1.The graduated licensing system
- New drivers applying for their first car or motorcycle licence enter Ontario’s graduated licensing system, which lets new drivers get driving experience and skills gradually.
- The two-step licensing process takes at least 20 months to complete.
- To apply you must be at least 16 years old, pass a vision test and pass a test of your knowledge of the rules of the road and traffic signs. After you pass these tests you enter Level One and get a Class G1 licence.
- You must pass two road tests to become fully licensed: the first moves you to Level Two (Class G2) and the second gives you full Class G driving privileges.
- G1, G2, M1 and M2 holders are novice drivers. Escalating sanctions apply to a novice driver who, within a five-year period, repeatedly violates novice restrictions, is convicted of a Highway Traffic Act offence worth four or more demerit points, or receives a court-ordered suspension.
Official source: Getting your drivers licence ↗ · Other ways lose your licence ↗ · Keeping your drivers licence ↗
2.Applying for a G1 licence
- To apply for a licence you must show proof of your legal name and date of birth, showing day, month and year of birth.
- Documents must be original and valid. Photocopies and expired documents are not acceptable.
- Bring the documents to a DriveTest Centre, or to a Travel Point (a temporary DriveTest Centre where there is no regional centre).
- You must pay a fee when you apply. The fee includes the cost of the knowledge test, your first road test and a five-year licensing fee; there are more charges for your second road test and for any retests.
- When you apply you will be asked questions about your health. People with certain physical or medical conditions are not allowed to drive for safety reasons.
- If you have just become an Ontario resident, you have 60 days to continue to use your existing driver’s licence and apply for an Ontario driver’s licence.
Official source: Getting your drivers licence ↗
3.The knowledge test
- All knowledge-test questions follow a multiple-choice format.
- Before taking the G1 knowledge test, make sure you have studied the Official MTO Driver’s Handbook.
- The written test may ask you about seatbelts, traffic signs and lights, emergency vehicles, how to use headlights, speed limits, getting on or off a freeway, what drivers must do when they meet streetcars and school buses, driver licence suspensions, the demerit point system, passing other vehicles, collision reporting, sharing the road with other road users and the rules of the road.
- Bring two pieces of identification, money for test fees (cash, debit or credit card), and your glasses or contact lenses if you need them to drive.
- The rest of the handbook gives you the information you need to pass your tests and to keep your driving privileges once you get your licence.
Official source: Test yourself sample knowledge test questions ↗ · Getting your drivers licence ↗
4.G1 (Level One) conditions
- You must not drive if you have been drinking alcohol. Your blood-alcohol level must be zero.
- You must not drive alone; an accompanying driver must sit in the front passenger seat, and this is the only person who can be in the front seat with you while you drive.
- The accompanying driver must have a valid Class G (or higher) licence, at least four years of driving experience and a blood-alcohol level of less than .05% when accompanying you. If that person is 21 and under, their blood alcohol level must be zero.
- Each person in the vehicle must have a working seatbelt.
- You must not drive between midnight and 5 a.m.
- You must not drive on 400-series highways with a posted speed limit over 80 km/h, or on the Queen Elizabeth Way, Don Valley Parkway, Gardiner Expressway, E.C. Row Expressway or Conestoga Parkway. However, if your accompanying driver is a driving instructor, you may drive on any road.
- Level One lasts 12 months. If you pass an approved driver-education course, you can complete Level One in eight months.
Official source: Getting your drivers licence ↗ · Get g drivers licence new drivers ↗
5.G2 (Level Two) conditions
- You must not drive if you have been drinking alcohol. Your blood-alcohol level must still be zero.
- Each person in the vehicle must have a working seatbelt, so you may carry only as many passengers as there are working seatbelts.
- With a G2 you can drive without another experienced driver in the car, on all Ontario roads, and at any time of the day in most cases.
- If you are 19 years old or under, in the first six months after receiving your G2 licence you are allowed to carry only one passenger aged 19 or under between midnight and 5 a.m.
- After six months with your G2 licence and until you obtain your full G licence or turn 20, you are allowed to carry up to three passengers aged 19 or under during those hours.
- These passenger restrictions do not apply if you are accompanied by a fully licensed driver in the front passenger seat, or if the passengers are members of your immediate family.
- Level Two lasts at least 12 months. After 12 months at Level Two you may take a road test to qualify for full licence privileges.
Official source: Getting your drivers licence ↗ · Get g drivers licence new drivers ↗
6.Road tests, renewals and keeping your licence in order
- You must bring the appropriate vehicle to your road test; it must be fit, in proper working condition, plated and insured. No pets or passengers other than the driver examiner are allowed in the vehicle during the test, and you must wait at least 10 days between tests.
- Electronic driving aids such as automatic parallel-parking systems, lane monitoring, cruise control and back cameras may not be used during the road test.
- Except for Class M1, novice drivers have five years to complete the graduated-licensing process. If your G1, G2 or M2 licence is about to expire before you finish, you can requalify by passing a test and paying the five-year licensing fee.
- If you are 80 years of age or older you must renew your licence every two years. At the renewal appointment you complete a vision test and a five-minute screening exercise; you may also need to pass a road test or submit medical information.
- You must tell the Ministry of Transportation within six days of changing your name or address. There is no charge for getting a new licence because you change your name or address.
- You must carry your licence with you whenever you drive, and you need a valid owner’s permit, licence plate and insurance. Ontario has compulsory automobile insurance: every vehicle registered in the province must be insured.
- You can renew an expired car or motorcycle driver’s licence within one year without taking any tests. If your licence has been suspended, cancelled or expired for more than three years, you must re-apply and meet all the requirements of graduated licensing, including passing all the required tests.
- If you violate any of the graduated-licensing conditions, your licence will be suspended for 30 days. Under the escalating penalties programme a second offence means a 90-day suspension, and for a third offence you lose your novice licence and must re-apply, taking all tests and paying all fees again.
Official source: Getting your drivers licence ↗ · Keeping your drivers licence ↗ · Get g drivers licence new drivers ↗ · Vehicle insurance and registration ↗ · Other ways lose your licence ↗ · Understanding demerit points ↗