# Irish emmigrants - Avoiding Ontario's Graduated Driving License



## mrjmh (Mar 25, 2012)

*Irish emigrants - Avoiding Ontario's Graduated Driving License*

Hi All,

First post here - some useful information, and a request. Hopefully someone can answer.

For those that don't know, Ontario Canada has a "graduated" driver's licensing system, in which there are draconian limitations on driving privileges at the entry levels. Although this is understandable given that the vast majority of people getting new licenses in Ontario are learners/teenagers, it is for all practical purposes completely unworkable for adult immigrants. For more information on this, please search for the following in Google (this site won't let me post links) "www mto gov on ca/english/dandv/driver/gradu Graduated Licensing"

However, for immigrants from a country that has a reciprocal licensing agreement, there is some arrangement where this can be avoided. For other countries, such as Ireland which has no such arrangement, there is another process that may work for those with several years of driving experience. For details on this, search Google for "www drivetest ca/en/license/OutOfCountryDrivers Out Of Country Drivers"

My question: Has anyone here from Ireland gone through this process successfully ? What documentation did you provide, and where did you get it from ? The web site linked above says:

To obtain recognition for more than 12 months driving experience, applicants are required to obtain written authentication of their foreign driving experience from the originating licensing agency, or from the Embassy, Consulate or High Commissioners' offices representing the jurisdiction. The authentication letter must be on official letterhead and be written in either English or French. It must be dated and cannot be more than 6 months old. If the Authentication Letter is in a language other than English or French, it must be accompanied by a Letter of Translation from a qualified translator.​
If you got such a letter and were successful in getting a full Ontario driver's license, please let me know. Was the letter from the Canadian Embassy in Dublin, the London High Commission, or the "originating licensing agency" ? Who is the originating licensing agency in Ireland and how does someone get such a letter from them ?

Thanks in advance!


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