The Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) accepts the Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) test result as proof of your proficiency in the use of the English language. Get an overall band score of 70 in the CAEL test to sit the ICCRC’s Entry to Practice Exam (EPE). Currently, there are available Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) tests you can take in Canada, China and the UAE.
The CAEL test will measure your abilities in speaking, reading, writing and listening. You will be given a score for each ability and an overall band score (this is the sum of all four sub-tests divided by four). Unlike other English language tests approved by the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) where you must achieve an minimum score per language ability, there is no minimum score required per ability if you take the CAEL test – you will only need to get a total score of 70. If you are slightly weak in one of the four mentioned abilities, you can consider taking the CAEL test instead.
You can take the CAEL test from home!
Below is an example of the CAEL Test Report. As you can see, you are given a result for each language ability and then an overall band score. This overall band score is the only score that ICCRC will be looking at – this must be at least 70. CAEL will round your score to the nearest ten-point interval, so at the very least, get an average score higher than 65 to get an overall band score of 70.
The possible CAEL test scores that you will get as a sub-test score and an overall band score is listed below (it is always rounded to the nearest 10-point interval):
Can you combine CAEL test scores with other language test results?
ICCRC allows you to combine passing scores from two language test results for as long as they were taken within one year of each other and the scoring format is similar. As CAEL’s scoring system is different, it is not possible to combine CAEL’s sub-test results with IELTS-Academic, CELPIP-G or CANTest.
Is the CAEL test harder than the other language tests?
The difficulty level is similar as language test providers follow the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) Level scoring when giving out scores to test takers. The difference is in the way these tests are administered, so you must be familiar with how you will be tested in order for your test result to best reflect your English ability.
No matter which ICCRC-approved language test you are taking, you must achieve a score equivalent to CLB 9 to sit the EPE. A test taker with an English language ability equivalent to a CLB 9 will be able to do the following:
Note: For your CAEL test result to be accepted by ICCRC for the purpose of sitting the EPE, it must be less than two years old.
