Language Proficiency required for Immigrating to Canada

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Language requirements — Express Entry (Skilled immigrants)

You must prove your ability in English or French in these four areas:

listening,
speaking,
reading, and
writing.
You must meet the minimum language levels, which are different depending on the program.

Language requirements —

Skilled immigrants (Express Entry)
You must meet the minimum level of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 in English or
Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 7 in French
for your first official language in all four language abilities.
To get points for your second official language, you must meet the minimum level of CLB 5 in all four language abilities.

Canadian Experience Class

The skills you need will depend on the group the job is classified in under the National Occupational Classification system (NOC). You must meet the minimum level for all four language abilities.
If your skilled work experience in Canada is in a
• NOC 0 or A job, the minimum level is CLB 7 (English) or NCLC 7 (French).
• NOC B job, the minimum level is CLB 5 (English) or NCLC 5 (French).

Federal Skilled Trades Program

You must meet the minimum level of
• CLB 5 (English) or NCLC 5 (French) for speaking and listening, and
• CLB 4 (English) or NCLC 4 (French) for reading and writing.
You must take a language test approved by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and include the results when you complete your Express Entry profile if you are invited to apply for permanent residence.

If you do not, you will not be eligible for Express Entry.
How long language test results are valid for -

Your test results must be less than two years old when you submit your application for permanent residence.

You can use your test results to find your CLB level.

IELTS – First official language (Maximum 24 points)

CLB LEVEL ABILITY: SPEAKING ABILITY: LISTENING ABILITY: READING ABILITY: WRITING POINTS PER ABILITY
7 6.0 6.0 – 7.0 6.0 6.0 4
8 6.5 7.5 6.5 6.5 5
9 7.0 8.0 7.0 7.0 6
10 and above 7.5 – 9.0 8.5 – 9.0 8.0 – 9.0 7.5 – 9.0 6
Second official language (4 points if you meet the minimum threshold in all four language abilities)

CLB LEVEL ABILITY: SPEAKING ABILITY: LISTENING ABILITY: READING ABILITY: WRITING POINTS (TOTAL)
5 and above 5.0 – 9.0 5.0 – 9.0 4.0 – 9.0 5.0 – 9.0 4

Published by Pritpal Ranhotra