Answer
An official A2 or B1 certificate is generally not a standalone mandatory document, but the applicant must communicate in Spanish in person during the procedure. The official and witnesses must be able to understand answers about the applicant’s family, work, address, and residence history; an interpreter should not substitute for the applicant’s ability to explain themselves.
A formal CEFR exam and an actual language assessment are different things. The level should be sufficient to read simple questions, understand instructions, and coherently describe your life. Memorized answers without understanding are easily exposed when follow-up questions are asked.
Before filing, conduct a practice interview in Spanish with a teacher and learn document-related vocabulary. If the conversation still breaks down into monosyllabic phrases, it is wiser to practise more than to count on the office’s leniency.