You may exchange or apply for an Ontario licence at ANY DriveTest Centre on a walk-in basis.
Please note that appointments to exchange your driver’s licence from another province or country are available at the following sites. To receive guaranteed service, you must schedule a licence exchange appointment at these locations. Walk-in wait times at these locations may be extended.
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 (does not include U.S. protectorates or U.S. territories)
• Australia, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Denmark, the Isle of Man, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, Taiwan
Please visit the Out of Province/Out of Country Drivers Page for more information.
If you are relocating from a country that does not have a driver’s licence exchange agreement with Ontario, your previous driving experience may be acknowledged through a reduction in driver’s licensing requirements. However, you must successfully complete several steps before you can obtain an Ontario licence.
Ontario has a graduated licensing program with a focus on increasing a new driver’s privileges as experience is gained. As part of this graduated licensing program, there are mandatory test and wait-time requirements. Drivers with valid foreign licences may qualify for reductions in these mandatory test and wait-time prerequisites if they meet certain requirements. Credit for previous driving experience is granted only for Class G and Class M licences and only when all requirements are met.
The application process varies for those pursuing a car, motorcycle, or commercial licence:
Canadian and Foreign Licence Applications and Exchanges – Overview
Licence Exchanges for Drivers of Cars, Vans, and Small Trucks
There are four main requirements to fast-track through graduated licensing and gain credit for previous driving experience.
• All identification must be original and valid.
• If there is any variation in the names on the legal identification you present and the name that appears on your licence, you will need to provide acceptable ID to link the names.
• You must present your original, valid driver’s licence. An expired driver’s licence is not acceptable.
• The licence must include an expiry date or include wording that confirms the licence does not expire. If your licence does not have an issue date or expiry date (not both), you may still be eligible to receive up to 12 months of driving experience upon application.
• If your valid driver’s licence is not in English or French, it must be accompanied by an English or French translation from an MTO-recognized translator. If you provide your original licence with a supporting letter of authentication from the Embassy, Consulate or High Commissioner’s Office in either English or French, you do not need to include a licence translation.
You can claim 12 months of driving experience without showing additional proof. Ideally, you should bring your foreign driver’s licence to the DriveTest Centre when you first apply. Depending on the length of previous experience declared, there are varying requirements.
Ontario will credit foreign driving experience for protected persons, refugees, and people from Ukraine to help them get their driver’s licence sooner.
You must wait 12 months, less any credited driving experience, prior to taking the Class G2 road test. Then you must wait 12 more months before you can take your Class G road test to earn your full Class G licence.
| Class G2 Road Required | Class G Road Test Required | Mandatory Wait Times Apply |
| Yes | Yes | Yes |
You can take the Class G2 road test immediately but you need to wait 12 months, less any credited driving experience, to take a Class G road test.
| Class G2 Road Required | Class G Road Test Required | Mandatory Wait Times Apply |
| Yes | Yes | Yes |
You can take the Class G road test immediately. However, some people optionally choose to take the Class G2 road test as well to gain testing experience.
If you are unsuccessful with the Class G road test, you must take the Class G2 road test and then the Class G road test again.
| Class G2 Road Required | Class G Road Test Required | Mandatory Wait Times Apply |
| No | Yes | No |
Jurisdictions without an Exchange Agreement
Drivers from jurisdictions where Ontario does not have an exchange agreement can receive up to one year of driving experience credit by presenting a valid, foreign driver’s licence on application. You would declare the total amount of previous experience when applying for an Ontario licence.
Drivers looking to obtain more than one year of credit must provide acceptable documentation, an official letter issued within the last six (6) months by the licensing jurisdiction, the Consulate, Embassy or High Commissioner’s Office representing the jurisdiction. The letter and licence must be in English or French or accompanied by a translation from an MTO-recognized translator. The letter of authentication must contain specific features and details related to your driving experience in order to be accepted.
Jurisdictions with an Exchange Agreement
For Canadian jurisdictions and many U.S. states, DriveTest can retrieve information from the issuing authority during an Interprovincial Record Exchange enquiry (IRE). This information may not always reflect the first date licensed and in some cases a driver’s abstract or authentication document may be required to obtain a Class G/M licence or higher and complete the exchange. To avoid repeat visits, contact the issuing jurisdiction to obtain a letter of authentication outlining your previous experience. Drivers can also provide their previous (expired) driver’s licence cards to satisfy the requirement of continuous licensing experience. To use previous driver’s licence cards there must not be a gap of more than 12 months from the issue and expiry date of each previous card.
Drivers from certain eligible jurisdictions and those with U.S. records that are not accessible using an Interprovincial Record Exchange enquiry (IRE) will be required to provide a letter of authentication outlining their previous experience based on their jurisdictions licence exchange agreement.
We do not accept documentation from insurance companies or third-party verification websites.
Letter Requirements – All Jurisdictions
For all jurisdictions, an acceptable driver’s abstract or letter of authentication must have the following features. The document may have various titles when requesting an appropriate letter so be sure it includes all of the following:
• Issued within the last 6 months (issue date must be included on document)
• Issued by the licensing authority, Consulate, Embassy or High Commissioner’s Office representing the jurisdiction
• Must be original or electronically provided (no faxes, photocopies or scanned documents). If sent electronically, the document must be printed and given to staff as a paper copy.
• The letter and licence must be in English or French or accompanied by a translation from an MTO-recognized translator.
• Must contain the driver’s full name OR licence number for licences from an exchangeable jurisdiction
• Must contain a letterhead, logo, emblem or coat of arms from the issuing government body or licensing authority
• Date first licensed
• Date of birth (if field exists on abstract)
• Licence class(es)
• Licence status
• Expiry date
Experience can be added to your application at any time. If you cannot provide proof of driving experience at the time of the original licence application, you can visit a DriveTest Centre again at a later date with the appropriate documents to have more experience added on to your record.
DriveTest Centre agents can help you to replace your foreign driver’s licence with an Ontario licence. Appointments to exchange your driver’s licence from another province or country are available at the following sites. There are a few methods to obtain your licence depending on the amount of previous experience you declare and the type of identification and documentation you have available.
• Declare 2 years of driving experience or longer on your application form.
• Provide an original, valid driver’s licence and other pieces of acceptable ID.
• Provide a letter of authentication in English or French and dated within the last 6 months.
• Successfully complete the vision and knowledge tests at the DriveTest Centre.
• Successfully complete the Class G road test to earn your full Class G licence (no mandatory waiting period required and no Class G2 road test required).
• Pay all the applicable fees.
• Declare less than 1 year of driving experience on your application form.
• Provide an original, valid driver’s licence and other pieces of acceptable ID.
• Successfully complete the vision and knowledge test at the DriveTest Centre.
• Adhere to the applicable wait times before attempting the Class G2 road test.
• Wait one year before attempting the Class G road test to earn your full Class G licence.
• Pay all the applicable fees.
• Declare at least 1 year of driving experience on your application form.
• Provide an original, valid driver’s licence and other pieces of acceptable ID.
• Successfully complete the vision and knowledge tests.
• Book and take the Class G2 road test to earn your Class G2 licence immediately (no mandatory wait time required).
• Acquire one year of Ontario driving experience and then book and successfully complete a Class G road test to earn your full Class G licence.
• Pay all the applicable fees.
