If you deferred your intake (e.g. from Fall to Winter) after already receiving your visa, and your IELTS score expires before your new travel date:
- You generally do not need to retake IELTS if your study permit/visa has already been approved — the visa approval, not an active IELTS score, is what governs your ability to travel and study.
- Border officers don't check IELTS scores at entry. Your approved visa is what matters at the port of entry, not whether your language test is still within its validity window.
- Confirm with your institution separately, since a school might have its own internal policy about IELTS validity for enrollment purposes even though IRCC doesn't require a retest for an already-approved visa — this is worth a quick check to avoid a surprise on the academic side.
If anything about your specific visa conditions looks different from a standard approval, verify directly with IRCC or your visa office before booking travel.