OHTA.ca

OK so i was on google today and I started to do some searching....because I have a suspended driver's license and I'm not eligible to drive again until January of 2012....or so I thought. So I was searching for answers to people who acquire driver's licenses in different provinces while their license is suspended in their own province. I got a variety of answers which all seemed legitimate. However none of them have access to the most current information available. This includes everyone from police, to crown and defense lawyers, traffic ticket specialists, and government employees. It turns out that after 1 year of suspension, you can apply for a new license. Here's proof of what I'm saying:

C. For drivers whose Ontario "G" licence has been invalid (expired, cancelled or suspended) for one year or more but less than 3 years:

You are required to present acceptable identification for proof of legal name, date of birth and signature (please refer to http://www.drivetest.ca/en/license/HowToApply.aspx for identification requirements). The identification must be original and valid.

Please note: If there is any variation in the names on the legal identification you present and the name that appears on your expired licence, you will need to provide acceptable identification to link the names.

You will be required to complete a vision test only.

You must pay the applicable fees. Please refer to http://www.drivetest.ca/en/license/Fee.aspx for fees. Fees are payable by cash, credit card, debit card, travellers cheques, money orders, bank drafts and certified cheque payable to "DriveTest".

You may apply at any of our 56 DriveTest centres and 38 Travel Points province-wide. For information on our DriveTest centres, please refer to http://www.drivetest.ca/en/loc/Dec.aspx

You will not be required to take a road test.

That site is simply listing the steps you need to take to reinstate your licence if it's been suspended for more than one year. It doesn't mean you can get your licence back after one year if you're still suspended. The longer your licence has been suspended for, the more steps/testing you need to complete before you can get it back. . Typically if your licence has been suspended for less than one year you just need to pay the reinstatement fee. After one year you need to take additional steps (looks like a vision test). After 10 years your a G1 driver again.

Also, it is an offence to drive in Ontario on a licence from another jurisdiction while your Ontario licence is suspended. It is also an offence to obtain a second Ontario licence if you already have one.

The information you got wasn't worded in the most clear manner.

For drivers whose Ontario "G" licence has been invalid (expired, cancelled or suspended) for one year or more but less than 3 years:

What they didn't clarify is that this comes into effect AFTER your suspension is completed. For example, if you had a 2-year suspension, that would have been "invalid for one year or more but less than 3 years." Then, after your suspension has been lifted, you may apply for a new licence. It seems like a loophole through the suspension, but actually, it isn't. It's just not worded succintly.

You'll have to wait until your suspension is over. Then you would follow the steps you described.

Simon Borys wrote:Also, it is an offence to drive in Ontario on a licence from another jurisdiction while your Ontario licence is suspended. It is also an offence to obtain a second Ontario licence if you already have one.

is it an offence to obtain a license from another jurisdiction and drive only in that jurisdiction, while your current one is suspended?

(i.e. Ontario license suspended, obtaining a Manitoba license and only driving in Manitoba?)

mobes wrote:is it an offence to obtain a license from another jurisdiction and drive only in that jurisdiction, while your current one is suspended?

(i.e. Ontario license suspended, obtaining a Manitoba license and only driving in Manitoba?)

All provinces and territories have a reciprocal agreement in place regarding suspensions and/or convictions. As long as your licence is still under suspension in Ontario, you would be considered suspended in other Provinces as well. I can't say if it would actually be an offence to apply for a licence in another province, but it would be to drive.