Retaking language test unfair: residency hopefuls
OTTAWA — International graduates and essential workers eligible to apply for permanent residency under a new program say requiring them to retake language proficiency tests is unreasonable, especially during a global pandemic.
Akshay Aman, a law clerk graduate working as a security officer in Toronto, said international students have already passed language tests and proved their proficiency in English or French when they got their school admission and student visa. “There is no sense [in taking] the test again and again,” he said.
The new program aims to grant 90,000 essential workers and international graduates who are in Canada permanent status. On May 6, the immigration department will start accepting up to 50,000 applications from health-care and other essential workers and 40,000 applications from international students who graduated from a Canadian institution.
International graduates and essential workers must submit an official language evaluation less than two years old when the permanent residency application is received. Aman, who graduated from Niagara College, said he has all the documents he needs to apply for permanent residency except a new English proficiency test. He said the websites of the government-approved language tests have crashed since the announcement of the new program last week, leaving thousands of applicants struggling to register for an exam.
All the spots are booked until the end of September, he said.
He added that it’s unsafe to require tens of thousands of people to take in-person tests during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A spokesman for Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino said the process will be fair for everyone, but he didn’t say whether the department will drop the language requirement for those who have already passed proficiency tests.
Morad Roohi, a PhD student at Queen’s University, said for days he has tried to book an English test with his partner so they can apply for permanent residency, but they are unable to find an appointment.