What is TEF Canada? The French test for Canada PR, explained from zero

TEF Canada is a French language test you sit in person at an approved centre, and Canada's immigration department accepts it as proof of your French. It measures listening, reading, writing and speaking. It teaches you nothing and grants you no status on its own. It gives you a set of scores that you then use in an immigration application.

This page is the starting point. For depth, go to the exam format guide, the score chart and the booking guide.

TEF is short for Test d'évaluation de français, which translates as "French evaluation test". So the full form of TEF Canada is simply Test d'évaluation de français pour le Canada. In Canadian immigration conversations, "the TEF" nearly always means this Canada version, but the shorthand hides a trap, covered in the next section.

You will meet two more abbreviations straight away. IRCC is Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the federal department that decides immigration files. NCLC (Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens) is the Canadian scale your TEF scores convert to. It is the French-language twin of the English CLB, and IRCC uses the same numbered levels for both.

TEF is a family of tests from the same organisation. TEF Canada is one member of that family. They share a name and a style of question, but they serve different purposes, so booking the wrong one can cost you a full exam fee.

Le français des affaires runs it. That is a department of the Paris Île-de-France Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which has issued the TEF since 1998. It says IRCC has recognised TEF Canada since 2002.

Three separate parties are involved, and knowing who does what saves you sending questions to the wrong place:

• Le français des affaires designs the test and issues your results.
• Your test centre, often an Alliance Française or a university, sets the dates and the fee, takes your booking and runs the session. Browse them in the centre directory.
• IRCC sets which levels each immigration program needs. It does not run the test, and your centre does not send it your result. You enter your own scores in your profile.

Nobody needs TEF Canada specifically, because TCF Canada is accepted on equal terms. And many Express Entry applicants need no French test at all, since an English test can meet the language requirement. See whether French is required for Canada PR for the full picture.

You probably want TEF Canada or TCF Canada if one of these fits you:

• You want extra CRS points or eligibility for French category draws in Express Entry.
• You speak French better than English, and want French as your first official language.
• You are applying for a work permit or pilot that asks for French, such as Francophone Mobility.
• You need language proof for Canadian citizenship.
• A Canadian professional order you are joining officially accepts it. Check with the order first.

Not sure which of the two exams suits you? The short TEF or TCF quiz helps, and our TEF vs TCF comparison goes through the differences.

For immigration, you take four modules, all on the same day, in about 2 hours 55 minutes. Two are multiple choice, and two are marked by people.

Some centres run a computer version called e-TEF. You still go to the centre, and speaking is still with a live examiner. For citizenship, TEF Canada needs only listening and speaking. The full format guide covers each section in detail, and TEF Canada from scratch is the place to start if you have no French yet.

You don't pass or fail. Each skill gets its own score, and that score maps to an NCLC level. What counts as enough depends on your goal, as our passing score guide explains. For Express Entry's French draws and CRS bonus, the target is NCLC 7 in all four skills: at least 249 in listening, 207 in reading, and 310 in both writing and speaking.

Those numbers come from the "ancien score" column on your results. Your certificate also shows a score out of 699, and IRCC tells you not to enter that one in your profile. This guide shows you where to look.

Each centre sets its own price, so treat these as rough figures from 2026 and confirm on your centre's booking page:

~₹26,000

India, including GST

CA$390–436

Canada, typical range

₦750,000

Listed at AF Port Harcourt, Nigeria

The exam fee is only one line in the budget. A retake means paying the full fee again, and travel can add more if your nearest seats are in another city. The fees guide lists the details, and the cost calculator adds up your own total.

The test is one step in a longer process. A TEF Canada result doesn't give you PR. It feeds your Express Entry profile, and here is the order things happen in:

1. 1Set your targetDecide which NCLC level your plan needs. For French draws and the CRS bonus, it is NCLC 7 in every skill.
2. 2Prepare, then book a seatSeats can sell out quickly, so booking may need to start well before you feel ready. Check upcoming TEF Canada sessions.
3. 3Sit the test and wait for resultsResults usually arrive in about 2 weeks, depending on the centre.
4. 4Enter your scores in Express EntryYou type your scores and attestation number into your profile yourself. Results must be valid at that point.
5. 5Get ranked and wait for an invitationYour NCLC levels feed your CRS score. NCLC 7 in all four skills adds +25, or +50 if your English is also CLB 5+ in all four, and you become eligible for French-language draws.
6. 6Apply for PR before your result expiresResults last 2 years from the test date and must still be valid when you submit your PR application.