What's a CLB?
In most cases, applicants for permanent residence in Canada need to prove their language skills in English or French. To do so, they must take an approved language test. There are four language tests accepted for immigration to Canada; two for English and two for French:
• IELTS
• CELPIP
• TCF
• TEF
CLB 4 for reading and writing. See the following tables for your language level in CLB/NCLC based on your test results:
TCF
The Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) (or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadien (NCLC) for French) was created to assess language skills of permanent residence candidates. A candidate's CLB score can be different for each of the four abilities that are evaluated during the test:
- writing
- reading
- listening
- speaking
CLB 4 for reading and writing. See the following tables for your language level in CLB/NCLC based on your test results:
CELPIP-G
CLB Level | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
IELTS
CLB Level | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 and above | 8.0-9.0 | 7.5-9.0 | 8.5-9.0 | 7.5-9.0 |
9 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 |
8 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 7.5 | 6.5 |
7 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
6 | 5.0 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 |
5 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
4 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
TCF
NCLC Level | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 and above | 549-699 | 16-20 | 549-699 | 16-20 |
9 | 524-548 | 14-15 | 523-548 | 14-15 |
8 | 499-523 | 12-13 | 503-522 | 12-13 |
7 | 453-498 | 10-11 | 458-502 | 10-11 |
6 | 406-452 | 7-9 | 398-457 | 7-9 |
5 | 375-405 | 6 | 369-397 | 6 |
4 | 342-374 | 4-5 | 331-368 | 4-5 |
TEF
NCLC Level | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 | 263-300 | 393-450 | 316-360 | 393-450 |
9 | 248-262 | 371-392 | 298-315 | 371-392 |
8 | 233-247 | 349-370 | 280-297 | 349-370 |
7 | 207-232 | 310-348 | 249-279 | 310-348 |
6 | 181-206 | 271-309 | 217-248 | 271-309 |
5 | 151-180 | 226-270 | 181-216 | 226-270 |
4 | 121-150 | 181-225 | 145-180 | 181-225 |
IRCC will use the test results as proof of an applicant's language skills. In order to be valid, test results must be less than two years old at the time of application for permanent residence. There are provisions if a candidate can't complete one or more sections of the language test because of a disability.
If you're unsure what your test results mean or which programs you're eligible for, book your initial consultation with us today!