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Competency Standard 5: English Language

Section 36 of the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007 (the Act) requires the Registrar of Immigration Advisers to develop competency standards to be met by licensed immigration advisers.

The Registrar can only grant a licence if satisfied that the applicant meets the minimum standards of competence.

To meet the minimum standard of competency for Competency Standard 5 a person must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Registrar that he or she can:

• competently complete documentation in the English language to a high standard; and
• competently conduct oral communications in the English language to a high standard.

Evidence required by the Registrar

The Registrar will accept either of the following two types of evidence to demonstrate an applicant’s English language competence as long as the criteria set out below are met:

1. International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Test Report Form

The Registrar will accept a Test Report Form from an IELTS Test Centre if all of the following criteria are met:

• The Test Report Form is an original or a certified copy;
• The applicant has achieved a minimum academic overall band score of 7.0;
• The applicant has achieved the following minimum scores in the academic test:

  Listening	6.5
  Reading	6.5
  Writing	6.5
  Speaking	6.5

• The test was taken by the applicant in the five years preceding the date on which the Registrar receives an application;

  OR

  The test was taken by the applicant more than five years before the date on which the Registrar receives an application but is accompanied by evidence that the applicant has lived and worked in an English speaking country since taking the test, with no material periods of time away from that country.

Effective from 5 January 2009 the Registrar will accept evidence of IELTS test scores achieved in more than one sitting if both the following criteria are met:

• The applicant has taken the second and any subsequent IELTS tests within 12 calendar months of taking the first test;

  AND

• The applicant has achieved a minimum academic overall band score of 7.0 in each test taken.

2. Attendance at secondary school/primary school

The Registrar will accept evidence of attendance at school if all of the following criteria are met:

• The applicant has completed page 13 of the application booklet with details of his or her schooling;
• The applicant has attended and completed:

  primary school and at least three years at secondary school;

  OR

  at least five years at secondary school.

The Registrar will also accept attendance at a primary school equivalent (e.g. elementary school or middle school) or at a secondary school equivalent, where:

• All the school tuition was conducted in the English language;
• The applicant has either provided copies of school records or if school records are not available has signed the statutory declaration on page 20 of the application booklet.

Other evidence of English language competence

The Registrar may consider an applicant’s individual circumstances and may accept other evidence of English language competence.

The Registrar will not accept tertiary study delivered in the English language as sufficient evidence that an applicant meets the English language competency standard.

Verification of evidence during assessment process

An assessor will review all of the documentation provided by an applicant and will conduct a telephone interview with all applicants to verify the evidence of English language competence submitted by an applicant.

To meet the minimum standard of competency a person must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Registrar that he or she can “competently complete documentation in the English language to a high standard” and “competently conduct oral communications in the English language to a high standard”.

The Registrar therefore retains the discretion in all cases to require an applicant to sit an IELTS test to confirm that an applicant meets the minimum standard of competence.

Policy background

The same standard for onshore and offshore advisers

The Immigration Advisers Licensing Act applies to both onshore and offshore advisers. It does not allow the Registrar to distinguish between onshore and offshore advisers when developing competency standards. The competency standards may differ only according to the type of licence applied for. The Act envisages one standard of communication in English. Accordingly, competency standard 5 (English language) is applicable to both onshore and offshore advisers.

The IELTS Test

IELTS is the International English Language Testing System. It measures ability to communicate in English across all four language skills – listening, reading, writing and speaking. IELTS is available in more than 120 countries worldwide and is accepted by most Australian, British, Canadian, Irish, New Zealand and South African academic institutions, by an increasing number of academic institutions in the USA, and by various professional organisations. An IELTS test is also a requirement for immigration to Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

There are two versions of IELTS:

• The academic version, intended for those who want to enrol in universities and other institutions of higher education and for professionals such as medical doctors and nurses;
• The general training version, intended for those planning to undertake non-academic training or to gain work experience, or for people who are immigrating to an English speaking country.

The Academic IELTS Test

Licensed immigration advisers must be able to interpret law and policy and deal with large volumes of technical documentation. The Registrar selected the academic version of the IELTS test because it requires a higher level of competence in writing and reading than the general training version. The level of competence required in speaking and listening is the same for the general and the academic versions.

Overall band score of 7.0

IELTS is scored on a nine-band scale. Each band corresponds to a specified competence in English. The band scores are in either whole or half bands.

A user with a band score of 6 is a “competent user” with generally effective command of the English language despite some inaccuracies, inappropriateness and misunderstandings, who can use and understand fairly complex language, particularly in familiar situations.

A user with a band score of 7 is a “good user” with operational command of the language, though with occasional inaccuracies, inappropriateness and misunderstandings in some situations, who generally handles complex language well and understands detailed reasoning.

Minimum scores of 6.5 in each band

An applicant must achieve a minimum score of 6.5 in each and every band (Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking).

The same requirement applies to principal applicants for residence in New Zealand under the Skilled Migrant Category. The Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants also requires a minimum score of 6.5 in each and every band.

By comparison, health professionals in New Zealand (such as doctors, nurses and psychologists) are required to achieve individual scores of 7 to 7.5 in each band in the academic test.

The Migration Agents Registration Authority in Australia (MARA) currently requires a minimum score of 6.0 in each and every band. The MARA has acknowledged however that the English language standards of Australian migration agents are too low. From 1 January 2010 the MARA will require an Academic IELTS overall band score of 7.0 with a minimum score of 6.5 in each and every band.

Evidence of schooling in the English language

The Registrar’s criteria for acceptance of schooling in the English language align with the criteria for principal applicants applying under the Skilled Migrant Category in New Zealand.

The Registrar acknowledges that for some applicants it is difficult to obtain copies of school records. The MARA has experienced difficulties handling evidence provided by mature applicants for the same reasons.

In the absence of schooling records, the Registrar accepts the statutory declaration submitted with an application for a licence. This is because the applicant is required to declare that all information that is provided is accurate. If the applicant knowingly provides false or misleading information about schooling records the applicant could be prosecuted because it is an offence that could result in a fine, imprisonment or the cancellation of his or her licence.

Evidence of tertiary study not accepted

The Registrar will not accept evidence of the completion of a tertiary qualification regardless of whether the tuition was delivered in English.

The Registrar does not consider evidence of the completion of a tertiary qualification as valid or sufficient evidence on its own that an applicant meets the English language competency standard.

The reason is that there is considerable variance between tertiary courses in course length, minimum “contact time”, course structure, teaching and assessment methods.

This means that even when the tuition is in English, it is possible for a student to obtain a tertiary qualification with minimal exposure to an English speaking environment. Evidence of a tertiary qualification does not guarantee that the applicant had a high level of interaction with English speaking lecturers, peers and colleagues while studying.

- December 2008