International driving permit and driver's license at Ontario, Canada

Question

I currently don't have any driver's license. I'm moving to Ontario soon, and I'll probably want one. I'm wondering whether to get one in my current country, before moving to Canada, or to do it after moving.

In Ontario, to get a G2 license, which allows you to drive without needing someone experienced with you, requires a year of driving experience and has some additional restrictions, and a full driver's license requires two years of experience. On the other hand, in my current country you can get a driver's license just by completing a course and passing the required exams (without any experience requirement).

From what I learned, you can use a foreign driver's license for 60 days in Ontario, and then you need to get an Ontario driver's license. Does it also apply to international driving permit, or could I use the driver's license from my country alongside an international driving permit beyond this period, until I have enough experience to be allowed to take the test for Ontario driving license (i.e. one year for the G2 license, which is sufficient)?

Answer 1

It depends :-) What IS your current country? I immigrated from Germany with a drivers license for cars, motorcycles and heavy trucks. Ontario would only convert my car license into a "G". I lost my motorcycle license and had to go through M1, M2 to M. I haven't renewed my heavy truck license at all. I was told if I had immigrated from Switzerland my motorcycle license would have been converted. On the other hand: If you move from the Canadian province of Quebec to the Canadian province of Ontario then you have to go through the same process for M1, M2 to M. Canada is not really a country in that sense (let's not talk about bringing beer across provincial borders).

Have you looked at the website of Ontario's provincial government? There you can find this:

Exchange a driver’s licence

You can exchange an out-of-province

licence for an Ontario licence, if you are re-locating from:

• any Canadian province or territory
• Canadian Armed Forces
• U.S. States
• Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, the Isle of Man, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, Taiwan

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When you can’t exchange

You cannot exchange:

• a driver’s licence from a country that does not have an exchange agreement in place with Ontario (it is not listed in the section above)
• a learner’s permit or novice-class driver’s licence from another province, state or country
• a motorcycle class driver’s licence from Japan, Korea, Germany, France, Great Britain, Austria, Belgium, Isle of Man, or Republic of Ireland for a Class M Motorcycle licence, because the exchange agreements mentioned above do not include motorcycle class driver’s licences.

For more details go to https://www.ontario.ca/page/exchange-out-province-drivers-licence