TEF Canada is the French test run by CCI Paris Île-de-France and recognised by IRCC since 2002. It is one of the two French tests accepted for Canadian immigration, the other being TCF Canada.
For permanent residence you take all four tests. For citizenship you take only listening and speaking. Either way, all of them must be on the same day.
The four tests at a glance
| Test | Time | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening | 40 min | 40 multiple choice questions |
| Reading | 60 min | 40 multiple choice questions |
| Writing | 60 min | 2 texts: 80+ and 200+ words |
| Speaking | 15 min | 2 conversations with an examiner |
About three hours of tests in all. Listening, reading and writing are on a computer; speaking is face to face, and recorded so two people can mark it.
Listening (compréhension orale)
40 questions over 46 screens in 40 minutes, four options each, one right. Each recording plays once, starts by itself after a few seconds to read the question, and you cannot go back. Recordings run from short dialogues and announcements to interviews and longer extracts that carry two questions.
Reading (compréhension écrite)
40 questions over 51 screens in one hour, so about 90 seconds a question. You can move freely between questions. Documents get longer and harder as you go: adverts and emails first, opinion pieces at the end, with gap fills and charts between.
Writing (expression écrite)
Two tasks, timed separately:
- Section A, 25 minutes: continue a news article, at least 80 words.
- Section B, 35 minutes: give and defend your opinion on a statement, at least 200 words.
You type your answers. If your keyboard lacks French accents, the screen has a virtual keyboard.
Speaking (expression orale)
- Section A, 5 minutes: you have seen an advert and phone to find out more. Ask around ten questions, using vous.
- Section B, 10 minutes: present an advert to a friend, played by the examiner, and convince them to take part as they raise objections.
How it is scored
Listening and reading score one point per right answer, and a wrong answer costs nothing, so never leave one blank. For immigration, IRCC reads each skill from the certificate's Équivalence ancien score column: out of 360 for listening, 300 for reading and 450 for speaking and writing. Each skill maps to an NCLC level (the French name for CLB):
| NCLC | Listening | Reading | Speaking | Writing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9+ | 298+ | 248+ | 371+ | 371+ |
| 8 | 280-297 | 233-247 | 349-370 | 349-370 |
| 7 | 249-279 | 207-232 | 310-348 | 310-348 |
| 6 | 217-248 | 181-206 | 271-309 | 271-309 |
| 5 | 181-216 | 151-180 | 226-270 | 226-270 |
Each program sets its own minimum. Check yours on canada.ca. More in the score guides: listening, reading, speaking and writing.
Rules on the day
- Bring photo ID and your invitation.
- Phones off, no dictionaries, nothing on the desk but your ID.
- No notes during listening, reading or speaking.
- Latecomers are not let in once a test starts.
TEF Canada is not the general TEF
CCI runs other versions, including TEF Québec (TEFAQ) for Quebec immigration, with different formats. For IRCC, book TEF Canada.
Practise with TEF Trainer
TEF Trainer is TEF Canada practice for all four papers, in your browser.
- Predictions: TEF-style listening and reading predictions, based on recent exams and updated regularly (560 questions).
- The full question bank: 1,925 listening and reading questions in all.
- Every speaking and writing topic (435) with a model answer, in French with English alongside.
- English translations and answer explanations, plus shuffle mode, autoplay and audio speed control.
144 questions and 32 topics are free, with everything switched on. No account, no card.
Start practising free See pricing
Updated November 2026. Exam rules and fees change: check them with your test centre and on canada.ca.