Is a TEFL certificate good enough proof for the language requirement

[bm3]

My husband is from Brazil and has studied English his whole life and has taught it for 5 years. He doesn't have a degree but he does have a 120 TEFL Certification (teaching english as a foreign language). Do you think a copy of his certification is good enough to prove he is fluent in English?



Thanks!

 

[btbt]

My husband is from Brazil and has studied English his whole life and has taught it for 5 years. He doesn't have a degree but he does have a 120 TEFL Certification (teaching english as a foreign language). Do you think a copy of his certification is good enough to prove he is fluent in English?



Thanks!

In the guide, the wording for education-based credentials (as opposed to a language oucrse or test) is "A degree, diploma, certificate or official transcripts from a secondary or post-secondary education program showing you studied in English or French, in Canada or abroad."

I don't know if a "TEFL Certification" would be considered sufficient. That may end up depending on how and where he earned that certification. If it is through an accredited school that can attest to it, it is likely to be OK, but if it is not then IRCC may not accept it.

The list of acceptable documents are at https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/guide-0002-application-canadian-citizenship-under-subsection-5-1-adults-18-years-older.html#language

(IRCC does not accept TOEFL and similar tests, so if you do submit the TEFL Certification you should make it clear -- because the name sounds similar -- that it is not a language test result, but a certification earned)

 

[spyfy]

My husband is from Brazil and has studied English his whole life and has taught it for 5 years. He doesn't have a degree but he does have a 120 TEFL Certification (teaching english as a foreign language). Do you think a copy of his certification is good enough to prove he is fluent in English?



Thanks!

No it is not enough.

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=572&top=5

TOEFL is not in this list and the list ends with:
We don’t accept any other third-party test results, even if they’re similar.

PS: I know it is ridiculous that your husband, with his background, has to prove English langauge skills, but imagine how ridiculous a applicant feels if they grew up in a country where English is a major language and now they have to prove it.

 

[btbt]

No it is not enough.

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=572&top=5

TOEFL is not in this list and the list ends with:
We don’t accept any other third-party test results, even if they’re similar.

PS: I know it is ridiculous that your husband, with his background, has to prove English langauge skills, but imagine how ridiculous a applicant feels if they grew up in a country where English is a major language and now they have to prove it.

It's not the TOEFL ("Test Of English as Foreign Language") language test results he has -- it's a teaching certification ("Teacher of English as a Foreign Language"), so earned by someone who teaches English, usually abroad.

The issue with those kinds of certifications is that many are issued by commercial training organisations/companies, and so they are not academic credentials. That, in turn, means they may not meet the requirements for the proof to show an applicant attended school in English.

(And yeah, the end result is that someone who has been teaching English for multiple years may need to go take a basic test to show they know English)

 

[spyfy]

It's not the TOEFL ("Test Of English as Foreign Language") language test results he has -- it's a teaching certification ("Teacher of English as a Foreign Language"), so earned by someone who teaches English, usually abroad.

The issue with those kinds of certifications is that many are issued by commercial training organisations/companies, and so they are not academic credentials. That, in turn, means they may not meet the requirements for the proof to show an applicant attended school in English.

(And yeah, the end result is that someone who has been teaching English for multiple years may need to go take a basic test to show they know English)

Oh I'm really sorry. People ask about the TOEFL all the time, this is why I misread your post.

I still think that even the TEFL does not suffice.

See this link:
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/guide-0002-application-canadian-citizenship-under-subsection-5-1-adults-18-years-older.html#language

These are therefore the only three options.
1. Results from a third-party language test
2. You attended or are currently attending a secondary or post-secondary education program in English or French, either in Canada or abroad.
3. You took a government-funded language training program and have achieved Canadian Language Benchmark/Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (CLB/NCLC) level 4 or higher in speaking and listening skills.

TEFL does not qualify as a thrid party test, it is not in the list (see my previous post).
TEFL is clearly not a government funded language training program (that is very specific program for immigrants in Canada)

And, as you point out, the TEFL is not issued by a post secondary institution. Only state-run or state-recognized universities and colleges etc qualify.

I know it is silly, but IRCCs rules don't always make sense, unfortunately. Another example is that if you have IELTS Academic test results (instead of IELTS General), you can't use them. This is of course also completely stupid. After all the IELTS Academic tests scientific language skills and those should be enough for everyday conversations in Canada. Still, IRCC refuses to accept it.

To be safe, I would suggest that your husband takes the CELPIP LS test. That's just listening and speaking (that's all that's necessary for citizenship), takes about 1h10 and costs $185, much less than most other language tests.

It'll be a piece of cake for him. And again, I know this is ridiculous. English isn't my native language, but when I took the language test there were Irish and Indian people in line with me whose English, based on the conversations in the waiting area, was beyond a doubt excellent. This is no surprise since in their countries English is spoken all the time, so of course they know it. Still they had to take that test, as stupid as it is.

You can be born in Paris and have lived there all your life, IRCC will still make you take a French language test.

 

[bm3]

Oh I'm really sorry. People ask about the TOEFL all the time, this is why I misread your post.

I still think that even the TEFL does not suffice.

See this link:
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/guide-0002-application-canadian-citizenship-under-subsection-5-1-adults-18-years-older.html#language

These are therefore the only three options.
1. Results from a third-party language test
2. You attended or are currently attending a secondary or post-secondary education program in English or French, either in Canada or abroad.
3. You took a government-funded language training program and have achieved Canadian Language Benchmark/Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (CLB/NCLC) level 4 or higher in speaking and listening skills.

TEFL does not qualify as a thrid party test, it is not in the list (see my previous post).
TEFL is clearly not a government funded language training program (that is very specific program for immigrants in Canada)

And, as you point out, the TEFL is not issued by a post secondary institution. Only state-run or state-recognized universities and colleges etc qualify.

I know it is silly, but IRCCs rules don't always make sense, unfortunately. Another example is that if you have IELTS Academic test results (instead of IELTS General), you can't use them. This is of course also completely stupid. After all the IELTS Academic tests scientific language skills and those should be enough for everyday conversations in Canada. Still, IRCC refuses to accept it.

To be safe, I would suggest that your husband takes the CELPIP LS test. That's just listening and speaking (that's all that's necessary for citizenship), takes about 1h10 and costs $185, much less than most other language tests.

It'll be a piece of cake for him. And again, I know this is ridiculous. English isn't my native language, but when I took the language test there were Irish and Indian people in line with me whose English, based on the conversations in the waiting area, was beyond a doubt excellent. This is no surprise since in their countries English is spoken all the time, so of course they know it. Still they had to take that test, as stupid as it is.

You can be born in Paris and have lived there all your life, IRCC will still make you take a French language test.

Thank you soooo much for your response. It has been very helpful! We are going to find somewhere that he can take the CELPIP LS test.
Thanks again!