TEF Canada Results: When They Arrive and How to Read Them

TEF Canada results arrive within 1 to 10 working days of your test, by email: you get a link to an online digital vault where you download your attestation, and no paper copy is issued. For Express Entry, the only numbers that matter are in the "Équivalence ancien score" column, not the big /699 scores.

This guide explains when to expect your results, how to read both columns of the attestation, what to type into your Express Entry profile, how long the results stay valid, and what to do if one skill fell short of NCLC 7.

When do TEF Canada results come out?

Le français des affaires (CCI Paris Île-de-France), the test owner, says results are sent within 1 to 10 working days of the test date. Weekends and public holidays don't count.

Here's how they reach you:

1. Your test centre is told first. It remains your main contact for any question about your results.
2. You receive an email with a link to an online digital vault (coffre-fort numérique). Check your spam folder if nothing has arrived after ten working days.
3. You download your attestation from the vault. There's no paper certificate.

The test owner keeps your attestation for 10 years. Download it and keep your own copy anyway: you'll need the PDF for your immigration file.

Plan your dates

Pick the TEF and enter your test date to see when results should arrive, your earliest retake date and when the results stop being valid for IRCC:

Haven't booked yet? See upcoming TEF Canada exam dates and our step-by-step guide on how to book the TEF Canada.

How to read your TEF Canada attestation

The attestation is personalised with your photo and signature. For each test (épreuve) it shows:

• A score from 0 to 699. This is the main score since the format changed on 11 December 2023.
• A CEFR level, from A1 to C2, with a short description of what you can do in French. Our guide to NCLC, CLB and CEFR levels shows how the scales relate.
• An NCLC level, from 1 to 12.
• An "Équivalence ancien score" (previous score equivalency): the same result expressed on the older scale, where listening is out of 360, reading out of 300, and writing and speaking out of 450.

Four tests, four rows. For immigration you need all four on the same attestation. For citizenship, only listening and speaking are required.

Which column for which purpose?

The right column depends on what you're applying for. Pick your goal below:

Convert your ancien scores to NCLC

IRCC converts the four ancien scores to NCLC levels with this table. NCLC 7, the level for French-language Express Entry draws and the French bonus points, starts at 249 in listening, 207 in reading, 310 in writing and 310 in speaking.

Three things to remember:

• Each skill has its own scale. 250 is NCLC 7 in listening but NCLC 9 in reading (see the TEF scores for NCLC 9 in every skill).
• There's no average. Your overall level is your lowest skill. NCLC 9 in three skills and NCLC 6 in one counts as NCLC 6 for any "NCLC 7 in all four" rule.
• Writing and speaking share one set of cut-offs. 310 to 348 is NCLC 7 in both.

To convert a full set at once, use the NCLC score converter. It can send your levels straight into the CRS calculator. The full explanation of both scales is in our TEF Canada score chart.

Using your TEF results in Express Entry

IRCC's Express Entry language page and the test owner give the same instructions:

1. Enter the four ancien scores

   Listening, reading, writing and speaking, exactly as printed in the "Équivalence ancien score" column. IRCC works out your NCLC levels.

2. Add the certificate number and PIN if asked

   Both are at the bottom left of the attestation. The certificate number is the part before the dash. The PIN (NIP) is the part after the dash.

3. Watch the two-year rule

   Results must be less than 2 years old when you create your profile and when you submit your permanent residence application. If they'll expire before you can apply, IRCC says you can retest, apply before they expire, or decline the invitation and return to the pool. An application with expired results is refused.

The test owner states the attestation is valid for 2 years from its issue date, so note that date somewhere you'll see it. Our news item on TEF and TCF results validity for Express Entry covers the two-year rule in more detail. If you're still in the pool about 18 months after your test, book the next one so new results arrive before the old ones expire.

A note on tests from December 2023 to May 2024

IRCC says that for tests taken between 11 December 2023 and 6 May 2024, CCI temporarily reported NCLC levels based on raw scores, then reverted to the Express Entry grid and emailed affected candidates updated scores. Those results are now more than two years old, so they've expired for Express Entry anyway. If your profile still uses one, you need a new test.

What NCLC 7 is worth

With NCLC 7 or higher in all four French skills, you can be invited in French-language category draws and you get 25 additional CRS points, or 50 if you also have CLB 5 or higher in all four English skills. Our guide to French CRS points walks through the maths, and here's the latest French-category round:

Worked examples

These people are illustrations, not real candidates. All scores are ancien scores.

Priya, 31, Express Entry. Listening 262, reading 215, writing 330, speaking 318. That's NCLC 7 in every skill. She updates her profile with the four ancien scores, the certificate number and the PIN on the day her attestation arrives.

Mehdi, 36, one skill short. Listening 300, reading 250, writing 355, speaking 300. That's NCLC 9, 9, 8 and 6. His speaking score is 10 points below the NCLC 7 cut-off of 310, so for every "all four" rule his level is NCLC 6. He books a retake for 6 weeks later and spends almost all his study time on speaking.

Lucía, 49, citizenship. She only took listening and speaking, which is all the TEF Canada needs for citizenship. IRCC asks for B1 or higher in both on the TEF, and the test owner states a minimum of NCLC 4. Her attestation shows B1 in each, so it works for her application.

Missed NCLC 7? What to do next

1. Find the real gap

Compare each ancien score with its NCLC 7 cut-off. Is it one skill or two? Ten points or fifty? A small gap in speaking or writing usually comes from format problems: running out of questions in speaking section A, giving up too early when your "friend" disagrees in section B, or writing too little in section B. Those are fixable in weeks. Our TEF Canada speaking examples and writing examples show what a full answer looks like.

2. Don't count on a re-mark

There's no standard re-marking service for the TEF Canada. Writing is already marked by two independent markers, and speaking is rated by the examiner and then by a second evaluator from the recording. The test owner accepts an appeal (recours) within 30 days of the attestation date, but only for a serious anomaly or malfunction during the test, and only if you reported it to the supervisor on the day.

So if the audio cut out or the computer froze, tell the supervisor before you leave the room. If you simply disagree with a mark, a retake is the way to change it.

3. Plan the retake

You can take the TEF Canada as often as you like, with a 20-day waiting period between two sessions. Twenty days is the minimum, not a plan. Retaking without changing how you prepare rarely changes the result. Remember that for immigration you sit all four tests again, on the same day: a retake can also lower a skill that was fine, so keep practising all four.

Use the French study plan to turn your gap into a weekly schedule, then pick a date from the TEF Canada exam dates that fits it.

4. Check what you already qualify for

Even without NCLC 7, your results count. Choose your lowest oral and written levels to see what they unlock today:

NCLC 5 or 6 can earn second-official-language points, meet the Mobilité francophone requirement or count for some provincial streams. Our French PNP streams page shows where.

Common results problems

• No email after 10 working days? Check your spam folder, then contact your test centre. It's informed of results first.
• Wrong name or date of birth? On test day, the supervisor asks you to confirm your details on a tablet (see what happens on TEF Canada test day), because they're printed on the attestation. If something is still wrong, contact your centre before you use the attestation anywhere.
• Lost the file? Go back to the digital vault link, or ask your centre.
• Took the TCF Canada instead? Its results work differently: see our TCF Canada results guide.

Your next step

1. Know where you stand

   Before a first attempt or a retake, take the free 10-question French level check. It takes about five minutes.

2. Rehearse the whole test

   Sit a free TEF Canada mock test in the official format and compare each skill with your attestation.

3. Train the skill holding you back

   Use the TEF Canada practice test hub for the weakest skill. For detailed feedback on every writing and speaking attempt, see our plans.

Our take

The TEF's fast, digital results are a real advantage, but the attestation is easy to misread. Download it, find the "Équivalence ancien score" column, check each number against 249, 207, 310 and 310, and type those four numbers, plus the certificate number and PIN, into your profile. Then put the issue date in your calendar, because two years goes faster than you think.

Result delays, appeal rules and IRCC requirements can change. This article reflects Le français des affaires' and IRCC's pages as checked on the date shown at the top. NCLC French is not affiliated with IRCC, France Éducation international or Le français des affaires.