“No Driver's License 32(1)”

A family member of mine who is visiting Canada who is not a Canadian citizen was pulled over and given a 'no drivers license' ticket section 32(1) ticket. The car otherwise has insurance etc.

However he has a valid license from the country he lives in and showed it to the officer.

The Ministry told him that they can't issue him a license without him being a resident of Ontario.

The Ministry person as an example mentioned that if I (as a Canadian citizen) drove to Florida and got pulled over I would never receive a ticket for not having a Floridian license. Same thing for him; he's visiting Canada legally and has a license from his country (Bermuda).

I called my insurance company and they said as long as he has a valid license from his country he is allowed to drive the car.

So ... was this ticket issued improperly by the LEO?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

J

Section 32(1) says:

Drivers licence

32. (1) No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway unless the motor vehicle is within a class of motor vehicles in respect of which the person holds a drivers licence issued to him or her under this Act.

So now we need to dig into the part that says "issued under this act". Does a drivers license issued outside of Ontario still qualify as being issued under this act? I don't know the answer to this, so somebody else will have to chime in.

So long as the person is over 16, properly licensed in their country and hasn't been residing in Ontario for more than 3 months (in any 1 year) (i.e. so you must take in to account multiple visits during the same year), they can drive without an Ontario license. If they don't qualify under that provision, then, they can simply get an International Driver's Permit. Of course, they still need to have insurance on the car, plates, etc. However, they won't need to get an Ontario driver's license.

The exemption is under section 34 of the HTA.

As long as he has his Bermudian licence and has not spent more than three months (on a cumulative basis, not just per visit), he meets the requirements of Section 32 (see subclause 34 (1) (b) (ii)).

Thanks all. Indeed your advice was sound and the charge was withdrawn.