This study aims to understand how EFL learners in different reading proficiency levels comprehend L2 texts, using five-component skills involving measures of (1) vocabulary knowledge, (2) drawing inferences and predictions, (3) knowledge of text structure and discourse organization, (4) identifying the main idea and summarizing skills, and (5) identifying supporting information of L2 texts. One-hundred and forty-six Japanese undergraduates majoring in different disciplines participated in this study. Correlation analyses, discriminant function analysis, and regression analysis revealed that identifying specific information and drawing inferences contributed greatly to the distinction of three proficiency levels. Results also indicated that Japanese students' attentional processes involving inferencing, problem solving, monitoring and resolving ambiguity were rather low. Further, results confirmed that L2 proficiency supports the efficient functioning of both lower-level and higher-level processing skills deemed crucial for the text model of comprehension as well as the situation model of reader interpretation.