TEF Canada Speaking: Section A & B Examples

The TEF Canada speaking test (expression orale) lasts 15 minutes with an examiner. In Section A (5 minutes) you phone about an advertisement and ask about ten questions to get information. In Section B (10 minutes) you present a document to a friend and try to convince them, while the examiner, playing your friend, keeps disagreeing.

Below you'll find how each section works, model dialogues we wrote at around NCLC 7–8, a question toolkit, 12 practice scenarios and timing drills. If you've read elsewhere that the test lasts 20 minutes: the official total is 15 minutes.

TEF Canada speaking at a glance

• Face to face. Listening, reading and writing are on computer, but speaking is always with an examiner.
• Recorded every time. Le français des affaires says the test is "systématiquement enregistrée pour permettre une double évaluation": the examiner rates you, then a second evaluator rates the recording.
• No notes. Paper, notes and documents aren't allowed during the listening and speaking tests, apart from the task documents you're given.
• No published preparation time. Le français des affaires doesn't list separate preparation time, so the 5 and 10 minutes are conversation time. Train yourself to read the document and start within seconds.

For the full test structure, see the TEF Canada exam format.

Section A: obtaining information (5 minutes)

You get an ad or a notice from daily life: a job, a service, a leisure activity, housing. The instruction is roughly: you've read this ad, you're interested, you phone for more information; ask about ten questions. The examiner plays the person who answers.

Two things matter: formal register (you're calling a stranger, so use vous) and varied, relevant questions. Ten versions of "C'est combien ?" won't show your range.

The question toolkit

Useful openers and closers: Bonjour, je vous appelle au sujet de votre annonce… · Excusez-moi, pourriez-vous répéter ? · Une dernière question… · Je vous remercie pour ces renseignements, je vais réfléchir et je vous rappelle.

Model dialogue: Section A

The ad (written by us): Colocation : chambre meublée à louer dans un grand appartement, quartier Saint-Roch, Québec. Proche des transports. Libre à partir du 1er novembre. Contactez Julie.

That's eleven questions, in four different forms, with natural follow-ups. Notice that the candidate listens to each answer: question 4 only makes sense because of the reply before it.

Section B: convincing a friend (10 minutes)

You get a second document, again an ad or a notice. You tell a friend about it, present the document, and try to convince them to do something: join, buy, go, sign up. The examiner plays your friend. Le français des affaires is blunt about it: your partner will never agree with you.

That's the point. You're assessed on how you argue, not on whether you win. Switch to informal register (tu), stay friendly, and keep finding new arguments.

The argument ladder

1. Present the document: what it is, who it's for, the key details.
2. Your first argument, linked to your friend's life (toi qui adores…, tu m'as dit que…).
3. Answer each objection: acknowledge, then counter (je comprends, mais… · c'est vrai, cependant… · justement !).
4. New arguments from different angles: health, money, social life, career, fun.
5. A compromise or concrete offer (et si on essayait juste une fois ? · je t'accompagne la première fois).
6. Wrap up naturally when the examiner signals the end.

Model dialogue: Section B

The ad (written by us): Club de randonnée « Les Sentiers du week-end » : sorties chaque samedi, tous niveaux, covoiturage organisé, inscription annuelle.

A full Section B is longer than this extract: in 10 minutes you'll go through more objections. That's why you need a stock of different angles, not just one good argument.

Practise with the official timings

Use the timer below with any scenario from the next section. Section A runs 5:00 and Section B 10:00, straight away, with no preparation phase, because none is published for the TEF Canada.

Looking for more prompts? The free TCF and TEF speaking question bank has questions and useful phrases for each task.

Prefer to have scenarios drawn for you? The speaking cards game has Section A and Section B prompts in the TEF format, the timer built in, and a checklist to grade yourself when the time is up.

12 practice scenarios

All written by us in the official format. Record yourself, then listen back.

Section A (ask about ten questions, formal vous):

1. Une école de langue propose des cours de cuisine du soir.
2. Une entreprise cherche un ou une réceptionniste à temps partiel.
3. Un club de sport ouvre une nouvelle salle près de chez vous.
4. Une agence loue des chalets pour les vacances d'hiver.
5. Une association cherche des bénévoles pour un festival de musique.
6. Un particulier vend une voiture d'occasion.

Section B (convince a friend, informal tu): 7. Convaincre un ami de suivre un cours de théâtre amateur. 8. Convaincre une amie d'adopter un chien d'un refuge. 9. Convaincre un ami de partir en voyage en train plutôt qu'en avion. 10. Convaincre une amie de s'inscrire à un jardin communautaire. 11. Convaincre un ami de participer à une course caritative de 5 km. 12. Convaincre une amie de faire du bénévolat à la bibliothèque du quartier.

Timing drills

1. The 10-question sprint

   Read a Section A scenario and write nothing. Ask ten questions out loud in under three minutes, using at least three question forms.

2. The objection list

   For a Section B scenario, list six objections your friend could raise (money, time, distance, fear, boredom, company), then answer each out loud in 30 seconds.

3. Full simulation

   Ask a partner to play the examiner and to refuse everything. Run the full 5 + 10 minutes with the timer, recording yourself.

4. Listen back

   Count your questions in Section A and your distinct arguments in Section B. Note any long silences or English words, and redo the scenario the next day.

Common mistakes

• Using tu in Section A or vous in Section B. The register switch is part of the task.
• Asking only yes/no questions in Section A. Mix in combien, quand, comment, pourquoi.
• Not listening to the answers. If the examiner says the room is not furnished, don't ask what furniture it has.
• Forgetting to present the document in Section B before arguing.
• Repeating one argument when the friend refuses. Change the angle instead.
• Getting annoyed or giving up when the examiner disagrees. They will always disagree; stay warm and keep going.

TEF vs TCF speaking

The TCF Canada speaking test is shorter (about 12 minutes) and has three tasks. Its task 2 is close to TEF Section A: a role-play where you ask for information. See our TCF Canada speaking task 2 examples or the TCF Canada speaking practice if you're comparing the two tests. The TEF has no equivalent of the TCF's opinion monologue; instead, Section B makes you argue in a live exchange.

Practise and check your level

1. Get a baseline. Practise Section A and B with the AI examiner to hear where you stand.
2. Convert your result. For Express Entry, NCLC 7 in speaking starts at 310 on the ancien score (out of 450). Check any score with the TEF Canada NCLC score converter, and see all four NCLC 7 targets in our NCLC 7 on the TEF Canada guide.
3. Train the written twin. Section B of the writing test is the same skill on paper: see our TEF Canada writing examples.

Applying for citizenship rather than PR? Only listening and speaking count, at B1 or higher: read more about speaking for citizenship. For everything else, start from the TEF Canada practice hub.