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Functional English

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byAidan Kinsella
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Functional English

You must show evidence of meeting the functional English requirement unless:

  • You hold a valid passport from one of these countries: the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the Republic of Ireland or New Zealand.
  • You have completed all years of primary education and at least three years of secondary education in an educational institution in or outside Australia and all instructions were in English. You will need to obtain letter(s) from the educational institution(s) confirming this.
  • You have completed at least five years of secondary education in an institution in or outside Australia and all instructions were in English. You will need to obtain letter(s) from the educational institution(s) confirming this.
  • You have successfully completed at least one year of full-time study or equivalent part-time study towards a degree, higher degree, diploma, or associate diploma in an institution in Australia and all instructions were in English. You will need to obtain letter(s) from the educational institution(s) confirming this.
  • You have completed a degree, a higher degree, a diploma or a trade certificate that required at least two years of full-time study or training in an institution in or outside Australia and all instructions were in English.
  • You studied at the below (but did not necessarily complete the below qualification).
A primary school and secondary school where all instruction was in English in or outside Australia All years of primary and at least 3 years of secondary study
A secondary school in or outside Australia where all instruction was in English At least 5 years of study
An institution in Australia where all instruction was in English At least 1 year of full-time study towards an award
An institution in Australia where all instruction was in English The part-time equivalent of 1 year of full-time study towards an award

Approved tests

If you do not meet one of these exemptions, you must provide results from an approved test that equal functional English language ability.  The following tests are acceptable:

Notes

  • The date the test is taken is important:
    • English tests taken from 7 August 2025 will need to meet the new scores published in the below table.
    • Tests taken before 7 August 2025 may be submitted if they meet the previous English language score requirements.
  • A special note for TOEFL iBT – Results from TOEFL iBT tests completed between 26 July 2023 and 4 May 2024 will notbe accepted. Tests completed before July 26th, 2023 and after 5 May 2024 remain valid for two years and can be used.

Minimum scores

The minimum scores required are as follows:

Tests taken from 7 August Tests taken after 7 August
Test Minimum score required Minimum score required
IELTS test Overall band score 4.5 Overall band score 4.5
PTE Overall band score 424 Overall band score 30
CAE No longer accepted Overall band score 147
TOEFL iBT Overall band score 26 Overall band score 32
OET Overall band score of at least 1020  

NA
CELPIP General

 

 

 Overall band score of at least 5 NA
LanguageCert Academic Overall band score of at least 38 NA
Michigan English Test (MET)

 

 Overall band score of at least 38 NA

Test validity

For the functional English requirement, English test results must be under 12 months old.

Test Retaking

The Department of Home Affairs permits the re-take of a single skill only for the below tests:

  • IELTS – One Skill Retake (OSR) permitted for both IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training
  • MET – Single Section Retake (SSR) will also be accepted.

Test Centre

All tests must take place in a secure testing centre. The Department of Home Affairs does not accept evidence from English language tests that are delivered completely online (also known as ‘remote-proctored’ or ‘at-home’).

Examples of online tests that are not accepted for Australian visa purposes include:

  • CELPIP Online
  • IELTS Online
  • LANGUAGECERT Academic Online
  • MET Digital (taken at-home)
  • OET@Home
  • TOEFL iBT – Home Edition
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