Scores and levels
TEF Canada score to NCLC, skill by skill
Choose the chart that matches your test date, type the four scores of your report: the NCLC of each skill and the language points appear at once.
Express Entry language points
99
| First official language | 74 |
| Second official language | 0 |
| French bonus | 25 |
Level per skill
| TEF Canada (from Dec. 11, 2023) | Reading: NCLC 7Writing: NCLC 7Listening: NCLC 8Speaking: NCLC 7 |
Language minimum met?
- Federal Skilled Worker (CLB 7 all four)Met
- Canadian Experience Class, TEER 0 or 1 job (CLB 7)Met
- Canadian Experience Class, TEER 2 or 3 job (CLB 5)Met
- Federal Skilled Trades (5 speaking/listening, 4 reading/writing)Met
- Express Entry French-language category (NCLC 7 all four)Met
- Citizenship, ages 18 to 54 (CLB 4 listening and speaking)Met
Points from language only: age, education, work experience and the rest of the CRS are not counted here. Charts and points read on canada.ca.
A TEF Canada result is converted to an NCLC level separately for each of the four tests, with a chart that depends on the date of the test. Since 11 December 2023 each test has its own chart on the 0 to 699 scale: in reading, NCLC 7 starts at 434, in writing at 428, in listening at 434 and in speaking at 456. Tests taken from 1 October 2019 to 10 December 2023 used one chart for all four, with NCLC 7 from 450. Older reports used separate scales (reading out of 300, writing out of 450, listening out of 360, speaking out of 450), and that "équivalence ancien score" column is still the one IRCC and the CCI ask you to type in an Express Entry profile. The level that counts is the lowest of the four for programme minimums, while Comprehensive Ranking System points are added skill by skill, so a weaker writing score costs points even when the other three are strong.
One TEF Canada score to NCLC
NCLC level
NCLC 7
| Scale of this skill | 0–699 |
| First-language points (single) | 17 |
| NCLC 7 (Express Entry) | reached |
Charts, converters and questions by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How charts and questions are built
The chart for tests taken since 11 December 2023
This is the chart the CCI Paris Île-de-France publishes for current TEF Canada reports, read on October 26, 2026. It goes up to NCLC 12; IRCC's own chart stops at "10 and above", which is all Express Entry needs.
| CLB / NCLC | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 615–699 | 619–699 | 615–699 | 642–699 |
| 11 | 573–614 | 577–618 | 573–614 | 592–641 |
| 10 | 546–572 | 558–576 | 546–572 | 556–591 |
| 9 | 503–545 | 512–557 | 503–545 | 518–555 |
| 8 | 462–502 | 472–511 | 462–502 | 494–517 |
| 7 | 434–461 | 428–471 | 434–461 | 456–493 |
| 6 | 393–433 | 379–427 | 393–433 | 422–455 |
| 5 | 352–392 | 330–378 | 352–392 | 387–421 |
| 4 | 306–351 | 268–329 | 306–351 | 328–386 |
Below the bottom of NCLC 4 (306 in reading, 268 in writing, 306 in listening, 328 in speaking) a skill counts for nothing in the Comprehensive Ranking System and fails every federal minimum.
Tests from 1 October 2019 to 10 December 2023
During those four years one chart served the four tests, which made the conversion simple: the same band, whatever the skill.
| CLB / NCLC | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 566–699 | 566–699 | 566–699 | 566–699 |
| 9 | 533–565 | 533–565 | 533–565 | 533–565 |
| 8 | 500–532 | 500–532 | 500–532 | 500–532 |
| 7 | 450–499 | 450–499 | 450–499 | 450–499 |
| 6 | 400–449 | 400–449 | 400–449 | 400–449 |
| 5 | 350–399 | 350–399 | 350–399 | 350–399 |
| 4 | 300–349 | 300–349 | 300–349 | 300–349 |
A report from that period is now more than two years old in most cases. IRCC asks for results that are less than two years old when you create your profile and again when you apply for permanent residence, so an old report is mostly useful to compare your progress, not to apply. The validity page counts the days left on a report.
The "équivalence ancien score" column
Before 30 September 2019 the TEF used a different scale for each test. Those old scores live on in today's reports as a second column, and the CCI and IRCC tell candidates to type that column in the Express Entry profile. Its chart:
| CLB / NCLC | 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 |
If you type the old-score figures from your report into the converter with this chart selected, you should land on the same NCLC as the 699 chart gives. When the two disagree, the report itself is the reference and the CCI can explain the gap; the CCI results page covers how scores are produced.
From NCLC to Express Entry points
Each skill earns its own points. In the first official language a single candidate gets 17 points per skill at NCLC 7, 31 at NCLC 9 and 34 at NCLC 10 or more; with an accompanying spouse the figures are 16, 29 and 32. French as a second official language adds up to 24 points, and NCLC 7 on all four French tests opens the French bonus of 25 or 50 points, detailed on the French bonus page. The full scale is on the language points page.
Reading your result well
Look at the lowest of your four levels first. The Federal Skilled Worker program and the French-language category ask NCLC 7 in every skill, so one test at NCLC 6 blocks both, whatever the other three say. Then look at the margin: a score just above a band is fragile if you plan to sit the test again, because a new sitting replaces nothing automatically and can come out lower. The NCLC 7 page lists the scores to aim for in each test, and the TEF Canada mock sections help you work on the weakest one.