On test day, nothing should surprise you.
Not the format, not the schedule, not what the invigilator will ask at the door. Here is how a TCF Canada sitting unfolds, and the checklist to tick off before you leave.
From the convocation to the exit.
The rules below are those published by France Éducation international. Your centre may add its own instructions: read your convocation.
- D-7
Check your convocation
It gives the date, times and place of the tests. Check the route and the real travel time at that hour.
- D-1
Prepare your documents
A valid photo ID and your convocation. Documents in digital form are not accepted.
- Arrival
Candidate check-in
An invigilator checks your identity at the door. You sign the attendance sheet and, for TCF Canada, your photo is taken.
- Room
Getting seated
Phones off, belongings stored where indicated. The invigilator recalls the format, the instructions, the duration and the results date.
- Tests
The four tests
No one is admitted once listening has started, and no one may leave during that test. No extra time is granted.
- Exit
After the last test
If an incident occurred, report it to the centre the same day, as soon as the sitting ends. No appeal is accepted once the certificate has been issued.
Official sources: how a sitting unfolds and candidate rights and duties (France Éducation international).
2 h 47, four tests.
Listening, reading and writing are taken as a group. Speaking is taken alone, facing an examiner, and the interview is recorded for a second assessment.
- Listening35 min
- Reading60 min
- Writing60 min
- Speaking12 min
Official source: France Éducation international. Checked on October 11, 2026.
The full test formatWhat stays on the table
- Your ID
- Your convocation
- A blue or black pen
What is forbidden during the tests
- Mobile phone and any listening, recording or photographic device
- Books, dictionaries and notes
- Ruler and calculator
Twelve items, zero surprises.
Tick them off as you go. Your progress stays saved on this device, right up to the morning of the test.
Six costly mistakes that have nothing to do with your level.
Arriving late
A late candidate is not admitted to the room and the registration fee is not refunded, except for force majeure justified to the centre.
Showing an ID on your phone
Only an original, valid photo document gets you into the room.
Leaving a writing task aside
All three tasks must be completed with the required word count. Otherwise the paper can be assessed as “A1 not reached”.
Copying sentences from the prompt
Reusing one or more sentences from the instructions or the documents is also grounds for an “A1 not reached” assessment.
Reciting a memorized text
France Éducation international treats it as fraud. Prepare structures and ideas, not a script.
Writing your answer on scrap paper
On paper, scrap sheets are destroyed: only what is written in the booklet is assessed. Keep time to copy it out.
The best test day is one you have already lived.
Rehearse all four tests in their format and length, as many times as it takes.