IELTS Score Changes for Canada Study Visa (SDS)

IELTS Score Changes Confirmed

According to the official IDP IELTS website, there have been changes to the IELTS score requirements for Canada study visa applicants applying through the Student Direct Stream (SDS). Effective August 10, 2023, applicants will no longer need to achieve a score of 6 bands in each module of the IELTS Academic test. Instead, they will only need an overall score of 6 in IELTS Academic.

For instance, if applicants score 5.5 in Reading and Writing and 6.5 in Speaking and Listening, their overall score would be 6, making them eligible to apply for a Canada study visa under the SDS.

However, it is important to note that the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) still requires a band score of 6.0 in each module (Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking) for IELTS scores obtained under the General Training (GT) test.

These changes have been officially published in the Canada Canada Gazette, Part I, Volume 157, Number 21: GOVERNMENT NOTICES

This update is great news for many students who were previously ineligible for the SDS study visa due to having a score of less than 6 in only 1 or 2 modules, despite having an overall score higher than 6 bands.