IELTS may not be necessary for Canada Immigration

For Canada Immigration, the IELTS is sufficient but not necessary to establish proficiency in the English language

Warning! Note the date that is written. Laws and regulations are in a constant state of change. What follows is not offered as legal advice and the accuracy of this information is not guaranteed. If you wish to immigrate  to Canada and you do not wish to take the IELTS, you are urged to get legal advice.

One who wishes to immigrate to Canada must comply with the requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. S. 14 of this Act allows for the government to make regulations as follow:

Regulations

Regulations

14. (1) The regulations may provide for any matter relating to the application of this Division, and may define, for the purposes of this Act, the terms used in this Division.

http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/SOR-2002-227/page-3.html#anchorbo-ga:l_6-gb:l_1

One applying to immigrate to Canada as a “permanent resident” must meet certain criteria. The following regulation includes “Proficiency in English and French” as one of the criterion. It reads as follows:

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Proficiency in English and French (20 points)

79. (1) A skilled worker must specify in their application for a permanent resident visa which of English or French is to be considered their first official language in Canada and which is to be considered their second official language in Canada and must

(a) have their proficiency in those languages assessed by an organization or institution designated under subsection (3); or

(b) provide other evidence in writing of their proficiency in those languages.

24 Points

(2) Assessment points for proficiency in the official languages of Canada shall be awarded up to a maximum of 24 points based on the benchmarks referred to in Canadian Language Benchmarks 2000 for the English language and Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens 2006 for the French language, as follows:

(a) for the ability to speak, listen, read or write with high proficiency

(i) in the first official language, 4 points for each of those abilities if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 8 or higher, and

(ii) in the second official language, 2 points for each of those abilities if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 8 or higher;

(b) for the ability to speak, listen, read or write with moderate proficiency

(i) in the first official language, 2 points for each of those abilities if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 6 or 7, and

(ii) in the second official language, 2 points for each of those abilities if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 6 or 7; and

(c) for the ability to speak, listen, read or write

(i) with basic proficiency in either official language, 1 point for each of those abilities, up to a maximum of 2 points, if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 4 or 5, and

(ii) with no proficiency in either official language, 0 points if the skilled worker’s proficiency corresponds to a benchmark of 3 or lower.

Designated organization

(3) The Minister may designate organizations or institutions to assess language proficiency for the purposes of this section and shall, for the purpose of correlating the results of such an assessment by a particular designated organization or institution with the benchmarks referred to in subsection (2), establish the minimum test result required to be awarded for each ability and each level of proficiency in the course of an assessment of language proficiency by that organization or institution in order to meet those benchmarks.

Conclusive evidence

(4) The results of an assessment of the language proficiency of a skilled worker by a designated organization or institution and the correlation of those results with the benchmarks in accordance with subsection (3) are conclusive evidence of the skilled worker’s proficiency in the official languages of Canada for the purposes of subsections (1) and 76(1).

SOR/2004-167, s. 29; SOR/2008-253, s. 7.

S. 79 specifies that an applicant must demonstrate competency in language. That said, the applicant has a clear choice of how to demonstrate that proficiency. The applicant can either:

-          have their proficiency assessed (For example by IELTS); or

-          provide evidence in writing of proficiency.

Although the regulation requires that language proficiency is necessary, a third party assessment of that proficiency is not necessary. Rather, the applicant can provide (in writing) evidence of proficiency.

Immigration Canada has recently required applicants to pass the IELTS (International English Language Testing System). Without a change in the text of the regulation the IELTS cannot be required. That said, a pass on the IELTS would be a sufficient condition to demonstrate competency in English.

Applicant’s who are happy to take the IELTS should feel free to do so. Applicants who do not want to take the IELTS should simply provide evidence (in writing) of their language proficiency.

Once again, if you do not wish to take the IELTS, you should not rely on this post. There is no guarantee of the accuracy of the information. You are urged to consult a Canadian lawyer!