Citizenship Test and Language Exemptions and Waivers

Not everyone has to prove their language skills or take the test, and some who normally would can ask to be excused. The difference between an automatic exemption, a waiver and an accommodation matters, because only one of them happens without asking. This is from IRCC's page on who can apply, checked on 23 September 2026.

Automatic exemptions

These applicants do not have to request anything. They are already exempt:

• Adults aged 55 and older do not need to prove language skills or take the citizenship test.
• All minors under 18 do not need to prove language skills or take the test.
• Minors under 14 do not need to take the oath of citizenship.

What counts is your age on the day you sign your application. If you are 54 when you sign, you take the test and send language proof, even if you turn 55 while the application is processed.

Waivers

A waiver is permission to skip a requirement you cannot meet. If IRCC approves it, you do not have to meet that requirement at all, for example you do not take the test. You have to request it, and IRCC advises checking whether you qualify first.

IRCC limits what can be waived:

• Adults can request a waiver only for proving language skills and taking the test (both for ages 18 to 54), and for taking the oath (all adults).
• Minors aged 14 to 17 can request a waiver for the oath only.

Nothing else can be waived. Physical presence, permanent resident status, tax filing and prohibitions have no waiver.

Accommodations

An accommodation is help to meet a requirement rather than permission to skip it. It is often the better fit, and IRCC's examples show how practical it is:

• sign language interpretation at a language hearing or at the ceremony
• a Braille, large-print or oral version of the test
• extra time to complete the test
• taking the test in person if poor Internet access makes the online test impossible

Which one fits

• You are 55 or older, or under 18: you are exempt, and there is nothing to request.
• You can meet the requirement with support: request an accommodation.
• A disability or situation genuinely prevents you from meeting it: consider a waiver, after checking you qualify.

If you are taking the test

For most applicants aged 18 to 54 the test is the requirement that remains. It is 20 questions from Discover Canada, 15 correct to pass. Our free practice questions and study guide are built for it, and an accommodation such as extra time or an oral format changes the delivery, not the content.