TFI to CEFR Converter

The TFI (Test de Francais International) reports a total score from 10 to 990, calculated as Listening (5 to 495) + Reading (5 to 495). Per ETS, the published CEFR mapping is: 855 to 990 = C1, 785 to 854 = B2, 605 to 784 = B1, 405 to 604 = A2, below 405 = below A2 (no CEFR certification). The TFI tests only Listening and Reading; there is no Speaking or Writing component, so the CEFR level reported is for receptive skills only. The test ceiling is C1; the TFI does not certify CEFR C2.

The TFI is the workplace French test designed by ETS, parallel to TOEIC for English. It is used by multinational companies and employers in francophone markets to certify French communication skills in a workplace context. Common use cases include hiring and promotion at francophone subsidiaries of multinational corporations, internal training programs at French banks and insurance companies, and language certification for sales and customer-service roles in francophone Africa, Quebec, and Asia. The TFI is NOT used for university admission, immigration, or French citizenship.

No. The TFI is a workplace-only test. It is NOT accepted for French university admission (which requires DELF B2 / DALF C1 or TCF DAP / TEF Etudes), NOT accepted for French citizenship by naturalisation (which requires DELF / DALF or TCF IRN / TEF Naturalisation), and NOT accepted for IRCC Canadian Permanent Residency (which requires TEF Canada or TCF Canada). For these use cases, take DELF / DALF, TCF, or TEF instead.

The TFI was designed as a workplace assessment that maxes out at C1 (Effective Operational Proficiency), the level required for high-stakes professional French use. C2 (Mastery) is generally reserved for academic and translation contexts, where DALF C2 is the certification of choice. The TFI test ceiling is 990, which corresponds to top C1; there is no further band for C2. If you need to certify CEFR C2 in French, take DALF C2.

TFI scores are valid for 2 years from the test date for most employer use, matching the validity period of TCF, TEF, and TOEIC. Some employers accept older TFI certificates for internal records but require a recent test (within 2 years) for hiring and promotion decisions. This is similar to TCF and TEF (also 2 years), unlike DELF / DALF (lifetime). For long-term French language certification, take DELF or DALF; for fast workplace certification, the TFI is the right choice.

The TFI is most commonly required by multinational employers in francophone Africa (Cote d Ivoire, Senegal, Cameroon, DRC), Asian markets where French is a business language (Vietnam, Cambodia, Lebanon), Quebec employers in customer-service and sales roles, and the francophone divisions of multinational banks, insurance companies, and consulting firms. It is essentially the French equivalent of TOEIC: a workplace certification, not an academic or immigration certification.

Take TFI if your specific employer or industry requires it (especially francophone Africa, Asian francophone business markets, multinational banks, sales / customer service roles in Quebec). Take TCF or TEF if you need a test accepted across multiple use cases (immigration, university, employment), or if your employer accepts general French certification rather than a workplace-specific test. The TFI is faster (2 hours, multiple-choice only) and cheaper than TCF / TEF, but the certification is narrower in scope.

Yes, ETS offers TFI Speaking and TFI Writing as optional separate tests, parallel to TOEIC Speaking and Writing. They are scored 0 to 200 each (or banded 1 to 8 for Speaking, 1 to 9 for Writing). These supplementary tests are required by some employers for sales, customer-service, and trainer roles where productive French is essential. The standard TFI (Listening + Reading, 10 to 990) is the most commonly required; productive-skill tests are an optional add-on.