Irish and Canadian authorities sign reciprocal driving license agreement

Crann na Beatha

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Frank Bullitt

Or for BC, just started on this myself here and did the computer test last week for both car and motorbike, its such a hassle!

AmyPL

What are the odds of BC implementing this between now and January...?

stevplum

Does this come into affect straight away?

Frank Bullitt

stevplum wrote: »

Does this come into affect straight away?

In Ontario I think its already begun.

For BC? I think hell will have to freeze over.

Against

If you get the Ontario licence are you okay to then drive in other states e.g. B.C.?

COYVB

Against wrote: »

If you get the Ontario licence are you okay to then drive in other states e.g. B.C.?

Yup.

Don't like the idea of a license exchange though. I did mine the old fashioned way, did my written test and skipped straight to the final driving test to get my Ontario license, which I now hold as well as my Irish one

murdock1970

I contacted Service Ontario about this. They replied on Aug 15th as follows:

"Thank you for contacting ServiceOntario.

We apologize for the delay in getting back to you; your message was recently redirected to us.

The details for the exchange process in Ontario have not been completed but, they are in the final stages.

A date when the exchanges can begin has not been announced.

We hope you find this information helpful"

sparkle_23

murdock1970 wrote: »

I contacted Service Ontario about this. They replied on Aug 15th as follows:

"Thank you for contacting ServiceOntario.

We apologize for the delay in getting back to you; your message was recently redirected to us.

The details for the exchange process in Ontario have not been completed but, they are in the final stages.

A date when the exchanges can begin has not been announced.

We hope you find this information helpful"

Good to know! Hope it happens soon!

stevplum

Anybody know how far on this agreement actually is or how I could go about finding out, as my 60 days grace is nearly up and it's important I have a licence for work.. Otherwise Is it true that I have to start from the very beginning of the Canadian licence procedure,seems a little silly as I have a valid full Irish licence??.

el diablo

stevplum wrote: »

Anybody know how far on this agreement actually is or how I could go about finding out, as my 60 days grace is nearly up and it's important I have a licence for work.. Otherwise Is it true that I have to start from the very beginning of the Canadian licence procedure,seems a little silly as I have a valid full Irish licence??.

I'm guessing at least a year. Don't hold your breath.

COYVB

stevplum wrote: »

Anybody know how far on this agreement actually is or how I could go about finding out, as my 60 days grace is nearly up and it's important I have a licence for work.. Otherwise Is it true that I have to start from the very beginning of the Canadian licence procedure,seems a little silly as I have a valid full Irish licence??.

You do the written test first, then skip through to the final test. You can get it all done in a month id say and you'll have a basic license as soon asy pass the written exam.

murdock1970

From what I heard, the licence exchange program is now working. Rumour has it that you can go to 777 Bay to exchange your licence.

el diablo

murdock1970 wrote: »

From what I heard, the licence exchange program is now working. Rumour has it that you can go to 777 Bay to exchange your licence.

And where did you hear this?

Phonehead

It's on the CTV news website

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/drivers-moving-between-ireland-and-ontario-can-swap-licences-1.2076974?hootPostID=dc2a54261a89a4866bebe6b2e900da88

el diablo

Phonehead wrote: »

It's on the CTV news website

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/drivers-moving-between-ireland-and-ontario-can-swap-licences-1.2076974?hootPostID=dc2a54261a89a4866bebe6b2e900da88

It's only for Ontario I see. No sign of an agreement for Alberta yet.

murdock1970

Heard it initially from work colleague.

Also received following email from Service Ontario.

Thank you for contacting ServiceOntario.

If a person wants to drive in Ontario and has a valid driving licence from one of the other Canadian provinces or territories; Canadian Forces Europe; Australia; Austria; Belgium; France; Germany; Great Britain; Ireland; Isle of Man; Japan; Korea; Northern Ireland; Switzerland or the United States then for details about Out-of-Ontario driver’s licence exchanges to an Ontario driver’s licence please see the information and links provided on the webpage at drivetest.ca






"will be allowed to exchange it for an Ontario class G licence if they have two or more years of driving experience in the past

murdock1970

Heard it initially from work colleague.

Also received following email from Service Ontario.

Thank you for contacting ServiceOntario.

If a person wants to drive in Ontario and has a valid driving licence from one of the other Canadian provinces or territories; Canadian Forces Europe; Australia; Austria; Belgium; France; Germany; Great Britain; Ireland; Isle of Man; Japan; Korea; Northern Ireland; Switzerland or the United States then for details about Out-of-Ontario driver’s licence exchanges to an Ontario driver’s licence please see the information and links provided on the webpage at drivetest.ca

bizguy

This is brilliant news! Does anyone know if the exchange can be done in any of the centers in ON or must it be in Toronto?

stevplum

Any update on this, I could really do with getting it changed over. I'm well over the allowed time frame.
Also if it is possible anyone know if it can be done in Cambridge, Kitchener or any surrounding areas??.
Thank you

JenL

It is now available in Saskatchewan too. I'm in Alberta and no news so far. Guess I'll have to bite the bullet and just do the test again.

el diablo

Any updates? I don't fancy doing another driving test.

JenL

Nope - nothing at all being mentioned about it since last October when they brought in the agreement with Ontario.
My boyfriend got his at the weekend - he said it was grand as the tester knows its just a formality & that he had years of driving experience. I'll be doing my theory this week :eek: and the driving hopefully in 2 weeks. Its a pain but its gotta be done

el diablo

JenL wrote: »

Nope - nothing at all being mentioned about it since last October when they brought in the agreement with Ontario.
My boyfriend got his at the weekend - he said it was grand as the tester knows its just a formality & that he had years of driving experience. I'll be doing my theory this week :eek: and the driving hopefully in 2 weeks. Its a pain but its gotta be done

Think I'll finally have to bite the bullet too and do the test.

Anyway, good luck with it.

el diablo

Anyone know if I can drive rental cars using my Irish license even if I've been in Canada over two years? I'm not a Canadian resident.
I contacted Service Canada but they can't give me an answer.

fergusb

As far as I'm away the rental company doesn't usually care and will give you a car on an Irish license.

That said, if you are involved in a incident, they might easily use the argument that you were not legally allowed to drive since you've been in the country over 6 months on a foreign license, and you could be without insurance.

el diablo

COYVB wrote: »

Yup.

Don't like the idea of a license exchange though. I did mine the old fashioned way, did my written test and skipped straight to the final driving test to get my Ontario license, which I now hold as well as my Irish one

I know this guy has a closed account but I'm not sure how he was able to keep his Irish licence after gaining a Canadian licence. You can only hold one driving licence at any one time, can't you?

JenL

It is illegal in Alberta to hold an Alberta licence aswell as any other licence.

https://www.servicealberta.ca/1671.cfm

Still no info about a reciprocal agreement but since Varadkar moved from being the Minister for Transport nothing more has changed really.

circular flexing

el diablo wrote: »

I know this guy has a closed account but I'm not sure how he was able to keep his Irish licence after gaining a Canadian licence. You can only hold one driving licence at any one time, can't you?

Correct. In BC, they take your old license off you and shred it before taking the test.

CBCB2

I did my test in Ontario 2 years ago, they didn't ask me to hand in my Irish one. So I've both now. I think it depends on who you get though. I'd to do a written test to get the G1, but was able to skip right ahead to doing the G.

Also my other half took the rest in Ireland 5 years ago. He wasn't asked to hand in his Canadian one, so he holds both too. He could have swapped it for an automatic only but he would have had to give up the Canadian one. He could drive standard anyway so just did the Irish test.

So if it's illegal to hold 2 licences both countries slipped up!

JenL

CBCB2 wrote: »

So if it's illegal to hold 2 licences both countries slipped up!

It's illegal in Alberta to hold an Albertan and any other driving licence -link above. Ontario has it's own rules.

fergusb

In BC they only brought in the rule a couple of years ago, prior to 2013 (I think) you could hold 2 licenses so would keep your Irish one, since then you have to surrender the Irish one.

circular flexing

Looks like Manitoba is next

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/oireachtas/second-canadian-province-to-accept-irish-driving-licences-1.2197317

el diablo

circular flexing wrote: »

Looks like Manitoba is next

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/oireachtas/second-canadian-province-to-accept-irish-driving-licences-1.2197317

Ah ffs, there's only seven Irish people living in Manitoba.

Crann na Beatha

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stevplum

Be careful, my mate from back home in Ireland called me last week and explained, apparently someone came back to Ireland from canada recently and their Irish drivers licence is no longer valid after it was given back to them in canada. They now have to re-do the practical and theory again.

My mate heard this through the joe Duffy show. After the first caller there was many others who followed by calling in and complaining about it.

I think shame on the two countries that they can't sort this issue out. How hard is it. It's easy done everywhere else in the world eg Australia.

I find everything is made massively over complicated in canada. That's just my opinion from my experience

CBCB2

Good to know. Thankfully I should be ok, as I was able to renew my licence when I was home last October. It was due for renewal then anyway I didn't let on that I hadn't been living in Ireland. So I'm good now until 2024. I'm moving home in a few months so I'll probably still be there in 9 years!! haha!

stevplum wrote: »

I find everything is made massively over complicated in canada. That's just my opinion from my experience

Couldn't agree more. It's mad how complicated they make things. Also I find everything here is designed to make money!!

el diablo

CBCB2 wrote: »

Good to know. Thankfully I should be ok, as I was able to renew my licence when I was home last October. It was due for renewal then anyway I didn't let on that I hadn't been living in Ireland. So I'm good now until 2024. I'm moving home in a few months so I'll probably still be there in 9 years!! haha!

So do you also have a Canadian driving licence?

AmyPL

stevplum wrote: »

Be careful, my mate from back home in Ireland called me last week and explained, apparently someone came back to Ireland from canada recently and their Irish drivers licence is no longer valid after it was given back to them in canada. They now have to re-do the practical and theory again.

My mate heard this through the joe Duffy show. After the first caller there was many others who followed by calling in and complaining about it.

I think shame on the two countries that they can't sort this issue out. How hard is it. It's easy done everywhere else in the world eg Australia.

I find everything is made massively over complicated in canada. That's just my opinion from my experience

When I rang the NDLS to get my driving record sent out, I asked if this was the case (surrendering my license in Canada means losing it altogether)- the guy assured me that I wouldn't have to re-apply for my license. I'll be pretty angry if it turns out that they were giving out misinformation :mad: drives me nuts how hard it is to get a straight answer on this.

el diablo

AmyPL wrote: »

When I rang the NDLS to get my driving record sent out, I asked if this was the case (surrendering my license in Canada means losing it altogether)- the guy assured me that I wouldn't have to re-apply for my license. I'll be pretty angry if it turns out that they were giving out misinformation :mad: drives me nuts how hard it is to get a straight answer on this.

I was also told that if you surrender your Irish licence in Canada then you'll have to reapply for your Irish licence again if you return home.

And still no sign of a licence exchange agreement between Ireland and Alberta.

CBCB2

el diablo wrote: »

So do you also have a Canadian driving licence?

Yeah I have an Ontario one and an Irish one.

My OH is Canadian and lived in Ireland he has both too, they didn't ask him to surrender his Ontario one in exchange for his Irish one.

He did have to sit the test though, they would have given him a straight swap for an automatic only licence. So he did the test to get a full licence. That was in the pre NDLS days.

That might be where people are having trouble the agreement as far as I know is that for North American licences is they can be converted into automatic only. As I know a couple of Americans who have automatic only licences for this reason.

AmyPL

Here's the info straight from the NDLS. In summary, no, you don't need to resit your test after surrendering your license.

Thank you for your email.

We do not currently hold an exchange agreement with Vancouver. If they do require you to surrender your Irish liecnce there i.e. hand it over to them, then upon your return to Ireland you can apply for a replacement Irish licence provided your Irish licence has not expired by more than 10 years.

In order to make an application for a replacement, you will need to present yourself at your local NDLS centre. All applications have to be made in person by the driver.

You will be required to provide the following:

An application form D401 signed and stamped by An Garda Síóchána
Passport
BC Canadian licence (not to be surrendered only to be produced)
Proof of your PPSN
Proof of address dated within 6 months if changed since your last licence was issued
Fee of €35

If you answer 'Yes' to any of the medical questions, then a medical form D501 will be required. The medical report must be submitted within 30 days of the date of the medical.

If you have any queries in relation to this communication, please contact our Customer Services Team on +353 (0) 761 087 880 and quote your case reference number, or visit the National Driver Licence Service website www.ndls.ie

Yours sincerely

Customer Services Team
National Driver Licence Service

Roddy23

June 22nd its happening. ICBC employees for BC received a memo this afternoon. Said it'd be announced in the coming days. 31 dollars and they take your Irish one.

AmyPL

FFS and I surrendered my license three days ago. Can't believe this. If I'd just held onto it for another couple of days. I'm actually raging.

el diablo

Roddy23 wrote: »

June 22nd its happening. ICBC employees for BC received a memo this afternoon. Said it'd be announced in the coming days. 31 dollars and they take your Irish one.

Just BC? Any news on Alberta?

el diablo

AmyPL wrote: »

FFS and I surrendered my license three days ago. Can't believe this. If I'd just held onto it for another couple of days. I'm actually raging.

I also submitted my licence a few days ago (in Calgary). Surely you can avoid doing the test if the agreement is finally implemented?

Ardillaun

Canada is more like a loose confederation of separate countries in some ways, each of them jealously guarding their laws and tariffs. This deal should have been federal, between the govts of Canada and Ireland, but that would have been too easy.

AmyPL

I rang the ICBC and they said it isn't retroactive. Because I'm now on a learner's permit and already surrendered my license I can't avail of this. Just thinking of all the hassle I'd be avoiding if I'd just waited another couple of days to do my bloody knowledge test- sickened!

el diablo

AmyPL wrote: »

I rang the ICBC and they said it isn't retroactive. Because I'm now on a learner's permit and already surrendered my license I can't avail of this. Just thinking of all the hassle I'd be avoiding if I'd just waited another couple of days to do my bloody knowledge test- sickened!

That's annoying. You know what the waiting time is for processing it in BC?

RichFTW

el diablo wrote: »

I also submitted my licence a few days ago (in Calgary). Surely you can avoid doing the test if the agreement is finally implemented?

I actually kept following this thread even after I got my Ontario licence just to see when you would cave and finally sit the test! :pac:

el diablo

RichFTW wrote: »

I actually kept following this thread even after I got my Ontario licence just to see when you would cave and finally sit the test! :pac:

Ha ha, I've been putting it off for far too long. Now you can finally unfollow this thread.