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Today Saturday, 13 June, 2026
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 October 28, 2011
Tougher language exam proposed for citizenship
The federal government is cracking down on the language competency of newcomers who apply for Canadian citizenship.
In a government notice released Friday, Ottawa says multiple choice tests are no longer enough to demonstrate immigrants can speak one of the two official languages. It wants would-be citizens tested on their oral and listening skills. “The written test is an inadequate proxy for assessing language as it does not adequately assess listening and speaking skills . . . for effective communication with fellow Canadians and for effective integration,” wrote Nicole Girard, a Citizenship and Immigration Canada acting director general.
Currently, language competency is largely assessed through a multiple choice written test, which also evaluates an applicant’s knowledge of Canada, and the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship. If an applicant fails the test, the individual must satisfy a citizenship judge through an oral interview. The changes would affect applicants between the ages of 18 and 44, representing about 134,000 individuals a year. Last year, the Conservative government tightened up the citizenship exam — 20 multiple questions answered in 30 minutes — by raising the passing mark to 75 per cent from 60. The failure rate immediately skyrocketed from between 4 and 8 per cent to 30 per cent. The proposed changes would require applicants to prove they meet the Canadian Language Benchmark level 4 descriptors such as “the ability to take part in routine conversations about everyday topics, use basic grammatical structures and tenses, have sufficient vocabulary. . . follow simple instructions.”
Immigration policy analyst Richard Kurland said the proposed language test can provide a standard measure of one’s language ability, but could inconvenience those born and raised in English and French. Since all skilled immigrants must pass mandatory language tests to qualify for permanent residency, Kurland said this group could use their old test result and be exempted from the new requirement for citizenship. Immigrant advocate Avvy Go said she appreciates that language proficiency can be a huge advantage for newcomers to flourish in Canada. “But the language requirement is going to be a barrier for some to fully participate in the society,” said Go. “Those who come here under family reunification or as refugees and are illiterate in their own language are going to be denied the opportunity to become full-fledged members of the society.” “What the government is trying to do here is to increase the value of citizenship by increasing the difficulty in obtaining it,” he said. “It is excluding people from the right to vote and (carry) passports based on the ability to communicate in English and French.”
Citizenship applications cost $200 for adults and $100 for minors. One must have lived here for at least three years in the past four years to qualify. Current processing time is 19 months from the moment an application is received.
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