diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/index.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/index.ts
index 96256b7b43..ae0962151a 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/index.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/index.ts
@@ -12,3 +12,4 @@ export {DeclarationScope} from './src/file_linker/declaration_scope';
 export {FileLinker} from './src/file_linker/file_linker';
 export {LinkerEnvironment} from './src/file_linker/linker_environment';
 export {LinkerOptions} from './src/file_linker/linker_options';
+export {needsLinking} from './src/file_linker/needs_linking';
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/needs_linking.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/needs_linking.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..1a0901e519
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/needs_linking.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.io/license
+ */
+
+import {declarationFunctions} from './partial_linkers/partial_linker_selector';
+
+/**
+ * Determines if the provided source file may need to be processed by the linker, i.e. whether it
+ * potentially contains any declarations. If true is returned, then the source file should be
+ * processed by the linker as it may contain declarations that need to be fully compiled. If false
+ * is returned, parsing and processing of the source file can safely be skipped to improve
+ * performance.
+ *
+ * This function may return true even for source files that don't actually contain any declarations
+ * that need to be compiled.
+ *
+ * @param path the absolute path of the source file for which to determine whether linking may be
+ * needed.
+ * @param source the source file content as a string.
+ * @returns whether the source file may contain declarations that need to be linked.
+ */
+export function needsLinking(path: string, source: string): boolean {
+  return declarationFunctions.some(fn => source.includes(fn));
+}
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/partial_linkers/partial_linker_selector.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/partial_linkers/partial_linker_selector.ts
index 12cce3a994..6d24c3d127 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/partial_linkers/partial_linker_selector.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/src/file_linker/partial_linkers/partial_linker_selector.ts
@@ -12,6 +12,10 @@ import {PartialComponentLinkerVersion1} from './partial_component_linker_1';
 import {PartialDirectiveLinkerVersion1} from './partial_directive_linker_1';
 import {PartialLinker} from './partial_linker';
 
+export const ɵɵngDeclareDirective = 'ɵɵngDeclareDirective';
+export const ɵɵngDeclareComponent = 'ɵɵngDeclareComponent';
+export const declarationFunctions = [ɵɵngDeclareDirective, ɵɵngDeclareComponent];
+
 export class PartialLinkerSelector<TExpression> {
   /**
    * A database of linker instances that should be used if their given semver range satisfies the
@@ -27,11 +31,11 @@ export class PartialLinkerSelector<TExpression> {
    * allows the linker to work on local builds effectively.
    */
   private linkers: Record<string, {range: string, linker: PartialLinker<TExpression>}[]> = {
-    'ɵɵngDeclareDirective': [
+    [ɵɵngDeclareDirective]: [
       {range: '0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER', linker: new PartialDirectiveLinkerVersion1()},
       {range: '>=11.1.0-next.1', linker: new PartialDirectiveLinkerVersion1()},
     ],
-    'ɵɵngDeclareComponent':
+    [ɵɵngDeclareComponent]:
         [
           {range: '0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER', linker: new PartialComponentLinkerVersion1(this.options)},
           {range: '>=11.1.0-next.1', linker: new PartialComponentLinkerVersion1(this.options)},
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/linker/test/file_linker/needs_linking_spec.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/test/file_linker/needs_linking_spec.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..b83842939e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/linker/test/file_linker/needs_linking_spec.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+/**
+ * @license
+ * Copyright Google LLC All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
+ * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.io/license
+ */
+
+import {needsLinking} from '../../src/file_linker/needs_linking';
+
+describe('needsLinking', () => {
+  it('should return true for directive declarations', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      export class Dir {
+        ɵdir = ɵɵngDeclareDirective({type: Dir});
+      }
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return true for namespaced directive declarations', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      export class Dir {
+        ɵdir = ng.ɵɵngDeclareDirective({type: Dir});
+      }
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return true for unrelated usages of ɵɵngDeclareDirective', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      const fnName = 'ɵɵngDeclareDirective';
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return false when the file does not contain ɵɵngDeclareDirective', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      const foo = ngDeclareDirective;
+    `)).toBeFalse();
+  });
+
+  it('should return true for component declarations', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      export class Cmp {
+        ɵdir = ɵɵngDeclareComponent({type: Cmp});
+      }
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return true for namespaced component declarations', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      export class Cmp {
+        ɵdir = ng.ɵɵngDeclareComponent({type: Cmp});
+      }
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return true for unrelated usages of ɵɵngDeclareComponent', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      const fnName = 'ɵɵngDeclareComponent';
+    `)).toBeTrue();
+  });
+
+  it('should return false when the file does not contain ɵɵngDeclareComponent', () => {
+    expect(needsLinking('file.js', `
+      const foo = ngDeclareComponent;
+    `)).toBeFalse();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/BUILD.bazel b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/BUILD.bazel
index ea2c513b98..7f2f0b16fe 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/BUILD.bazel
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/BUILD.bazel
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ ts_library(
     testonly = True,
     srcs = ["linked_compile_spec.ts"],
     deps = [
+        "//packages/compiler-cli/linker",
         "//packages/compiler-cli/linker/babel",
         "//packages/compiler-cli/src/ngtsc/file_system",
         "//packages/compiler-cli/src/ngtsc/logging",
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/linked_compile_spec.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/linked_compile_spec.ts
index 2994347cdc..4e09b1397a 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/linked_compile_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/linked/linked_compile_spec.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
  */
 import {PluginObj, transformSync} from '@babel/core';
 
+import {needsLinking} from '../../../linker';
 import {createEs2015LinkerPlugin} from '../../../linker/babel';
 import {AbsoluteFsPath, FileSystem} from '../../../src/ngtsc/file_system';
 import {ConsoleLogger, LogLevel} from '../../../src/ngtsc/logging';
@@ -57,7 +58,7 @@ function linkPartials(fs: FileSystem, test: ComplianceTest): CompileResult {
       const sourceMap =
           fs.exists(sourceMapPath) ? JSON.parse(fs.readFile(sourceMapPath)) : undefined;
       const {linkedSource, linkedSourceMap} =
-          applyLinker({fileName, source, sourceMap}, linkerPlugin);
+          applyLinker({path: partialPath, source, sourceMap}, linkerPlugin);
 
       if (linkedSourceMap !== undefined) {
         const mapAndPath: MapAndPath = {map: linkedSourceMap, mapPath: sourceMapPath};
@@ -75,18 +76,18 @@ function linkPartials(fs: FileSystem, test: ComplianceTest): CompileResult {
  *
  * It will ignore files that do not have a `.js` extension.
  *
- * @param file The file name and its source to be transformed using the linker.
+ * @param file The absolute file path and its source to be transformed using the linker.
  * @param linkerPlugin The linker plugin to apply.
  * @returns The file's source content, which has been transformed using the linker if necessary.
  */
 function applyLinker(
-    file: {fileName: string; source: string, sourceMap: RawSourceMap | undefined},
+    file: {path: string; source: string, sourceMap: RawSourceMap | undefined},
     linkerPlugin: PluginObj): {linkedSource: string, linkedSourceMap: RawSourceMap|undefined} {
-  if (!file.fileName.endsWith('.js')) {
+  if (!file.path.endsWith('.js') || !needsLinking(file.path, file.source)) {
     return {linkedSource: file.source, linkedSourceMap: file.sourceMap};
   }
   const result = transformSync(file.source, {
-    filename: file.fileName,
+    filename: file.path,
     sourceMaps: !!file.sourceMap,
     plugins: [linkerPlugin],
     parserOpts: {sourceType: 'unambiguous'},
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/BUILD.bazel b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/BUILD.bazel
index f0d5f7bb8d..99873782b4 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/BUILD.bazel
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/BUILD.bazel
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ ts_library(
     srcs = ["bootstrap.ts"],
     deps = [
         "//packages:types",
+        "//packages/compiler-cli/linker",
         "//packages/compiler-cli/linker/babel",
         "//packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/mock_compile",
         "@npm//@babel/core",
diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/bootstrap.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/bootstrap.ts
index 1682850877..262df85489 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/bootstrap.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance_old/prelink/bootstrap.ts
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 import {PluginObj, transformSync} from '@babel/core';
 import * as ts from 'typescript';
 
+import {needsLinking} from '../../../linker';
 import {createEs2015LinkerPlugin} from '../../../linker/babel';
 import {compileFiles, CompileFn, setCompileFn} from '../mock_compile';
 
@@ -34,7 +35,10 @@ const linkedCompile: CompileFn = (data, angularFiles, options) => {
     ...options,
   });
 
-  const source = compiledFiles.map(file => applyLinker(file, linkerPlugin)).join('\n');
+  const source =
+      compiledFiles
+          .map(file => applyLinker({path: file.fileName, source: file.source}, linkerPlugin))
+          .join('\n');
 
   return {source};
 };
@@ -42,16 +46,16 @@ const linkedCompile: CompileFn = (data, angularFiles, options) => {
 /**
  * Runs the provided code through the Babel linker plugin, if the file has the .js extension.
  *
- * @param file The file name and its source to be transformed using the linker.
+ * @param file The absolute file path and its source to be transformed using the linker.
  * @param linkerPlugin The linker plugin to apply.
  * @returns The file's source content, which has been transformed using the linker if necessary.
  */
-function applyLinker(file: {fileName: string; source: string}, linkerPlugin: PluginObj): string {
-  if (!file.fileName.endsWith('.js')) {
+function applyLinker(file: {path: string; source: string}, linkerPlugin: PluginObj): string {
+  if (!file.path.endsWith('.js') || !needsLinking(file.path, file.source)) {
     return file.source;
   }
   const result = transformSync(file.source, {
-    filename: file.fileName,
+    filename: file.path,
     plugins: [linkerPlugin],
     parserOpts: {sourceType: 'unambiguous'},
   });