New Citizenship Test Will Require Migrants to Achieve University-Level English

Opposition spokesperson for citizenship and migration, Tony Burke, told Insiders that the new citizenship test proposals will require migrants to achieve university-level English scores.

Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Peter Dutton said that this was a "red herring", turning the situation into another classic case of he-said, he-said.

Luckily for us, ABC’s Fact Check has figured out who’s telling fibs and who’s not.

As it turns out, Burke is actually correct. The proposals will require migrants wanting to gain Australian citizenship a level of 6.0 in the general IELTS (International English Language Testing System) test.

There are two IELTS exams: general and academic. The general stream is intended for those who wish to gain entry to secondary education, work experience or training programs. The academic stream, as the name suggests, is intended for those who wish to complete tertiary studies in an English-speaking institution.  

The tests are essentially the same but focus on different texts and reading materials. The general stream focuses on newspaper and magazine texts with more descriptive language, while the academic stream focuses on texts from books and academic articles.

ABC spoke to University of Melbourne's Professor Tim McNamara, who explained that a Band 6 in both exams means essentially the same thing. 

"The tasks (in the academic and general streams) are different but the standard required is the same," Professor McNamara said.

"Level six on the general test and level six on the academic test [have] the same meaning in terms of the level of the level of English required."

For context, most European countries require an equivalent of a Band 4 in the IELTS, which would mean that Australia would have some of the toughest language requirements in the world.

As Professor McNamara points out, he has a problem with the level required to become a citizen.

"If you keep it simple, it emphasises that English is important. When you say you need high levels... then the effect is discriminatory."

The bill is set to come into effect at the end of the year.

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