French-speaking candidates in Express Entry: a plain-English guide

Who this is for

IRCC has a page of immigration programs and services for French speakers and bilingual speakers, including communities outside Quebec that offer services in French.^[1]

The main features in this guide sit inside Express Entry, the online system IRCC uses to manage immigration applications from skilled workers.^[3]

IRCC says you must be eligible for one of the three programs managed through Express Entry to be placed in the pool. The three programs are the Canadian Experience Class, the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the Federal Skilled Trades Program.^[4]

French ability does not replace that requirement. IRCC says that to be eligible as a French-speaking skilled worker in Express Entry, you must be eligible for one of those three programs.^[2]

The French-language proficiency category

In category-based rounds of invitations, IRCC invites candidates in the Express Entry pool who are eligible for a specific category that the Minister sets up to meet an identified economic goal. IRCC lists the ability to communicate in a specific official language among the criteria it can use.^[5]

"French-language proficiency" is first on IRCC's list of current categories, which also includes occupation-based categories such as healthcare and social services, STEM, trades and education.^[5]

To be eligible for the French-language proficiency category, IRCC says you must have French-language test results showing a minimum of 7 on the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) in all four language abilities, and meet all the requirements in the instructions for that round. IRCC says full details are included in each round's instructions.^[5]

In category-based rounds, IRCC ranks the eligible candidates by CRS score and invites those with the highest scores. Candidates must still meet the minimum criteria for Express Entry, including eligibility for one of its three programs.^[5]

IRCC describes category-based rounds as a supplement to other round types, and says it may not need a category-based round if enough top-ranking candidates who are eligible for a category are already being invited through general or program-specific rounds.^[5]

IRCC says it chooses categories based on labour market information and projections, and on input from partners including provinces and territories.^[5]

IRCC also says it reports to Parliament each year on the categories chosen the previous year and the number of invitations issued for each category.^[5]

Additional CRS points for French

The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) is the points system IRCC uses to score profiles and rank them in the Express Entry pool. Under "additional points", IRCC lists French language skills with a maximum of 50 points.^[6]

IRCC's breakdown of those points has two levels:^[6]

• 25 points: NCLC 7 or higher on all four French language skills, and CLB 4 or lower in English (or no English test taken).^[6]
• 50 points: NCLC 7 or higher on all four French language skills, and CLB 5 or higher on all four English skills.^[6]

IRCC notes these additional points are available even when French is your second language.^[2]

Additional points as a whole are capped at 600 on the CRS criteria page.^[6]

These additional points are separate from the core language points. IRCC says that when you create a profile you prove your knowledge of French or English, and that choosing your strongest language as your first official language can help you earn more points.^[2]

IRCC also says that if you speak both English and French, you can give approved test results for both languages.^[2]

French tests IRCC accepts

IRCC says you must prove your language skills by taking an approved language test.^[7]

To do this, IRCC says you book the test with an IRCC-approved agency and pay the costs, then enter the results in your Express Entry profile.^[7]

For French, IRCC lists two approved tests: TEF Canada (Test d'évaluation de français) and TCF Canada (Test de connaissance du français).^[7]

IRCC measures French levels with the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadien (NCLC); English levels use the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB).^[7]

For TEF Canada, IRCC says your level is based on the "Équivalence ancien score" column, and you should enter only the scores from that column.^[7]

IRCC says the "Score / 699" column on the TEF Canada statement of results should not be entered in your Express Entry profile, because it is not compatible with IRCC's system at this time.^[7]

IRCC says people who took TEF Canada between December 11, 2023 and May 6, 2024 may need to take action in their Express Entry profile. IRCC explains that the test administrator temporarily modified the NCLC equivalences and that this change has been reverted.^[7]

IRCC says test results must be less than 2 years old both when you complete your Express Entry profile and when you submit your permanent residence application.^[7]

IRCC says it will refuse an application for permanent residence that uses expired language test results.^[7]

IRCC's language test page has score tables that convert TEF Canada and TCF Canada results for each ability into NCLC levels, by program.^[7]

Minimum French levels by program

Each Express Entry program has its own minimum language level. IRCC lists these minimums for French:^[7]

• Canadian Experience Class: NCLC 7 in all four abilities for jobs in NOC TEER 0 or 1, and NCLC 5 for TEER 2 or 3.^[7]
• Federal Skilled Worker Program: NCLC 7 in all four abilities when French is the first official language.^[7]
• Federal Skilled Trades Program: NCLC 5 for speaking and listening, and NCLC 4 for reading and writing.^[7]

These are program minimums. The French-language proficiency category described above asks for at least NCLC 7 in all four abilities, the same level used for the additional CRS points.^[5]

Francophone options outside Quebec

Francophone Mobility work permit: IRCC says this work permit makes it easier for Canadian employers to hire you without a labour market impact assessment (LMIA), if you meet certain requirements and are going to live and work outside Quebec.^[8]

For applications made on or after June 15, 2023, IRCC says you must be able to prove intermediate-level speaking and listening skills in French, which it describes as equivalent to NCLC 5 or higher.^[9]

IRCC also requires a job offer in any NOC TEER category, unless the offer is for a primary agriculture occupation in TEER 4 or 5.^[9]

Before you apply, IRCC says your employer must submit an offer of employment through the Employer Portal using LMIA exemption code C16 (Mobilité Francophone).^[9]

IRCC says the employer must also pay a $230 employer compliance fee and give you a 7-digit offer of employment number for your application.^[9]

IRCC links this permit to Express Entry: for candidates whose points are too low, it names Canadian work experience as one way to raise a score, and points to the Francophone Mobility work permit.^[2]

Francophone Community Immigration Pilot (FCIP): IRCC describes it as offering permanent residence to skilled workers who want to work and settle in rural and remote Francophone communities.^[1]

IRCC lists the participating Francophone communities as the Acadian Peninsula (NB), Sudbury (ON), Timmins (ON), Superior East Region (ON), St. Pierre Jolys (MB) and Kelowna (BC).^[10]

IRCC also mentions the Destination Canada Mobility Forum, a recruitment event for finding employers and job opportunities as a French-speaking or bilingual candidate.^[2]

After an invitation

If you are invited to apply, IRCC says you have 60 days to submit an application for a specific Express Entry program.^[5]

IRCC decides based on program eligibility, the accuracy of the information in your profile, category eligibility and whether you are admissible to Canada.^[5]

IRCC says you only need to upload documents if you are invited to apply, though you may need information from other documents to complete your profile.^[2]

Frequently asked questions