Failed the Citizenship Test? What Happens Next

Failing the citizenship test is common enough that IRCC builds more than one attempt into the process. A failed attempt is not the end of your application. Here is exactly what happens, as IRCC describes it, and how to use the time before you try again.

You have three chances

When IRCC invites you to the online test, you get a 30-day window and three chances to pass within it. IRCC states this on its page about test results and next steps, checked on 23 September 2026.

So if you fail your first attempt, you have not failed the test. You have used one of three attempts, and you still have time inside the same window to try again.

Many older guides describe a different process: one test, then a second test booked weeks later, then a hearing. That is how the test used to run. Check the date on anything you read about it.

Your score, official and unofficial

When you submit the online test, your score appears on screen straight away. That is an unofficial result. An IRCC officer then reviews it to make it official, which IRCC says can take a few days or a few weeks. If you take the test in person or on Microsoft Teams, you get your official score right after the test.

Using the time between attempts

Most people who fail do not fail across the board. They lose points in one or two chapters of Discover Canada. The most useful thing you can do before the next attempt is find out which ones.

• Take a timed practice test and write down every question you get wrong
• Group the wrong answers by chapter
• Re-read those chapters, not the whole guide
• Take another practice test and check that the weak chapters have improved

Re-reading the entire guide feels productive, but it spends most of your time on material you already know.

If you fail all three attempts

If you do not pass on any of your three attempts, IRCC invites you to a hearing with a citizenship official. It is a conversation rather than another online test, and IRCC says it lasts between 30 and 90 minutes.

The official may test your knowledge of Canada orally, with 20 questions of which you must pass 15. They may also ask about your residence in Canada and assess your language skills, with up to 9 questions of which you must pass 6.

If you fail the hearing

If you pass the hearing, you wait for your invitation to the citizenship ceremony, exactly as someone who passed the test does.

If you fail the hearing, IRCC refuses your application. That is not permanent, but you would need to apply again and pay the fees again.

The short version

• A failed attempt uses one of three chances in your 30-day window
• Three failed attempts lead to a hearing, not a refusal
• Only a failed hearing leads to a refusal, and you can still reapply

The best protection is not needing a second attempt. Our free practice questions are organised by chapter so you can find a weak one early, and the study guide breaks each chapter of Discover Canada into the facts it is tested on.