TCF Carte de Résident Test: What to Expect
Taking the test de connaissance du français or TCF is required when renewing your Titre de Sejour for a 10-year carte de résident, or when applying for French citizenship. There are some exceptions, such as if you are at least 65 years old or have certain diplomas (see the graphic below), but most of us have to take it. The test is created and managed by the Centre international d’études pédagogiques (part of the French Ministry of National Education), but is administered by private test centers and costs around 100-150 euros to take.
As part of applying for my 10-year card, I took the TCF pour la carte de résident in June. This is a slightly easier test than the one for French citizenship, which requires a B1 level of competence. The TCF Carte de Résident requires an A2 level of French language.
HOW TO REGISTER
I went to ILE International in Paris, but here is the list of all the schools in every country that administer this test.
You should register as early as you can. At the very least, take the test a month before your appointment to be safe to get your results in time. The dates do fill up so don’t wait! Also consider that if you need to retake the test, you have to wait a month before you can do so.
WHAT TO BRING
To take the test I needed:
- My convocation (the email proving I registered), printed.
- La convention signée — a document attached to my registration email that lays out the rules of the test. You must print and sign.
- A valid ID (carte de résident or passport. NOTE: Driver’s licenses are NOT accepted.)
- An envelope “Lettre suivie” (préaffranchie). You get this at La Poste. It needs to be “format A4” and you need to fill out your address in advance. This is what they send you your results in.
WHAT’S IN THE TEST?
The TCF pour la carte de résident test is comprised of four sections. At most centers, the first three parts are completed at a computer with headphones. Once you start the test, you will get an introduction/example of each section and how it works before each portion starts. You click a button to begin each section, so you can take a breather between each one if you need.
PART 1: Oral comprehension – 15 minutes
20 multiple choice questions. I found this to be the most difficult section. You listen to a snippet of a conversation or report and then choose an answer to a question about what was in it. Sometimes the answer choices are spoken, and sometimes they are in text. You only get to listen once, and it is timed with what felt like about 15 seconds to make a choice. This seemed quick to me and the questions get progressively harder. EXAMPLE QUESTIONS
PART 2: Written comprehension – 20 minutes
20 multiple choice questions. You’ll be presented with various notices, letters, flyers, etc., to read and then answer questions about the content. You have 20 minutes total to answer, and can toggle or skip between questions. EXAMPLE QUESTIONS
PART 3: Written expression – 30 minutes
Respond to three emails or letters with approximately 50-word responses. You have 30 minutes to complete this section, which felt like more than enough time to me, and you can switch between the three responses as you wish. EXAMPLE QUESTIONS
This is the end of the computer-administrated portion. After completing it, I was shown my expected level (A1, A2, B1, etc.) for the first two, multiple-choice sections. However, the written portion has to be checked by a human so you don’t get a grade for that yet.
PART 4: Oral exam – 10 minutes
This portion is done with a teacher/administrator. It is tape recorded and will be graded by both the person you take it with, and another person. During my oral test, there were three parts:
- 3 minutes of introducing/talking about yourself.
- 3:30 minutes of playing out a scenario with the administrator. In mine, I was looking to buy a pet and she worked at a pet store.
- 3:30 minutes of talking about something you like to do. In my case the prompt was the type of shops I like to go to and why.
- EXAMPLE QUESTIONS
Plan to spend two to three hours at the testing center including check in, instructions and wait times. You can expect your results in ten days to three weeks (mine arrived in that window) and the document is valid for two years.
HOW TO PREPARE
Below are a few resources you can use to prepare and practice for the TCF Résident. Note that many centers also include preparation documents or lessons in the price of the test.
- TV 5 Monde lessons: https://apprendre.tv5monde.com/fr/tcf
- RFI lessons (more difficult questions): https://savoirs.rfi.fr/fr/apprendre-enseigner/langue-francaise/tcf-test-de-connaissance-du-francais
- CIEP.fr materials: https://www.ciep.fr/sites/default/files/atoms/files/focus_ressources-preparation-tcf.pdf
Have you taken the TCF Carte de Résident test? What was your experience like? Leave a comment and share!
Hi Charli, i love your blog so much. It is maybe the only clear one in english to get information about french administration. I have a couple of questions and i hope you may answer.
I assume that you have now ten years carte de sejour, is the paper process as same as the former article you wrote about in “CARTE DE SÉJOUR GUIDE FOR AMERICAN SPOUSES” except the french test to get? And may i ask how much did the stamp cost this time?
Thank you so much in advance;
Leni
Hi Leni! I just commented with a couple questions for Charli too regarding applying for the 10 year. I haven’t yet done my application yet, but I have started to wrap my head around everything I will need and found this page for information that pertains to foreigners married to a French citizen:
https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F2208
But I also am eager to hear Charli’s experience and any nuanced information she has as I know sometimes there are slight surprises in these procedures that aren’t communicated or updated on government websites!
Hope this helps in the meantime!
Kelly
Thank you so much Kelly, i wish there was a way to discuss our process by talking each other since there is not much details on the page you shared, i also check different pages for 10 years visa for married expats. Unfortunatelly not as detailed as the article that Charli shared.
Thanks again. Loves 🙂
Hi Leni,
I don’t know if you have gone through this process fully yet, but I just had my appointment with the prefecture of my region yesterday and can offer my insights if you’d like, although I am in the countryside and not a large city, so I think the ease of my experience is probably a bit different than if you are living in Paris and dealing with the prefecture there. Let me know and I can either post it here or send you an email. 🙂 I hope all is going well with you!
Warmly,
Kelly
Hey Charli!
As always, thank you for all the info you provide. Not only does it help during the known processes, but in this case, you actually alerted me to a process I had no idea was in MY hands. I always assumed when I renew my 2 year Carte de sèjour (which is due for this fall), immigrations would simply decide if now was the time to give me a 10 year residency haha. I am wondering one thing regarding the process of applying for the 10 year: I did find on service-public.fr all the information I need to provide, but it says to submit your application to your nearest prefecture two months before expiration. By ‘application’ do they simply mean all the files they request- your dossier? Or is there an application FORM or should I write a cover letter requesting to be considered? Just not sure if I’m overthinking this here but one never knows with immigration procedures!
I took my TCF test here in the Dordogne region as that is where I am living now. One luxury of being out of the capital city and in the countryside I guess is that these things don’t fill up quickly I think. It was me and one other woman taking the test, they offer them every month in Perigueux. We did not use a computer, they handed out booklets to fill out for the beginning section. I found that the “practice links” you provided were pretty much dead on- I even felt they used the same questions at times! I received my results exactly three weeks later. The test here was 160 euro, but I realized that it tested for my level up to B1 so that it is a test I could use for either a 10 year residency OR citizenship. I guess they lump it together here?
At any rate, I hope you are enjoying new motherhood, even amidst all the confinements (perhaps they are a blessing in disguise as you have more freedom to stay at home and not rush back to work in the same way as before the pandemic). I’m sure it’s hard to be so far away from family with a new babe and I hope if you all haven’t been able to see each other at some point during this very long year, you all are able to connect in person soon!
Warmly,
Kelly
Hi Charli, Thank you so much for all of this detailed and clear information about your experiences with this test! I am preparing to apply for my ten-year residency card as the spouse of a French citizen, and after that I plan to apply for citizenship. I was wondering if it would be better to just go ahead and take the TCF ANF to be covered for both the residency card and the naturalization process? Do you happen to know if one version could be accepted for both or what the differences between the two version of the TCF might be. Many thanks in a Vance if you may have insights into this!
Hi Rachel!
I took my test in March of this year and just had my interview yesterday with my local prefecture to submit my dossier for my 10 year residency. On my test results that I received from INFREP here in Périgueux, they test up to level B1 and then depending on what form of residency you are applying for, you can use it accordingly. (B1, you probably know already, is the level required for naturalization). The only issue is, the test results expire after two years, same with the TCF ANF. So, at least in my case, I will have to retake the test in 10 years, despite already reaching the level required. I think the only way you could potentially kill two birds with one stone is if you opt for another form of language certification: various diplomas associated with language/linguistics/or university level education (DELF, university, DUEF, DCL).
I hope this helps!
Hello Charli,
Thank you for sharing such detailed information. I am also planning to apply for the test. As the test is valid for two years only, I have heard that we can apply for french citizenship within those two years of getting 10 years carte de séjour. I searched it online but am not sure about it. Can you please clarify.
Thanks,
Rostam
Hi Rostam, you can use the same test for the french citizenship application as long as you get a B1 or above and use it before it expires!