Ontario Bill Targets Licence Fraud With Residency Proof and a Class A Wait

In October 2025, Ontario introduced legislation that would let the province require proof of residency and legal presence in Canada from driver's licence applicants, alongside plans for a mandatory waiting period before the Class A road test. The measures were part of Bill 60, the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025, introduced at Queen's Park on October 23, 2025 by Rob Flack, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

The bill was mainly about housing and infrastructure. As Truck News reported, the licensing changes were tucked into a package that also dealt with building homes faster and limiting municipalities' ability to remove vehicle lanes for new bike lanes.

Residency and legal presence

Schedule 5 of the bill would amend the Highway Traffic Act to let the Minister require evidence of Ontario residency, legal presence in Canada and the ability to work in Canada for prescribed classes of driver's licence. Schedule 9 would give similar powers for Ontario photo cards.

According to Truck News, holders of Ontario licences in Classes A to M, photo cards and registrant identification numbers already had to be Ontario residents and legally authorized to be in Canada. Applicants had to give a residential address, but they were not required to verify residency or legal status. The government said the new ID requirements would align with other Canadian jurisdictions and verify an applicant's full legal name, date of birth, residency, legal presence in Canada and photograph.

A wait before the Class A test

At the time, a Class A applicant had to be at least 18 and hold a valid full Class G or higher licence, with no mandatory waiting period. The government said the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) would introduce a minimum period that applicants must hold a Class G or higher licence before trying the Class A road test.

Applicants would still be able to complete the medical and vision requirements, take the knowledge test and do Class A entry-level training during the wait. The length of the waiting period was not stated.

Drivers from non-reciprocal countries

Ontario also planned tighter rules for applicants from non-reciprocal jurisdictions. At the time, such applicants could receive full credit for foreign driving experience by submitting a foreign licence and an authentication document. Under the proposed approach:

• experience credit would be capped at 12 months;
• all non-reciprocal applicants would have to pass both the G2 and G road tests;
• applicants with verified experience could take the G2 test right away and drive independently if they passed, but would have to wait at least 12 months before the G test.

Not yet law

At the end of October 2025, Bill 60 had been introduced but not passed. The residency and legal presence powers were in the bill's schedules. The Class A waiting period and the experience-credit changes were described in the government material reported by Truck News, and the length of the wait was not set.

Archive: this article describes rules and events as of October 2025. Regulations may have changed since, so check the current rule before relying on it.