The citizenship test
Discover Canada study guide: plan your revision
Enter the days left before your test and the minutes you can give each day: the plan shows your total study time, days per chapter and how many mock tests to keep for the end.
My Discover Canada study plan
Total study time
10.5 h
| Days per chapter | 1 |
| Full mock tests kept for the end | 3 |
| Practice questions a day | 6 |
The guide has ten chapters; keep the last days for full timed mock tests.
Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship is the only study guide IRCC names for the citizenship test, and every test question is drawn from its facts. It has 10 chapters: rights and responsibilities, who we are, history, modern Canada, how Canadians govern themselves, federal elections, the justice system, symbols, the economy and the regions. IRCC adds a warning that third-party guides are used at your own risk, so treat any practice material, ours included, as a way to check what you learned from the guide, not as a replacement. The test asks 20 questions in 45 minutes and you need 15 correct answers, so no chapter can be left out. The planner above divides the days you have left between the chapters, keeps up to three days at the end for full mock tests, and tells you how many practice questions to answer each day to cover the 10 chapters once. With three weeks and half an hour a day, for example, you get a little over ten hours of study, which is enough for most applicants who work steadily.
Questions, counts and fees by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How questions and dates are built
What the planner calculates
The tool takes two numbers: days before the test and minutes a day. It multiplies them to give your total study time in hours. It keeps up to three days at the end for full mock tests (one for every four days available, never more than three). It spreads the remaining days over the 10 chapters to give days per chapter; with fewer than ten days, it tells you to cover several chapters a day. Finally, it divides one hundred practice questions, ten per chapter, by the study days left, to give a daily practice target. With 21 days and 30 minutes, for instance, that is 10.5 hours in all, 1 day per chapter, 3 mock tests kept for the end and 6 practice questions a day.
The ten chapters
| Chapter | Main content | Questions in our bank |
|---|---|---|
| Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship | Charter of 1982, freedoms, duties such as jury service and voting | 15 |
| Who We Are | First Nations, Inuit, Métis, Acadians, Québécois, official languages | 15 |
| Canada's History | explorers, New France, British rule, Confederation, world wars | 15 |
| Modern Canada | postwar Canada, Quiet Revolution, arts, science and sport | 15 |
| How Canadians Govern Themselves | monarchy, Parliament, federal and provincial powers | 15 |
| Federal Elections | who votes, ridings, majority and minority governments | 15 |
| The Justice System | presumption of innocence, courts, police | 15 |
| Canadian Symbols | flag, anthem, motto, honours, national sports | 15 |
| Canada's Economy | three sectors, trade with the United States, regional products | 15 |
| Canada's Regions | five regions, provinces, territories and capitals | 15 |
A study method in four steps
First, skim a chapter of questions in the question bank to see what matters. Second, read the same chapter in the guide, slowly, noting dates and names. Third, take a ten-question practice set on that chapter and reread only what you missed. Fourth, after the last chapter, use the days the planner keeps aside for the timed mock test, which follows the real format. If a mock test falls below the pass mark, go back to the weakest chapter before trying again.
Reading the guide wisely
The guide is available to read online on canada.ca, and IRCC links to it from its study page. It is under Crown copyright, which is why no practice site may simply reproduce it. A few passages are dated. The most visible is the monarchy: the guide speaks of Queen Elizabeth II, while the current oath names King Charles III. When you meet such a point, answer by the office rather than the name. Skip any number that changes over time, such as the people currently in office; the test is built on the stable facts.
When you are ready
Readiness is measured, not felt. When three timed mock tests on different days all reach at least 15 out of 20, and preferably two or three more, you are ready. The pass mark page explains what each score means and what happens after a failed attempt.