ARCHIVED – Operational Bulletin 441 - June 29, 2012

Minimum Language Standards and Mandatory Testing for Provincial Nominees in National Occupation Classification Skill Levels C and D

This Operational Bulletin has expired.

Summary

As of July 1, 2012, most Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) applicants in National Occupation Classification (NOC) Skill Levels C and D occupations will be required to undergo mandatory language testing and achieve a minimum standard of Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 4 in each of the four abilities (listening, speaking, reading and writing) prior to obtaining a provincial nomination certificate.

Applicants will also be required to include a copy of their language test results when submitting their application for permanent residence to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).

Background

In September 2011, Federal-Provincial-Territorial (FPT) Deputy Ministers agreed to add minimum language criteria to the requirements for NOC applicants in NOC C and D occupations.

2011 NOC C and D occupations include semi- and low-skilled workers in the trades, primary and manufacturing industries, sales and services, as well as certain clerical and assistant categories. Please consult Resources and Skills Development Canada’s website for more information: http://www5.hrsdc.gc.ca/NOC/English/NOC/2011/Welcome.aspx

Exceptions

Applicants who meet one of the following exceptions do not need to provide language test results with their application for permanent residence:

1. Temporary Foreign Workers in NOC C and D occupations who arrived in Canada on or before July 1, 2012 and who are nominated in a PNP employer-driven stream before July 1, 2013; or
2. PNP applicants in NOC C and D occupations who applied for a provincial nomination certificate before July 1, 2012.

As of July 1, 2013, all NOC C and D Provincial Nominees will have to provide a copy of their language test results with their application for permanent residence.

Instructions

 Applications for permanent residence from NOC applicants in NOC C and D occupations must:

• include a copy of valid language test results demonstrating that they meet the minimum language standards; OR
• meet one of the exceptions noted above.

To be considered valid, the applicant’s language test results must be from one the following testing agencies:

• International English Language Testing System (IELTS) (General Training stream);
• Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP-General); or
• Test d’évaluation de français (TEF) (to test proficiency in French).

The monthly nomination spreadsheet submitted to the Centralized Intake Office (CIO) in Sydney, Nova Scotia by Provinces and Territories (PTs) has been updated, and starting in July 2012, will contain a new column titled “Test required?”

When the CIO reviews each NOC C and D NOC application for completeness, they will use the “Test required?” column in the nomination spreadsheet to determine whether valid language test results should be included in the application.

If the PT selected “yes” in the “Test required?” column of the nomination spreadsheet, then the applicant must have a copy of the language test included with their application for permanent residence, in addition to all other documents listed in the Document Checklist for NOC applicants, in order to be considered a complete application.

If an application for permanent residence for which a PT selected “yes” in the “Test Required?” column does not include a copy of valid language test results, the application will be considered incomplete and the CIO will return the entire application package to the applicant.

If the PT selected “no” in the “Test Required?” column, then the PT has determined that the applicant meets one of the exceptions and the applicant is not required to include a copy of language test results with their application for permanent residence.

For equivalency charts between scores, and the CLB level for each test, please see Appendix A.

Appendix A

IELTS – International English Language Testing System (IELTS) General Training

CELPIP – Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP)

TEF – Test d’évaluation de français (TEF)