Canadian citizenship test: format & pass mark

Last reviewed August 13, 2026 · Reviewed by the MapleTest editorial team

Independent study tool · Not affiliated with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)

The Canadian citizenship test is 20 questions in 45 minutes, and you need 15 correct (75%) to pass. Most applicants take it online from home, and everyone gets 3 chances to pass within a 30-day window. Every question comes from the official study guide, Discover Canada. Knowing exactly how the test works takes a lot of the worry out of the day, so here is the whole thing in plain English.

Test format

The test has 20 questions and a 45-minute time limit. The rules were updated in March 2026: the timer is 45 minutes (it used to be shorter) and you now get 3 chances. Many older articles still quote the old numbers. Every fact on this page was checked against Canada.ca on 13 August 2026.

Every question is based on Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship, the official study guide. IRCC states that all test questions come from information found in the guide, which is free to read online, download as a PDF or eBook, or listen to as audio. Your preparation should come from the guide itself, or from practice built on it.

You can take the test in English or French, whichever you are more comfortable with. The test does not assess your language skills. That is a separate requirement with its own rules.

What is the pass mark?

You need to answer at least 15 of the 20 questions correctly, which is 75%. That means you can get up to 5 questions wrong and still pass. When you finish the online test, you see an unofficial result right away; IRCC confirms your official result afterwards. Wondering whether that bar is hard to clear? There is an honest assessment in how hard is the test.

How the questions work

The 20 questions come in two shapes:

• multiple choice: pick the single correct answer from the options, or
• true or false: decide whether a statement is correct.

There are no open-ended questions and nothing to write. The most useful habit to build is reading each question slowly and completely before answering, because a fact you know well can still lose the mark if you rush the question. Practising in the real timed format is the best way to make the clock feel normal.

What the test covers

IRCC asks about the rights and responsibilities of citizenship and about Canada's history, geography, economy, government, laws, and symbols. In practice, that means the ten chapters of Discover Canada:

• Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship: what citizenship asks of you and gives you.
• Who We Are: Indigenous peoples, English and French, and Canada's diversity.
• Canada's History: from the first peoples through Confederation to today.
• Modern Canada: the economy, society, arts, and inventions.
• How Canadians Govern Themselves: federalism, Parliament, and the Crown.
• Federal Elections: voting, ballots, and the levels of government.
• The Justice System: courts, police, and the rule of law.
• Canadian Symbols: the flag, the anthem, holidays, and honours.
• Canada's Economy: trade and the main types of industries.
• Canada's Regions: the provinces, territories, and regions.

History and the regions carry the most names, dates, and places, so plan the most study time for those chapters.

Taking the test online

Most applicants are invited to take the test online, on their own computer. You get 30 days from your invitation to take it, and up to 3 attempts within that window, with the session supervised through your webcam.

The timer is strict: once it starts, it cannot be paused. You get a warning when 5 minutes remain, and when the 45 minutes are up the test submits automatically, even if you have not finished. Practising against a real countdown is the best preparation for this.

Device requirements, the ID photo steps, the room rules, sign-in fixes, and the in-person and Microsoft Teams alternatives are all covered in taking the test online.

Do you have to take it?

The test applies to adults 18 to 54, counted on the day your application is signed; younger and older applicants fall outside the requirement. Exemptions, the waiver route, and what exempt applicants still go through all have their own guide: who takes the citizenship test.

What if you do not pass?

Not passing on the first try is common and recoverable. Your invitation opens a 30-day window with 3 chances inside it, and a third unsuccessful attempt brings a hearing instead of a refusal. For the retest timeline, the hearing itself, and the family-application rules, read what happens if you fail.

The quickest way to get ready

The format rewards practice. Two habits make the biggest difference:

1. Get used to answering 20 questions under a 45-minute countdown, so the timer never surprises you.
2. Study all ten chapters of Discover Canada, and review every practice question you get wrong until you can answer it from memory.

You can try a free practice test now, with no sign-up needed. Our practice questions are original and based on the official Discover Canada study guide: they are not IRCC's actual test questions, which are never published. Do a few full timed mocks in the week before your test, and you will sign in knowing exactly what to expect.

This page explains how the Canadian citizenship test works and is for study and preparation only. It is general information, not immigration advice, and does not determine your eligibility for citizenship. For official rules and any updates, rely on Canada.ca; official IRCC guidance controls if anything here differs.