> To my amazement/horror, I have just been informed that I need to sit
> the IELTS test. Apparently DIMIA have changed their legislation on who
> has to take these tests. If you were not born in certain countries, ie
> UK, Australia, N.Z. U.S. and the like, you have to take the test.
> Whatever happened to native english speakers. I am from South Africa
> and was brought up and schooled in english and now I have to take a
> test to prove I can speak it!! Absurd.
>
> Has anybody seen how much they cost? I found one in London for £90.00
> and I have to book at least one month in advance. Luckily it's on a
> Saturday.
> Lets just hope I dont fail the test!
>
> Just my luck!
Having been born and mostly brought up in the UK I still sat the IELTS
test. The reason being that I had no evidence whatsoever of primary
school education (I'm amazed anyone does).
If I had an anglosaxon sounding name I probably wouldn't have bothered
but I decided I would do it many months ago to just avoid any potential
hassle nearer visa grant time. £90, although annoying, is not really a
significant expense in the whole visa process and the test itself should
be very straightforward for most native english speakers. I scored 9's
with no preparation at all.
Best of luck to you! Don't forget - it makes for some amusing stories.
My mates in Australia (and the UK of course) can't believe I sat an
English test!!
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