One of the requirements required of applicants by the Department of Home Affairs for the application of permanent residence visas is a minimum level of English.
Overall, the required English language level is “Competent” for the main applicant and “Functional” for secondary applicants over 18 years of age, unless applicants are exempt from English Test requirement.
The tests assesses 4 components of English Language, that being:
- Writing;
- Reading;
- Speaking; and
- Listening.
The accepted English Language Tests by the Department of Home Affairs are:
- IELTS;
- PTE;
- OET;
- Cambridge C1 Advanced.
To obtain the English requirement as “Competent” main applicants must be able to obtain in each test the following scores:
- IELTS – minimum of 6 in each component;
- PTE – minimum of 50 in each component;
- OET – at least B in each component;
- Cambridge C1 Advanced – minimum of 169 in each component;
To obtain the English requirement as “Functional” secondary applicants must be able to obtain in each test the following scores:
- IELTS – minimum score of 4.5 overall and at least of 4 in each component;
- PTE – minimum score of 30 overall by having all the components combined;
- OET – not applicable to secondary applicants;
- Cambridge C1 Advanced – minimum score of 147 overall by having all the components combined.