September 2026
After you move to Ontario you can drive on your valid licence for 60 days. After that you need an Ontario licence.
Licences from other Canadian provinces, U.S. states and a short list of countries can be exchanged. Most countries are not on that list — including China, India, the Philippines, Pakistan, Brazil, Iran, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands.
If your country is not on the list, you start with a vision test and the G1 knowledge test, then take the G2 road test.
Since July 1, 2026 you can get credit for up to 12 months of driving experience. With 12 months credited, you can take the G2 road test right away instead of waiting.
Ontario exchanges licences from every Canadian province and territory, the Canadian Armed Forces, U.S. states, and these places: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, the Isle of Man, Japan, Kosovo, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan and Ukraine.
That list is short and specific. It is not “most of Europe”: the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Greece and Czechia are not on it. U.S. territories such as Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands are not included either.
Even from a listed place, some licences cannot be exchanged — a learner’s permit, a driving-instructor or school-bus licence, a commercial class issued outside Canada, or a licence cancelled for certain offences. Motorcycle classes from most listed countries cannot be exchanged either.
You follow Ontario’s graduated licensing steps, with credit for the driving you have already done: pass a vision test and the G1 knowledge test to get your G1 licence, then pass the G2 road test, then wait at least 12 months before the G road test for a full licence.
The G1 knowledge test is a multiple-choice test on road signs and the rules of the road, taken from the official MTO Driver’s Handbook. Experienced drivers still need to study it — Ontario’s rules differ from other countries’ in ways the test asks about.
Since July 1, 2026, drivers from countries without an exchange agreement can claim credit for up to 12 months of driving experience. Only experience from the past three years counts.
With 12 months credited, you can take the G2 road test as soon as you hold your G1. You then wait at least 12 months before the G road test.
With less credited, you hold your G1 for the rest of the usual 12 months. For example, with 6 months credited you hold the G1 for another 6. Completing a ministry-approved beginner driver education (BDE) course reduces the usual 12 months to 8.
Your original, valid foreign driver’s licence, showing a visible expiry date; original identity documents with your legal name and date of birth; the fees; and any original documents that prove your driving experience, in English or French.
An authentication letter: an official letter confirming your licence is authentic, written in English or French. Get it from the government or agency that issued your licence.
A translation, if your licence is not in English or French. It must be dated within six months of when you apply. Accepted translators include non-Canadian embassies, consulates and high commissions, and translators with proven credentials — for example members of ATIO, the Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario. Other translators from the country that issued the licence are not accepted.
Since May 11, 2026, you also declare when you apply that Ontario is your primary place of residence and that your presence in Canada is legal.
The two official ontario.ca sources, both updated September 14, 2026, describe the authentication letter differently. The licence-exchange page says credit needs your licence and an authentication letter from the issuing government or agency, with no age limit on the letter. The Driver’s Handbook says your licence alone can be enough, and that a letter — when you need one — must be dated within the previous six months and come from your embassy, consulate or licensing agency.
The safe way to satisfy both: bring your licence and an authentication letter from the agency that issued it, dated within the past six months, in English or French. Then confirm with DriveTest before you go, because it is DriveTest that assesses your documents.
Apply in person at a DriveTest centre, or at the ServiceOntario location at Bay and College in downtown Toronto. You take a vision test when you apply, and fill out an application form where you state how long you have been driving.
This page summarises official Ontario government information, checked against ontario.ca on September 19, 2026. It is not an official source and not legal advice, and the rules change — confirm with DriveTest or ServiceOntario before you apply. Aurora is not affiliated with the Ministry of Transportation or DriveTest.