Get an Ontario driver's licence

Why this matters

In most of Northern Ontario you can't get to work, drop kids at school, or reach a clinic without a vehicle. A driver's licence is also one of the most-accepted ID documents in Canada — useful for banking, leasing an apartment, and proving your address. Getting licensed is one of the highest-impact settlement tasks you'll do in your first year.

New: immigration status is now part of the application

In late 2025 Ontario introduced the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act (Bill 60), which links driver's-licence eligibility to your immigration and work status. The Ministry of Transportation can now require proof that you are a resident of Ontario and legally present in Canada. You'll need to bring one of the following when you apply or renew:

• Permanent residents: PR card or Confirmation of Permanent Residence (CoPR)
• Work-permit holders: valid IRCC work permit
• Study-permit holders: valid IRCC study permit (standard licence only — not commercial)
• Refugee claimants: Refugee Protection Claimant Document or IRCC paperwork showing your claim is in process
• Protected persons & refugees with PR: PR card or protected-person status document

The expiry of your Ontario driver's licence will usually be tied to the expiry of your immigration document — so if your work permit is renewed, you'll need to update the licence record too. Background: immigration.ca summary.

If your status is uncertain: refugee claimants, asylum seekers, and people on a bridging open work permit sometimes have non-standard documents. A settlement worker can call ahead with you to confirm what DriveTest will accept — see the regional contacts below.

Ontario's graduated licensing system (G1 → G2 → G)

Ontario uses a three-stage system. Most people take about 20 months to complete it, and you have up to five years from the day you pass G1 to finish.

G1 — knowledge test

A 40-question multiple-choice test on the rules of the road, plus a vision test, both done at a DriveTest centre. You must be 16 or older. The G1 knowledge test is offered in many languages including English, French, Arabic, Punjabi, Mandarin, Spanish, Russian, Korean, Tamil, Urdu, and more — ask at the centre.

With a G1 you can drive only with a fully-licensed driver (4+ years of experience, under 0.05% BAC) in the front seat, no driving from midnight to 5 a.m., no 400-series highways, and zero alcohol in your system.

G2 — first road test

Eligible after 12 months with a G1 — or 8 months if you complete a Ministry-approved Beginner Driver Education (BDE) course. Once you pass, you can drive alone on any road in Ontario, day or night. Zero blood alcohol still applies.

G — full licence

Eligible after 12 months with a G2. Pass the G road test and you have a full unrestricted Ontario licence.

Current fees

The G1 package — knowledge test, vision test, your first G2 road-test attempt, and a 5-year licence — is about $159.75. A G road test is about $91.25. Retaking a G2 road test is about $53.75 per attempt. Confirm current pricing on drivetest.ca/tests/fees before you go.

Already licensed in another country? You may be able to exchange.

How fast you can get a full Ontario G depends on two things: where your licence was issued and how long you've been driving.

If your country has a reciprocal agreement

Drivers from these jurisdictions can exchange directly for an Ontario G with only a vision test — no written test, no road test:

• All other Canadian provinces and territories
• All US states
• Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Israel, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, Taiwan

Ontario is reviewing this list and additional countries may be added — check the current list on DriveTest's foreign-exchange page before assuming.

If your country is not on the list

You can still get credit for your foreign driving experience:

• 2 or more years of driving in the past 3 years — pass the G1 knowledge test and a vision test, then go straight to a G road test. Skip the G2 wait entirely.
• 12 to 24 months of experience — pass the G1 written, then take the G2 road test. Skip the 12-month wait.
• Less than 12 months — full graduated licensing applies; you'll wait the standard 12 months (or 8 with BDE) before your first road test.

Document requirements when exchanging

Bring your original foreign licence. If it's not in English or French, you'll need a certified translation from a qualified translator (your country's embassy, a notary, or a translator certified by ATIO/CTTIC). You may also need a letter of authentication from your home country's licensing authority confirming the licence's history — on official letterhead, dated within the last 6 months. Settlement.org has a good plain-language summary.

What to bring to your first DriveTest visit

Booking the road test

Book online at drivetest.ca. Northern Ontario wait times are usually 2 to 6 weeks, compared to 6 months or more in the GTA — one of the quiet advantages of testing up north. Book early; don't wait until the day you become eligible.

Northern Ontario DriveTest centres

City	Address
Thunder Bay	1186 Memorial Avenue, Unit 2, Thunder Bay ON
Sudbury	782 LaSalle Boulevard (Montrose Mall), Greater Sudbury ON
Sault Ste. Marie	150 Churchill Boulevard, C15-16 (Churchill Plaza), Sault Ste. Marie ON
North Bay	300 Lakeshore Drive, Unit 502 (New North Bay Mall), North Bay ON P1A 3V2
Timmins	4900 Highway 101 East, Unit 160 (Porcupine Mall), Timmins ON P0N 1K0

Confirm hours on the DriveTest centre finder and call ahead about photo-card service if you need a same-day card. General DriveTest line: 1-888-570-6110.

Should you take a driving school course?

A Ministry-approved Beginner Driver Education (BDE) course typically costs $400–$700 and gives you two real benefits: you can take your G2 road test 4 months earlier, and many insurance companies discount your premium for completing one. For most newcomers, the insurance savings alone pay for the course in the first year.

Find an MTO-approved school near you using the official MTO school finder. In Thunder Bay, AMB Driving Academy offers a course geared specifically toward new immigrants — good if you'd like the rules-of-the-road portion delivered with newcomer context.

Insurance — plan for it before you buy a car

Insurance is mandatory in Ontario, and newcomers without a Canadian driving record often pay 30–50% more than experienced drivers in their first year. Two things help:

• Ask your old insurer for a "letter of experience." Several Canadian insurers — including TD Insurance, Allstate, and Belair Direct — will give you credit for clean driving years abroad if you can document them on company letterhead. This can drop your premium dramatically.
• Use a broker, not a single company. A broker shops your file across many insurers in one call and is more willing to work with non-standard driving histories.

Newcomer tips

• The G1 written test is available in 30+ languages — ask at the centre. Practice with the free MTO study guide or a third-party app like g1.ca.
• If you became an Ontario resident on a permit and your foreign licence is still valid, you can drive on it for up to 60 days. After that you must hold an Ontario licence — driving on an expired foreign licence is illegal.
• Don't let your foreign licence expire before you exchange it. Without a valid licence in hand, you can't prove your driving experience and you fall back into full graduated licensing.
• If you'll need a commercial licence (Class A truck, Class B/C/D bus), Ontario now requires at least one year of verified Canadian driving experience before you can apply for Class A — plan around that.

Common pitfalls

• Showing up without a certified translation of your foreign licence — the appointment gets rescheduled and you may lose your fee.
• Booking your road test the same week you become eligible — book 2–6 weeks ahead so you don't end up waiting for the next available slot.
• Buying a car before you have at least a G2 — insurance for G1-only or unlicensed drivers is very expensive and many insurers won't cover them at all.
• Driving past the 60-day window after becoming an Ontario resident on a foreign licence — illegal and uninsured.
• Forgetting to update your driver's-licence record when your work permit or study permit is renewed.

Last reviewed: April 2026. Driver's-licence rules and approved-country lists change regularly — confirm details on drivetest.ca and ontario.ca/drive before you go.