CANADA STUDY PERMIT REQUIREMENTS ARE CHANGING MAKING IELTS THE OBVIOUS CHOICE….

Recently, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced changes to the English test requirements for people applying for a Study Permit in Canada using the Student Direct Stream (SDS) program as follows:

From 10 August 2023, IELTS Academic test takers will no longer need to achieve a minimum 6.0 score in all individual test skills. Now just a 6.0 overall band score is required making it easier to choose IELTS Academic to get admission.

Can you use IELTS General Training for your SDS Visa application?

Yes, both tests are accepted by IRCC for the SDS Study Permit Program.

IRCC requires a band score of 6.0 in every section of the test (Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking) for IELTS General Training. Whereas with IELTS Academic test, only an overall or average band score of 6.0 is required.

For example:

Sukhbir sat the IELTS Academic test and secured a 6.5 score in Listening, 5.5 in Reading, 5.5 in Writing and 6.5 in Speaking. Despite getting 5.5 in two sections, he still qualifies for SDS as his Overall band score is 6.0 (6.5 + 5.5 + 5.5 + 6.5 / 4 = 6).

Up until the 10th of August 2023, applicants for SDS are required to achieve a minimum score of 6.0 in each individual skill area in IELTS Academic. However, with the recent changes this is no longer required.

The table below shows some of the scores test takers can now achieve to be accepted for SDS applications:

Reading	Writing	Listening	Speaking	Overall Score
5.5	5.5	7.5	5.5	6
7.0	5.5	7.0	7.0	6.5
7.0	7.5	7.5	3.0	6.5
5.0	5.5	6.5	7.0	6

Note: Before this announcement, they would have been required to retake the IELTS Academic test and get a band score of 6.0 in each skill.

You can apply to SDS with IELTS Academic or General Training test scores up to 2 years old. This means you can also use test scores received before 10th August to apply to SDS after the changes take effect on 10th August. It’s easy with IELTS!