Canadian Drivers' License

[BenderS]

Hey guys,

Not sure if anyone else has done this. We're in BC. My husband went in May 11th to get a BC Drivers' Licence since he's 'stuck here' until his PR comes through (next summer maybe?)

He had no issues there, he turned in his New Zealand License, answered a few basic questions (what does flashing green light mean etc) and got piece of yellow paper which is his temperary license until his normal one came in.

We've been waiting three months for it now, we thought there would be delay with postal strike but appears not.

My question is: if anyone here has gotten a Canadian DL while waiting for their PR and if so what the process timeline was like?

 

[Canooknic]

My fiancé got his licence through in about 8 days, that was straight after the strikes. I would chase it up

 

[doctorkb]

Yeah, a BC drivers license should be in your hands within 7-10 days from when you receive the yellow copy.

If you got the yellow temporary one, there isn't any "processing time" per se -- they just have to print the new one and mail it. The document verification was done at the counter before they issued that temporary DL.

It's likely lost in the mail... and his temporary is pretty close to expiry (if it hasn't already -- can't remember if they're 60 or 90 days).

Have you applied for BC Medical yet?

 

[BenderS]

No no BC Med yet, does he have to have a pr or aip before he can get it?

I have him under my medical at work for Dental, but he's not eligable for Extended health cuz he's not landed yet...

We are going at lunch to see about his License, I called them yesterday but they couldn't talk to me (they tease me I'm his translator) haha, but they said they would have already sent his NZ licesnse back to NZ . Which sucks cuz besides his passport he needs picture ID (no fun taking your passport to a pub!)

 

[BeShoo]

There is no "Canadian Drivers' License" because those are handled provincially and every province has their own rules. In our case, in Quebec, we were told that my partner cannot get a Quebec license until he has his PR, although he has been living here temporarily for well over a year. It might be different if he had a work visa, but he doesn't.

This situation has caused a lot of problems with my car insurance. Some company wanted me to sign a letter saying I would not let him drive my car. I finally got coverage for 6 months only with him listed. The 6 months is almost up, but I think I will have to sell the car because I can't afford it anymore.

We had to get an "international driver's permit" for him to continue driving legally with his Florida license.

 

[doctorkb]

No no BC Med yet, does he have to have a pr or aip before he can get it?

I've heard conflicting things. Are you applying outland or inland? For outland applications (like ours), it seems that you need to have sponsorship approval. I think if you're applying inland, AIP is sufficient.

Of course, starting the process now may have the 3-month waiting period completed in time before that. I know that our BC MSP came in 3 months after admission to Canada, but only a month and a half after sponsorship approval.[/quote]

I have him under my medical at work for Dental, but he's not eligable for Extended health cuz he's not landed yet...

He might be eligible once he has BC Medical.

We are going at lunch to see about his License, I called them yesterday but they couldn't talk to me (they tease me I'm his translator) haha, but they said they would have already sent his NZ licesnse back to NZ . Which sucks cuz besides his passport he needs picture ID (no fun taking your passport to a pub!)

Haha! Yeah, you'd need to have some sort. I'm sure they have a record of it -- someone probably just typed the wrong address in somewhere... or CanadaPost pulled their magic disappearing mail act.

In our case, in Quebec, we were told that my partner cannot get a Quebec license until he has his PR, although he has been living here temporarily for well over a year. It might be different if he had a work visa, but he doesn't.

I thought it was the same in BC -- you have to be a "resident" which necessarily means you have some sort of residency permit (either PR or TR)... but maybe they look at a 6-month visitor record as something close enough to residency.

This situation has caused a lot of problems with my car insurance. Some company wanted me to sign a letter saying I would not let him drive my car. I finally got coverage for 6 months only with him listed. The 6 months is almost up, but I think I will have to sell the car because I can't afford it anymore.

Wow, that's crazy. Does he have a bad driving record?

We had to get an "international driver's permit" for him to continue driving legally with his Florida license.

Whomever told you that didn't know what they're talking about.

An IDL is nothing more than an authenticated translation of the various aspects of a drivers license. Since the Florida license would have been in English, that's good enough for Canada. Keep in mind that an IDL is invalid without the original license alongside.

To reiterate: you do not need an "international drivers license" to drive in Canada, if you have a US drivers license (or other similar license from an English-speaking country). Furthermore, a license from somewhere else is VALID, but you may have to find someone to translate it if you get pulled over and the cop isn't satisfied with what he can understand.

An IDL is really just a marketing ploy by the CAA affiliates so you buy just a little something more when you're travelling abroad.

 

[BeShoo]

I thought it was the same in BC -- you have to be a "resident" which necessarily means you have some sort of residency permit (either PR or TR)... but maybe they look at a 6-month visitor record as something close enough to residency.

He does have a 12-month visitor record but the Quebec SAAQ said that he could not get a license.

Wow, that's crazy. Does he have a bad driving record?

He actually has a very good driving record and in fact he is licensed to drive trucks and buses (commercial license, which took extensive additional training), but I suppose he didn't have a copy of his driving record on hand when I went to get the insurance last time. The renewal document says they want his Quebec license now (which he can't get yet), but as I said I am selling the car most likely.

Whomever told you that didn't know what they're talking about.

According to the Quebec government website an International Driver's Permit is required after 6 months as a visitor: http://www.saaq.gouv.qc.ca/en/driver_licence/visitors/index.php. They recommend it for less than 6 months, especially if your license is not written in English or French, but after 6 months consecutive driving it is required.

(By the way AAA is designated as the issuer for U.S. IDPs.)

 

[gigi1612]

Where do can I get and IDL?

 

[BeShoo]

Where do can I get and IDL?

It depends where your regular license is from. There is a pretty good list here:

http://www.drivers.com/article/207/

 

[Steph C]

Why did he have to turn in his old licence? What if he needs it in NZ?
Also.. he did not have to undergo a new driving test? They will just trade him a NZ licence for a BC one?

I wonder if this applies to all countries? My partner bought his licence as is the general custom in the country where he is from, he never had to do any tests at all, just handed over some money for it. If he could just trade it for a BC licence it would scare me a bit.. I sure wish he could at least learn to parallel park first!

Hey guys,

Not sure if anyone else has done this. We're in BC. My husband went in May 11th to get a BC Drivers' Licence since he's 'stuck here' until his PR comes through (next summer maybe?)

He had no issues there, he turned in his New Zealand License, answered a few basic questions (what does flashing green light mean etc) and got piece of yellow paper which is his temperary license until his normal one came in.

We've been waiting three months for it now, we thought there would be delay with postal strike but appears not.

My question is: if anyone here has gotten a Canadian DL while waiting for their PR and if so what the process timeline was like?

 

[Steph C]

Oh, now I see.. ;D

http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/moving-bc/moving-dl

 

[doctorkb]

According to the Quebec government website an International Driver's Permit is required after 6 months as a visitor: http://www.saaq.gouv.qc.ca/en/driver_licence/visitors/index.php. They recommend it for less than 6 months, especially if your license is not written in English or French, but after 6 months consecutive driving it is required.

(By the way AAA is designated as the issuer for U.S. IDPs.)

Did you actually ask someone with the government about this? Because, truthfully, I've asked around with various sources and as long as your language is in English, you don't need it in Canada. The page you referred to didn't make it sound too firm on that.

And yes, I know that AAA is who issues it in the states. In BC, it's BCAA -- and I've seen what they issue and it's ridiculously pathetic that they charge anything for it.

 

[BeShoo]

Did you actually ask someone with the government about this? Because, truthfully, I've asked around with various sources and as long as your language is in English, you don't need it in Canada. The page you referred to didn't make it sound too firm on that.

And yes, I know that AAA is who issues it in the states. In BC, it's BCAA -- and I've seen what they issue and it's ridiculously pathetic that they charge anything for it.

"Beyond 6 months, you must hold an International Driver's Permit" sounds quite firm to me. I didn't ask anyone. I'm more inclined to believe the printed web page than someone at a call centre who often doesn't really know everything. In any case, I'm much more comfortable having spend the $15 than to risk a "driving without a license" fine which, as I recall, is several hundred dollars. I got stopped for speeding and hadn't changed my car registration even though I'd moved from Ontario to Quebec more than 6 months before. I got off with a warning, but there's go guarantee that would always happen.

See this page also: http://www.saaq.gouv.qc.ca/en/driver_licence/exchange/temporary_residents.php In my opinion, it's abundantly clear that you can't drive in Quebec for more than 6 months with a foreign license unless you have an IDP.

 

[BeShoo]

Also.. he did not have to undergo a new driving test? They will just trade him a NZ licence for a BC one?

There are complicated rules for which countries allow licenses to be traded between them. I recall briefly looking on a German website yesterday, and they have a list of states in the U.S. some of which require a road test to exchange for a German license, and some of which do not. (I know that is a little off topic, but the point is that it is broken down by province in Canada, and state in the U.S. and by country. There is no blanket policy that just applies to everywhere in the world.)

 

[Baloo]

This list may help some.
http://immipedia.ca/Driving_in_Canada