TEF Canada score chart: convert your scores to CLB and NCLC levels

This TEF Canada score chart converts each skill’s score to a CLB / NCLC level from 4 to 10, using IRCC’s own table, and answers the three questions people bring to it: what TEF score is CLB 7, what TEF score is CLB 5, and which column of the certificate to read. The TEF score calculator above reads the same table: type your 4 scores and it shows the level for each skill and your lowest one. Taking TCF Canada instead? Use the TCF Canada score chart. For what NCLC 7 unlocks in Express Entry, read CLB 7 in French.

CLB and NCLC are the same scale

CLB stands for Canadian Language Benchmarks. NCLC stands for Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens. IRCC uses CLB for English and NCLC for French [1]. The levels line up one for one, so NCLC 7 is CLB 7. Neither is the A1 to C2 scale on course certificates; French levels explained covers how the two relate.

TEF Canada to CLB conversion table

Every number below is copied from IRCC’s language test page for Express Entry [1]. IRCC’s table shows levels 4 to 10. Look up each skill separately.

IRCC lists no level below 4. In its shorter points tables, IRCC writes the top band as “9 and above” (371+, 298+, 248+ and 371+), with the same lower bounds [1].

What TEF score is CLB 7?

CLB 7 on TEF Canada is 310 to 348 in speaking, 249 to 279 in listening, 207 to 232 in reading and 310 to 348 in writing, read from the “Équivalence ancien score” column [1]. One skill below its range means that skill sits at CLB 6, whatever the other three score.

What TEF score is CLB 5?

CLB 5 on TEF Canada is 226 to 270 in speaking, 181 to 216 in listening, 151 to 180 in reading and 226 to 270 in writing [1]. This is the level the Canadian Experience Class asks for in TEER 2 or 3 jobs, and the speaking and listening level for the Federal Skilled Trades Program [1]. CLB 5 in French covers who needs it and what it earns.

How to read your certificate

Your TEF Canada statement of results (attestation de résultats) shows more than one set of numbers. IRCC says which one counts for Express Entry [1].

1. Find the column named “Équivalence ancien score” (previous score equivalency). IRCC bases your language level on this column.
2. Enter only the scores from that column, one for each of the 4 skills.
3. Ignore the column named “Score / 699”. IRCC says not to enter those results in an Express Entry profile because they are not compatible with its system at this time.

IRCC warns that it may refuse an application if the wrong scores are entered [1]. The table on this page only works with the “Équivalence ancien score” numbers. IRCC adds that your results also show the NCLC level you reached for each part of the test [1].

If you took TEF Canada between 11 December 2023 and 6 May 2024

IRCC explains that CCI Paris Ile-de-France, which runs TEF Canada, temporarily modified the NCLC levels in this period to reflect raw scores. The change was reverted to the grid IRCC uses now, which is the table above [1].

IRCC says affected candidates received an email from CCI with an updated score, and need to update their Express Entry profile with it. IRCC shows only one TEF Canada table and does not publish the temporary mapping [1]. Use that updated score with the table above.

How long TEF Canada results are valid

For Express Entry, IRCC says your test results must be less than 2 years old when you complete your Express Entry profile and when you submit your application for permanent residence. IRCC says it will refuse an application made with expired results [1].

What CLB level do I need?

That depends on the program. These are the levels IRCC states.

A note on citizenship. For a TEF Canada test taken on or after 1 July 2012, IRCC’s citizenship pages describe the result it accepts as B1 or higher in listening and speaking, rather than as a score [4]. Whether IRCC applies the Express Entry score ranges above to citizenship applications is not stated on those pages, so for citizenship go by the level they name.

The Express Entry French bonus

IRCC’s Express Entry criteria list 2 cases [2].

• 25 points: NCLC 7 or higher in all 4 French skills, with CLB 4 or lower in English or no English test.
• 50 points: NCLC 7 or higher in all 4 French skills, with CLB 5 or higher in all 4 English skills.

The condition is all 4 skills. With TEF Canada that means at least 310 in speaking, 249 in listening, 207 in reading and 310 in writing.

Common mistakes

• Using the “Score / 699” column. IRCC warns about this directly. Use “Équivalence ancien score” [1].
• Using a TCF Canada chart. TCF Canada has different score ranges. A TEF Canada score looked up in a TCF Canada table gives a wrong level.
• Averaging the 4 skills. IRCC’s table has no overall level. Each skill is converted on its own, and “all 4 skills” requirements are decided by your lowest one.
• Reading the wrong column of the table. Speaking and writing share the same ranges. Listening and reading each have their own. A 300 is CLB 10 in reading but CLB 6 in speaking.
• Relying on a chart that has no date. IRCC can change its page. Compare the date under “Page details” at the bottom of the IRCC page with the date at the top of this one.

Sources