In Ontario, how is "Licensed driving experience" defined for people moving from outside Canada?

Question

According to The official [Ministry of Transportation] Driving Handbook, section on drivers from other countries for Ontario, rules for waiving of mandatory waiting periods depend whether an applicant has:

• less than 12 months licensed driving experience within the preceding three years
• more than 12 months licensed driving experience but less than 24 months within the preceding three years, or
• a minimum of 24 months licensed driving experience within the preceding three years

This must be confirmed by authentication from a foreign licensing agency.

How is "licensed driving experience" defined? I have had my license for 7 years, but sometimes I don't drive for months. Should I count each calender month during which I have had a non-zero amount of driving, or is it defined in a different way? How can a licensing agency verify this, anyway?

Answer 1

A licensing agency cannot verify how much you have actually driven. The rules you have quoted are probably in place to cover new drivers, since different countries have different rules regarding restrictions on new drivers (at night, with passengers, valid hours, etc). If you have held a valid drivers license in the same jurisdiction for more than 24 months, that would qualify for "a minimum of 24 months licensed driving experience".

You will probably find that the qualifications required for driving in Canada are much less stringent than those you are accustomed to in the Netherlands.