or nervously quick) and slow in response to other utterances.

Can use grammatical knowledge to construct utterances relevant to overall objectives. Range of expression very limited so that often forced to adapt content of message to form at his/her disposal. Little capacity to generalize grammatical knowledge and therefore to handle unforeseen communication needs. Only competent to deal with largely predictable needs. Tends to use single sentence utterances.
Can be understood by most native speakers with effort, but patient understanding still necessary in continuing conversation i. e. some strain/irritation in hearer.
Grammatical error and uncertainty still frequent, but some capacity for self-correction.
Pronunciation error still very noticeable. Speech still slow, with repetitions, reformulations and hesitations. When responding, requires thought if gross errors to be avoided.

Able to convey most types of information relevant to objectives with little risk of confusion in hearer. Can relate events in their temporal sequence, whether biographical or descriptive, and can transmit accumulated factual information. Unable to construct chains of reasoning and deploy arguments to polemic effect. Relatively passive in situations where discussion is among native speakers unless directly addressed. Will always opt to use mother-tongue if this is acceptable to addressees.
Degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without imposing strain or either party. Occasionally seeks assistance of person addressed.
Notable reduction in frequency of grammatical errors, except where long sequences of speech attempted, but features of L1 accent still noticeable. Still often at a loss for vocabulary and faults of idioms and style recur.

Speech entirely adequate for all purposes related to domain of objectives. Although lacking facility in handling complicated issues and therefore at a disadvantage when compared with native speakers, can express ideas on all issues connected with objectives. In continuous speech still needs to plan what is said and to adjust expressions or to reformulate to find more effective form for communication of ideas. Emphasis and rhetorical effect quite often misplaced, though grammatical difficulties as such rarely a handicap.
Interlocutors occasionally seek clarification where misunderstanding possible.
Obvious linguistic errors occur only occasionally. Frequently recurring language situations handled with ease and variety. Some uncertainty persists in more rarely encountered situations.

Complete confidence in meeting all demands placed on spoken language ability. Facility in switching levels, topics etc. Able to reformulate some ideas in differing linguistic forms for emphasis, polemics, disambiguation etc. As effective in communication as a native speaker. Not at any disadvantage in use of second language.
Fluency and spontaneity of utterance enable him to maintain conversation/speech in areas related to objectives with conviction, lack of strain and no imposition on hearer.
Distinguishable from native speaker only by very rare grammatical misjudgements, by faint, residual traces of L1 accent and by very occasional error of lexical or stylistic selection.

Speaks with facility, fluency and accuracy that is indistinguishable from that of native speaker. Can cope with different style and handle language needs within same limits as those encountered by native speakers. (It is worth pointing out that (a) even native speakers may lack the linguistic skill to deal with situations that have not hitherto been within their experience, and (b) although direct observation of a non-native speaker may reveal no differences from an L1 speaker, more psycholinguistically-oriented tests will usually show that the subject's mother-tongue is dominant).
Level normally reached only by people who have lived for a substantial period in the country concerned