Ontario Driving Guides
Every driving-related guide on this site, organized by topic. Whether you need to renew a licence, register a vehicle, order a driver record, or figure out the graduated licensing system, start here.
Licences
Getting, renewing, replacing, exchanging, and understanding your Ontario driver's licence.
🚗 Renew Your Driver's Licence
Your licence expires every 5 years. Renew online with your licence number and trillium number. New card arrives in 4 to 6 weeks.
📝 G1, G2 and Full G Licence
Getting your first Ontario licence from scratch. The knowledge test, two road tests, wait times, restrictions, and costs at every stage of the graduated licensing system.
⏰ Renew an Expired Licence
What happens if your licence expired. The process depends on how long it has been expired. You may need to retake some or all tests.
🪪 Replace a Lost or Stolen Licence
Get a temporary licence on the spot at any ServiceOntario centre. Your new plastic card arrives by mail in 4 to 6 weeks.
🔄 Exchange a Foreign Licence
Moving to Ontario from another province or country? You have 60 days to switch your licence. The process depends on your country's agreement with Ontario.
👵 Senior Driver Renewal (80+)
At 80 and over, you renew every 2 years with a vision test and cognitive screening at ServiceOntario. Takes 15 to 20 minutes.
📋 Order a Driver Record
Your driving abstract: demerit points, convictions, suspensions, and licence status. Order the uncertified 3-year record online in about 5 minutes.
Licence Plates
Plate renewals, sticker refunds, and understanding what happens to your plates when you sell a vehicle.
🔄 Licence Plate Renewal
Most passenger vehicle plates renew automatically at no cost. Find out if yours does, and what to do if it does not.
💸 Sticker Refund
Ontario eliminated sticker fees in 2022 and issued refunds. Find out if you qualified and what to do if your cheque never arrived.
Buying and Selling Vehicles
The paperwork, inspections, taxes, and legal requirements for private vehicle sales in Ontario.
🛒 Buying a Used Car
What to check before buying, the UVIP, Safety Standards Certificate, insurance, taxes, and how to register the vehicle at ServiceOntario within 6 days.
🚙 Selling a Used Car (UVIP)
The Used Vehicle Information Package, what to give the buyer, plate removal, sticker handling, and how to protect yourself from liability after the sale.
🔧 Safety Standards Certificate
Required to put plates on a vehicle after a private sale, out-of-province registration, or rebuild. What gets inspected and where to get one.
Quick Reference
ServiceOntario vs DriveTest: Who Does What
🏢 ServiceOntario
Licence renewals, plate renewals, vehicle registrations, driver records, address changes, health cards, birth certificates, and Photo Cards. Administrative transactions only. Over 300 locations across Ontario. Many services available online.
Find a ServiceOntario centre →🚦 DriveTest
G1 knowledge tests, G2 and G road tests, licence class upgrades and downgrades, and licence exchanges from other provinces or countries. Testing and examination only. Fewer locations. Appointments required for road tests.
Visit DriveTest.ca →