--- title: "TEF Canada listening 2026: NCLC 7 = 249 on the ancien score" description: "Forty questions in forty minutes. On the Équivalence ancien score column Express Entry reads, listening runs to 360 and 249 to 279 is NCLC 7. Full chart." canonical: https://francaisprep.com/tef-canada/comprehension-orale last-updated: 2026-10-25 --- TEF Canada # TEF Canada compréhension orale: format, timing and score chart Forty questions, forty minutes, marked against an answer key. Here is exactly how the section is timed and scored, what the raw score converts to in NCLC, and what actually costs candidates marks. [Book a placement call](/book)[See the full score chart](/tef-canada/score-chart) - 40 questions, 40 minutes, one score out of 360 - Marked against an answer key, never a percentage guess - Written by Adèle, a native French teacher ![Adèle, the native French teacher who runs Français Prep](/_next/image?url=%2Fadele.png&w=3840&q=75) Adèle SasonNative French teacher - every class, every correction By [Adèle Sason](/about), Français Prep · Updated 25 October 2026 In short The TEF Canada compréhension orale is a 40 minute listening section built from 40 multiple-choice questions, each with four answer options. It is marked automatically against an answer key and reported out of 360 points. That raw score then converts to an NCLC level on a published table: 249 to 279 points is NCLC 7, the level most Express Entry French-language profiles need in every ability. ## TEF Canada compréhension orale at a glance Total length 40 minutes for the whole section. Number of questions 40, all multiple choice. Format Short recordings, each followed by one or more questions with four answer options. Delivered on computer or on paper depending on the centre. Marked by An answer key, not an examiner. Every point is countable. Reported out of 360 points, the same scale as the score chart below. NCLC 7 needs 249 to 279 points on the published conversion. Exam format ## What actually happens during the 40 minutes Each item is built around a short recording: an announcement, a conversation, a message, or a short report, followed by one or more questions with four answer options. You read the questions before the recording plays, listen, then select your answer and move on. There is no separate answer sheet to transfer choices onto afterwards, and no partial credit for an option that is nearly right. Because the section is marked against an answer key rather than by an examiner, every candidate’s answers are weighted the same way and no examiner judgement enters the result. The 360-point figure is the Équivalence ancien score scale, not a count of correct answers. That is different from expression écrite and expression orale, where two examiners judging the same recording can still land on different marks within a published range. - ### The first item costs candidates before the exam has started The section moves from the moment the first recording plays, and a candidate who is still reading the instructions loses that item to timing rather than to French. Read the answer options before each recording starts, not during it. - ### Wrong options that reuse the exact words you heard A distractor built from a phrase lifted straight out of the recording is common in listening papers generally, because it rewards candidates who caught a sound rather than a meaning. The right answer is usually the one that reports what was said, not the one that repeats it. - ### Guessing from one word instead of following the whole clip A short recording can turn on a single negation, a date, or who is speaking to whom. Losing the thread for two seconds and reconstructing an answer from a keyword is where a candidate who understands French still drops marks. - ### Practising with a pause button Confirm the current playback policy for your session, since delivery format differs by centre. Most published listening formats, this one included, give you the recording once rather than on demand, so rehearsing with a pause or rewind trains a skill the test itself does not allow. Score chart ## Compréhension orale: raw score to NCLC level The listening column is what a compréhension orale result converts to. The other three columns are shown alongside it because Express Entry reads all four abilities separately, and a strong listening score does not lift a weak one elsewhere. | NCLC / CLB | TEF Canada | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Listening | Reading | Speaking | Writing | | | NCLC 10 | 316-360 | 263-300 | 393-450 | 393-450 | | NCLC 9 | 298-315 | 248-262 | 371-392 | 371-392 | | NCLC 8 | 280-297 | 233-247 | 349-370 | 349-370 | | NCLC 7 Level highlighted on this pageThe level most Express Entry files target. | 249-279 | 207-232 | 310-348 | 310-348 | | NCLC 6 | 217-248 | 181-206 | 271-309 | 271-309 | | NCLC 5 | 181-216 | 151-180 | 226-270 | 226-270 | | NCLC 4 | 145-180 | 121-150 | 181-225 | 181-225 | These bands come from the same published conversion table as our full [TEF Canada score chart](/tef-canada/score-chart), and a test in this repository fails if the two disagree. Confirm every band against the current official chart before planning a test date around a boundary. Working out your level ## How to turn a raw score into an NCLC level There is no formula to apply by hand. IRCC reads your compréhension orale result against the same banded table shown above, and one point can be the difference between two NCLC levels or make no difference at all, depending on where in the band you land. Our free [score converter](/tools/score-converter) does the lookup for you: enter your compréhension orale result alongside your other three, if you have them, and it returns the NCLC level for each and tells you which ability is holding your file back. No account and no email required. Practice, honestly ## What we can and cannot give you for free here There is no audio player on this page, and that is deliberate. A fair compréhension orale exercise needs a real recording delivered at natural pace, and a synthetic or badly recorded one would train the wrong habits faster than no practice at all. What this page gives you for free is the exact timing and scoring mechanics above, the score chart, and our [exam timer](/tools/exam-timer) set to the real 40-minute clock, so you can rehearse the pacing even without the recordings themselves. Marked listening practice with real recordings, built the way the section is scored, is part of the course. If you are deciding between the TEF Canada and the TCF Canada in the first place, our [TEF vs TCF comparison](/tef-vs-tcf) covers how the two listening sections differ before you register for either. Questions ## TEF Canada compréhension orale, answered ### What is the format of the TEF Canada compréhension orale? Forty multiple-choice questions built around short recordings: announcements, exchanges and reports, each with four answer options. It runs 40 minutes and is marked against an answer key rather than by an examiner, so every point is countable before you leave the room. ### How many questions are on the TEF Canada listening test? 40, in 40 minutes. That works out to an average of one minute per item, though the recordings themselves are short and most of that minute is reading the question and the four options. ### What is the TEF Canada listening score chart? Compréhension orale is reported out of 360 points, and that raw score converts to an NCLC level on a published table: 249 to 279 is NCLC 7, the level most Express Entry French-language profiles are built around. The full seven-band chart is on this page and on our TEF Canada score chart. ### How do I calculate my TEF Canada listening score? Look your raw points up against the chart below, or enter your result into our free score converter and it returns the NCLC level directly, along with the other three abilities if you have them. There is no formula to apply yourself: the conversion is a table lookup, not a calculation. ### What is a good TEF Canada listening score? That depends on what you need it for. For Express Entry, 249 points is the floor for NCLC 7. Above that, each further band is worth more only if your immigration stream actually reads it, so check the requirement your programme sets rather than aiming for the maximum by default. ### Is the TEF Canada listening test hard? Not in vocabulary difficulty so much as in format: the clock does not stop, and most sessions give you each recording once. Confirm the exact delivery and any playback allowance with your test centre, since arrangements can differ by location and by whether the session runs on computer or on paper. ### Can I retake only the compréhension orale? An immigration application needs results for all four abilities from one attestation. Confirm with your test centre whether any partial retake exists and how soon you may re-sit a full session. ### Is there a free TEF Canada listening practice test on this page? No, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise. A fair listening exercise needs a real recording played at natural pace, and a low-quality one would teach the wrong habits faster than no exercise at all. What you get here for free is the exact timing, the scoring mechanics, and the score-to-NCLC chart. Marked listening practice with real recordings is part of the course. Listening converts on its own column of the [TEF Canada score chart](/tef-canada/score-chart), and the speaking section that follows it is covered in [TEF Canada expression orale](/tef-canada/expression-orale). The [TEF Canada preparation course](/tef-canada-course) includes timed mock tests in the exam format; [book a placement call](/book) to plan them around your date. Preparation ## Marked listening practice, not a pause button Every tier includes listening built from real recordings played once, the way the exam actually runs it. - ### Weekly plan The whole practice platform: every TCF and TEF Canada series, unlimited AI corrections, timed mock tests and the course lessons. CA$9.99per week Canadian dollars (CAD) Billed weekly, cancel any time. Access runs to the end of the week you paid for. [Start the weekly plan](/dashboard/premium) - Every practice series in all four exam sections - Unlimited AI writing and speaking corrections - Timed mock tests in the real exam format - Course lessons and a weekly study plan - ### Small-group live Weekly live classes with Adèle, in groups small enough that everyone speaks, plus marked writing and speaking. CA$449per 8-week block Canadian dollars (CAD) Eight weekly classes of 60 minutes: 8 hours of live teaching, CA$56 an hour, with your writing and speaking marked every week. [Join a small group](https://buy.stripe.com/fZu4gyfXZ9uK5Aj1P46Vq01) Full refund within 14 days of purchase if you have not taken a session. - Everything in the weekly plan - One 60-minute live class with Adèle every week - Marked writing submissions every week - Marked speaking recordings every week - Most popular ### One-to-one tutoring Private sessions scheduled around your test date, with a study plan built from your diagnostic results. CA$800per 10 sessions Canadian dollars (CAD) CA$80 an hour, booked around your test date: ten 60-minute sessions. [Book one-to-one](https://buy.stripe.com/dRm8wOfXZdL07IralA6Vq0a) Full refund within 14 days of purchase if you have not taken a session. - Everything in small-group live - Private 60-minute sessions scheduled around your test date - Study plan built from your diagnostic test - Unlimited marked writing and speaking during your block Not ready to commit to a block? Try a trial class. One 40-minute class with Adèle, one to one. The CA$30 comes off any block you book within 30 days. [Try one class for CA$30](https://buy.stripe.com/6oU4gy3bd9uK4wf0L06Vq0c) Not sure which tier fits? [Book a free 15-minute video call.](/book) Prices are in Canadian dollars and include any tax that applies. Exam registration fees are paid directly to your test centre and are not included in any tier. WHY PREPARE HERE ## Preparation built around the exam you are actually sitting Four things every tier includes, whether you study on your own or work with Adèle every week. - ### Marked against the real criteria Every writing and speaking task comes with a model answer and the marking grid, so you can see exactly what an examiner rewards. On the live tiers, Adèle marks your own work by hand and tells you which mistakes are costing you the most points. - ### Timed practice in the real exam format You practise each section under the clock, in the order and the length you will meet on test day, so the paper itself is never the surprise. - ### The NCLC threshold always in view Every section is worked against the NCLC thresholds IRCC publishes. A practice result is not an NCLC level; only your attestation gives one. Practice shows you where you lose marks. - ### Study from anywhere, in your timezone Everything is online, for candidates in Morocco, Algeria, Cameroon, India, France and Canada. The free plan and the weekly plan run entirely on your own clock. On the live tiers, if you miss a class the recording and the correction still reach you. Keep reading ## The rest of the TEF Canada, in the same detail - [TEF Canada 2026: 4 tests for PR, 2 for citizenshipPermanent residence needs four TEF Canada tests, citizenship only two. Reading 40 questions in 60 min, listening 40 in 40, writing and speaking 2 each.](/tef-canada) - [TEF Canada score chart 2026: NCLC 7 = 207 CE, 249 CONCLC 7 is 207 reading, 249 listening, 310 writing and 310 speaking on the Équivalence ancien score column Express Entry reads. Full table, all levels.](/tef-canada/score-chart) - [TEF Canada expression orale 2026: 2 sections in 15 minutesTwo speaking sections in fifteen minutes, Section A being the first five. What each asks, how the mark becomes an NCLC level, and where points go.](/tef-canada/expression-orale) - [TEF Canada expression écrite 2026: 80 and 200 words, no maxTwo writing sections in sixty minutes: Section A from 80 words, Section B from 200, with no published ceiling. How each becomes an NCLC level.](/tef-canada/expression-ecrite) - [NCLC 7 on the TCF Canada 2026: 458 listening, 453 readingCLB 7 in French is NCLC 7: TCF Canada 453 reading, 458 listening, 10/20 in production; TEF Canada 207, 249, 310, 310 in the Équivalence ancien score column.](/nclc-7) NEXT STEP ## Find out where your French actually stands Book a short assessment with Adèle: one writing task, one speaking task, and an honest plan for the weeks you have left before the exam. [Book an assessment](/book)[See the course tiers](#tiers) Where these facts come from Question count, timing and the reporting scale come from Le français des affaires. The conversion to NCLC levels is IRCC's. - [Le français des affaires: TEF Canada](https://www.lefrancaisdesaffaires.fr/candidat/test-evaluation-francais/tef-canada/presentation/) - [Le français des affaires: TEF Canada preparation material](https://www.lefrancaisdesaffaires.fr/candidat/test-evaluation-francais/tef-canada/preparation/) - [IRCC: Express Entry language test results and NCLC equivalencies](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/express-entry/documents/language-test.html) Exam boards reissue formats, fees and conversion tables without announcing it. Where a number here matters to a decision that costs money, check it against the source above rather than trusting any preparation site, including this one. --- For agents: site index https://francaisprep.com/llms.txt, developer access https://francaisprep.com/developers, and TCF or TEF to NCLC conversion over a plain GET at https://api.francaisprep.com/v1/score/convert?exam=tcf_canada&listening=512&reading=470&writing=12&speaking=11 (exam is tcf_canada or tef_canada).