How to Get Canadian Driving License -for Newcomers

[Sankarshan]

I m new to Canada i have 1.5 year old indian driving licence but i dont have experience letter will i be able to add experience in Ontario licence...

 

[etcoflife]

If you have landed in Ontario as FSW outland can you share how you got your driving license. Like
1) Did you get an exchange license in Ontario?
2) What class?
3) How much time it took to come in your mailbox? etc etc
Thanks

 

[abdulqayyum]

Hi,
i plan to land Saskatchewan by this weekend. i am worried about documents requires to obtain driving license. i have gone thru the 1st page, it describes the procedure for Ontario.

I will require same info for Saskatchewan, i have 2 years valid driving license from RTA (dubai) i.e Right-hand-drive.

will it be enough to exempt class or i will require 'letter of authenticity'?

pls guide.

 

[provost]

Hi,
i plan to land Saskatchewan by this weekend. i am worried about documents requires to obtain driving license. i have gone thru the 1st page, it describes the procedure for Ontario.

I will require same info for Saskatchewan, i have 2 years valid driving license from RTA (dubai) i.e Right-hand-drive.

will it be enough to exempt class or i will require 'letter of authenticity'?

pls guide.

Check this link out...https://www.sgi.sk.ca/newresidents

 

[abdulqayyum]

below is copy pasted from Saskatchewan website, regarding the point 2 , does it mean that we will require 'letter of authenticity' like Ontario?

Footnotes

1. Including the provinces of Gangwon-do, Gyeonggi-do, Seoul Chungcheongbuk-do, Chungcheongnam-do, Gyeonsangbuk-do, Jeollabuk-do, and Jeollanam-do.
   Note: some variation of the spelling of these provinces does occur, particularly the 'J' to 'CH' and dropping the 'e'. This does not include North Korea.
2. Proof in the form of a driver's abstract or history, or letter from the country/jurisdiction identifying when you were first licensed to drive and that the licence is currently valid. The document must be dated within 30 days of your arrival in Canada and written in English or French or accompanied by a translation document acceptable to SGI.

 

[ajkidwai]

Dear friends,

People from Kuwait who got the PR, how did you all arrange the Experience letter from Kuwait Muroor for G2 license in Canada?

 

[pranab24]

In order to credit one's driving experience from India, Drivetest has replied back to me saying:

You can present a letter of authentication which; May be acquired from the Embassy, Consulate or High Commissioner’s Office representing the originating jurisdiction, OR from the jurisdiction that originally issued the licence, validating the authenticity of the licence. Must be on the originator’s official letterhead paper. Must be dated no more than 6 months prior to application date. Must clearly state that it is certifying the duration of the applicant’s driving experience and that the licence to which it refers is valid – the licence cannot be expired or suspended. If not in English or French, you must have it translated by an MTO-recognized translator.

I was browsing the Toronto Indian Consulate website, and they have a service they will endorse a sworn affidavit with regards to Indian Driving licence - http://www.cgitoronto.ca/eoi.php?id=india_licence
They have also provided the format in which the affidavit is to be submitted and will be endorsed.

My Question: Is this an acceptable document at Drivetest centre to credit driving experience? Has anyone done it before?

 

[Rohit raheja]

Hi,
My name is Rohit Raheja. I wanted to apply for a BC driving license, so I gave up my Indian driving license to appear for an online test. The officials of law court in kamloops took my Indian driving license for a verification , they wanted to check wether the license was original or not so they sent it to place for verification. After fews days I received a letter from ICBC saying that the license is not genuine.
I would like to tell that my license is 100% genuine and can be found on Indian goverment website as well. All the information present on the goverment official sites are authentic.
I would request me to help me by suggesting the best I can do now.

 

[t_p]

Dude...you write just perfect answers...great story teller for sure..)..your answer was not just informative (and I was hunting for this 'easier center thing' itself ) but it was fund and gripping to read ...hehehehe...thanks again for your help.

Hi,

1. sons, I took 6.

Rent-a-Car:
Same day rented a Car. From Enterprise-Brampton. Again thru my friend's referral. Got an awesome deal. Note: with our IDP/IDL we can drive here for 2 months. But, as we r newcomers, 50% of the rental price goes for the Insurance. And here the guys will fleece u on that. Nonetheless, got a hefty discount. Courtesy my friend. He's a Toronto Cop.

Now, why I'm writing that? 'coz, of 2 reasons.

One, it's wise to practice driving as much as u can before u take the Road Tests. Especially on the 4 series highways. That gives u some enormous confidence, in a foreign land, even if u r a good driver.

Two, for any & every reason, here in Canada, u cannot do w/out a car. U need to be highly mobile, for even fetching your groceries. Though there r Convenience Stores everywhere, but to obtain the deals, u need to drive to those locales. I'm doing my complete purchasing from Walmart. In Dubai, used to do so from Carrefour. Both r similar. Electronics: Future Shop & Best Buy. Furnitures: The Bricks & Lazy Boy.

Day-3 to Day-5:
Read the complete MTO Book, first. Then started practicing for the G1-Written Test, online at Apna Toronto, see the link here: http://www.apnatoronto.com/ontario-g1-practice-test.html

A special mention on Apna Toronto. They r amazing. 100% questions come from here. This site has all the questions that Drive Test Canada has for the Written Test. Either Apna Toronto is too smart, or Drive Test Canada hasn't changed/updated their system of testing, for long. Lethargic? Good for us.

Day-6:
Went to Drive Test Center, Oakville. Why? At Most centers we have to take the written test online. Though time is not a factor, u can pretty much sit for the whole day, but correcting a response becomes a headache online, plus the anxiety of taking a test takes a toll when u do it on computer.

But, at Oakville it's a different ball game. U take the Written Test on Paper & Pencil. It's more Relaxed. At least for me... Others might differ.

The Procedure:
A. Stand in line, take the No. Turn came in 5 minutes.
B. Went to the 'called' counter. Shown the Dubai License & the Authenticity Letter.
C. She took the original, made a copy & returned me the Original & the Dubai DL.
D. I told her I didn't need the original, she said she didn't either. Amazing!
E. Asked for my ID. Showed my Passport & the COPR. She took it's copies.
F. Filled up their form/s. Most was already done by her on the system. Just a few questions & sign.
G. She informed me that I can go straight for the G2 Road Test. Leading to a G License.
F. Paid the fees. $85. Written Test-$10, G2 Road test-$75. Paid thru Cr. Card (TD Canada Trust).
G. She took my Eye Test. Yes, at the same counter. She stopped me in between & said it was fine.
H. Got a Yellow Paper, actually copy of the form. And the receipt of the Fees.
J. Directed me to go to the Written Test room. Just next door.

Note: Another Plus for taking the Driving Instructor. The guy knew everyone in the Drive Test Center. Including the lady. And told me she was the best. He did some small talks all along with her. And oh, she was very friendly to us. That eased the process a lot. Besides, the knowledge of taking me to Oakville instead of other Centers.

Took the test:
-2 Papers. One for the Signs, and the other for Signals & Driving skills/conditions.
-20+20=40 questions in all. Each was from Apna Toronto. Same pics.
-I took 10 minutes to complete the Test.
-Deposited the paper. Took another 10 minutes to get a call.
-The girl asked me in jest, whether I passed. I said, 'God & U knew better'.
-She replied, 'Congratulations, u have been successful for the next stage'.
-And gave me my paper/s to check. I saw that I did one mistake in each. Total 2 wrong answers.
-Simple mistakes, and I already had a doubt about those 2 ques. Their answers were close.
-Nonetheless, I passed. And that was a great feeling.

Note: The pass mark is 85%. Which means, at most u can do 2 ques wrong in each paper. So, beware and practice enough. However, as Sr. Leon suggested, there's no harm in failing. U can take the test again the very next day. But, a failure puts a dent on your confidence level.

Day-10:
My G2 Road Test day. Went to Lindsay. 2hrs drive from Toronto. Supposed to be the 'easiest' Drive Test Center. As opined by my Driving Instructor. Boy, what a place! An awesome town out of nowhere. The best part was to visit the town. So beautiful, clean, cold, great Bakeries, nice ppl, 5 Lakes in the vicinity... A perfect Weekend Getaway. I've promised that I'll visit again.

If I passed, I'd get the G License. The full license. So, what happened?
I Failed...

Took all the jing bangs... Driving in town, speed 50 Kmph & on the Highway, speed 80 Kmph here (my major problem). Other places, the Highway Speed is 100 Kmph. What's in the test?

-Parallel Parking,
-Emergency Parking,
-Uphill Parking,
-Downhill Parking,
-Reverse Parking,
-Plenty of Lane changes,
-Left-Right turns from Signal & w/out,
-Driving in Controlled Speed.

On return, she said, 'U drive well Sir, but I'm sorry I can't pass u. U drive very fast. Dangerous Driving'. That's what was written on my Yellow Paper.

Uhh, if only I had slowed... We r used to driving at 180-200 Kmph in Dubai, u Dubaians know that, but Speed Control is the name of the game here. Not 1 Kmph excess is permitted for Passing the Road Tests, Beware. Not that I didn't try... But we tend to overshoot, that's a bad habit we gain for being an experienced driver.

Note: If u r a new driver, u'd certainly pass here. Experienced drivers... A different story! We carry our follies over the days & they keep piling, I guess.

End Result:
1. I lost my one & only chance of taking a direct G license.
2. Now, I have to take the G2 license.
3. And there's a Wait of 10 days, for taking another road test.

Day-24:
I had to wait 14 days for another Road Test Appointment. These appts r taken online. We have to pay the Fees before, either online or in the Drive Test Center. I paid at Lindsay. $40 for a G1 Road Test, that leads to the G2 License.

This time my Center was at Guelph. 45 minutes drive from Toronto. Another supposedly 'easier' Drive Test Center. These info u get if u r with a Driving Instructor. Now u know that, don't u?

Another wise aspect of obtaining that Instructor... Again here he knew everyone. Deposited my G1 License, 30 minutes prior to the Exam time (that's the rule). He started small talks with the lady & an Examiner -who was also nearby.

The Examiner asked me if I wanted to take the Test imdtly, rather than waiting half an hr, as he was Free, his appt, apparently didn't turn up. My Driving Instructor jumped in to accept that. Later he informed me that he was the nicest guy in the Center.

Took the Test...
The Examiner was purely God Send. Such a nice gentleman, humorous, cool, amicable et all. He started by calming my nerves down, though I didn't require that... But was sure a bit hyper. Before kicking in, he made small talks about my landing, my family, from where I was etc.

And after 5-10 minutes of it, he softly enquired whether I was ready, else I could take my time. I replied in positive. Then he explained the Test. And told me to roll on.

Ditto... The test, as explained earlier. All those moves... But not Highway driving this time. The total test was inside the city. I literally kept to the posted speed limits. Kept watching the Round Signs, sometimes it was 60, and at times the posted limit was 50 Kmph.

We returned in 20-25 minutes.
Results: I passed. Got the G2 Driving License.

Note: There's not much difference between the two, the G2 & the G. As Sr. Leon replied earlier, the G2 is only for 5yrs. Meanwhile I need to obtain the G. While the G License is lifelong. Moreover, in G2 we need to be sober all the time and we get double the Demerit Points in case of a folly.

Now, I'm relaxing for some time, before I attempt the G.

-I hope this post quenched all your queries.
-And regret the long post. Some members r jittery of which.
-But, I always chose to write long ones, 'coz I believe, what I did wrong, u shouldn't.
-Besides, what's with my experiences, if u do not benefit from it?

Good luck, fellas!
Qorax

 

[t_p]

I do have one question around rental cars though...how do you get a rental car without being looted on the insurance if you don't have a local credit card which you won't indeed have as it would take time to get that processed and you may not easily get a good one since your credit history would be zero . I don't think you can use a friend's CC as LDW/CDW can only be used by that card holder as I understand. I'm scrambling to get a solution to this problem as I know that life becomes much easier with a car!!

Dear Leon,

Thanx. U r right... ON does seem to be quite organized, exactly like Dubai. Here, the Drive Test Canada is Pvtly held too. But, things r well managed & rules/responses r over the counter itself.

About the Rent-a-Car. U r correct as well. There r many here who do w/out one. For yrs. But, I chose to have my conveyance... Been so for long now. Never taken a Public Tpt since over 20-25yrs, I guess. Upon landing, the 1st thing (after SIN, Bank A/c & the Cell) I did, is to rent the Car. Kept it over a month. In the 3rd week though I purchased a Car. But kept the Rental for another week, as I had promised them for a month. Didn't want to dishearten them.

As such, I'm making over 50-60 Kms a day. Driving all over the city/ies. Seen pretty much the entire GTA, the suburbs & other nearby cities, till Niagara. I think I'm a bit of Driveaholic... If there was a word like that.

Note to everyone:
Here, bargaining is the norm. Unlike Dubai. Even the Futureshop, Best Buy, Bricks, Lazy Boy etc. Shelves out quite a price-cut, over n above their usual shelf discounts. I had the know of it thru my friends... Actually they always accompany me to every major errand. Besides, yes... There's a Delivery/Cartage charge. But, luckily I got those waived-off as well... For the furnitures, mainly 'coz the friends were there & they had their contacts at all those places. Nonetheless, everyone bargains & get their go too. So, u must do too.

Regards.

Qorax

 

[t_p]

Rohit- what you can do is to go to the closest Indian consulate and get an Indian drivers verification letter (IDLV) or could have a different name in Canada consulates. It's like an affidavit saying that this is a genuine driving license with this no., Issue date etc., I did see the forms and process on Toronto consulate, I'm sure it's be in Vancouver consulate as well. Plus did you get the driving abstract from India? If not, depending on the state, you may also be able to get the extract from Indian roads and transport ministry's website called parivahan.gov

Hi,
My name is Rohit Raheja. I wanted to apply for a BC driving license, so I gave up my Indian driving license to appear for an online test. The officials of law court in kamloops took my Indian driving license for a verification , they wanted to check wether the license was original or not so they sent it to place for verification. After fews days I received a letter from ICBC saying that the license is not genuine.
I would like to tell that my license is 100% genuine and can be found on Indian goverment website as well. All the information present on the goverment official sites are authentic.
I would request me to help me by suggesting the best I can do now.

 

[t_p]

Hi pranab24 - did they accept your sworn affidavit?

In order to credit one's driving experience from India, Drivetest has replied back to me saying:

You can present a letter of authentication which; May be acquired from the Embassy, Consulate or High Commissioner’s Office representing the originating jurisdiction, OR from the jurisdiction that originally issued the licence, validating the authenticity of the licence. Must be on the originator’s official letterhead paper. Must be dated no more than 6 months prior to application date. Must clearly state that it is certifying the duration of the applicant’s driving experience and that the licence to which it refers is valid – the licence cannot be expired or suspended. If not in English or French, you must have it translated by an MTO-recognized translator.

I was browsing the Toronto Indian Consulate website, and they have a service they will endorse a sworn affidavit with regards to Indian Driving licence - http://www.cgitoronto.ca/eoi.php?id=india_licence
They have also provided the format in which the affidavit is to be submitted and will be endorsed.

My Question: Is this an acceptable document at Drivetest centre to credit driving experience? Has anyone done it before?

 

[ak1818]

Looking good!

 

[ak1818]

Hi pranab24 - did they accept your sworn affidavit?

Good advice!

 

[ak1818]

Looking good!

Good quotes