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Score conversion

What your TEF score means on the CEFR scale

Every TEF paper is scored out of 699 and every paper reads against the same grid, which makes the TEF the simplest of the French exams to convert. The complication is Canada, where a different scale applies.

Checked August 8, 2026

TEF score to CEFR level
TEF scoreCEFR
600-699C2
500-599C1
400-499B2
300-399B1
200-299A2
100-199A1
0-99< A1

One grid covers all four papers. A score under 100 is reported as below A1 rather than as a level.

TEF Canada to NCLC, as published by IRCC
NCLCSpeakingListeningReadingWriting
10393-450316-360263-300393-450
9371-392298-315248-262371-392
8349-370280-297233-247349-370
7310-348249-279207-232310-348
6271-309217-248181-206271-309
5226-270181-216151-180226-270
4181-225145-180121-150181-225

A different framework, on a different range. TEF Canada papers do not run to 699, which is why the numbers here look nothing like the grid above. NCLC is the French name for the Canadian Language Benchmarks scale.

Where these numbers come from

The TEF is run by CCI Paris Île-de-France, the Paris chamber of commerce, under its Le français des affaires brand. It is not run by France Éducation international, which runs the TCF and the DELF. Getting that wrong is the most common mistake made about this exam.

Unlike the TCF, the TEF applies one score-to-level grid to all four papers, so a 400 means B2 whether it is reading or speaking. Some TEF uses add a further rule on top, such as requiring a minimum on your weakest paper as well as an average.

TEF Canada is read against the Canadian Language Benchmarks, not the CEFR, and it uses its own score ranges. Take your NCLC level from the second table, not by converting the first one.

Sources

How our own exam reports a level

Fennec360 Certified runs its own free CEFR exam, scored out of 100. These are the bands it uses. They are a separate thing from the tables above: our exam has its own questions, its own scoring, and its own scale.

LevelIn plain wordsOur score
A1Beginner0-34
A2Elementary35-49
B1Intermediate50-64
B2Upper Intermediate65-79
C1Advanced80-89
C2Proficiency90-100

This is not a conversion. A score on our exam does not become a score on any exam named on this page, and no exam board recognizes it as one. What it gives you is your own CEFR level, from a full exam you can sit today.

Questions people actually ask

Is the TEF run by the same people as the TCF?

No. The TEF is run by CCI Paris Île-de-France and the TCF by France Éducation international. They are separate exams from separate organizations, with separate score reports and separate test center networks.

Does one grid really cover TEF Canada, TEF Études and TEF IRN?

The score-to-level grid does. What differs is the set of papers each version includes and the rule applied on top of the scores, so check the requirement you are trying to meet, not just your level.

TEF and TCF both run to 699. Are the scores interchangeable?

No. They share a range, which makes them look comparable, but they are different exams with separately set cut-offs and nobody publishes a conversion between them. A 450 on one is not a 450 on the other.

Why are the TEF Canada numbers so much lower?

Because TEF Canada papers are not scored out of 699. Each paper has its own range, which is why the IRCC table tops out in the 300s and 400s. It is a different scale, not a worse result.

Where does the free Fennec360 exam fit in?

It gives you a CEFR level for French, free and in about 50 minutes, so you can see whether you are close to the level a TEF session needs before you pay for one. It is not a TEF score.

Not sure which level you are at yet?

Take a free CEFR exam and find out. About 50 minutes, four languages, no appointment and no card.

Take the free exam

Our exam gives you a CEFR level and a certificate anyone can verify. It does not replace any official exam.