A newcomer buying a first car in Toronto has two uses for records from abroad. The licensing office checks them to decide how the person gets an Ontario licence. The insurer uses them to help set a price. Those decisions are separate, even for someone who has driven for years.

Getting the papers ready before buying gives the driver time to ask questions and compare policies. It also helps avoid a missing document when the car is ready to collect. Help is available with unfamiliar forms.

Arrange the Ontario licence documents

A new Ontario resident can use a valid foreign licence for 60 days. After that, they need an Ontario licence. The driver should check whether they can exchange their old licence. The answer depends on where it was issued, its class and the records of their driving history. Years of driving don’t guarantee a full Ontario licence right away.

Rules changed on July 1, 2026 for places without an exchange agreement. Drivers from those places can receive up to 12 months of verified foreign driving credit. They must pass the G2 road test. They must then wait at least 12 months before taking the G road test. Driving abroad can’t shorten that wait. Old advice about going straight to the full G test may no longer apply.

The driver must bring proof of identity that DriveTest accepts and the original valid licence. DriveTest may ask for other records to support the application. Documents must be in English or French or have an accepted translation. Before paying for a translation, the driver should check what the office accepts.

An accepted licensing authority or diplomatic office must issue the driving-history records. A letter from an insurer won’t prove that history for licensing. DriveTest keeps the original records it asks for, so the driver should make copies first.

Keep driving and insurance records separate

The licensing office counts driving credit to decide how someone gets an Ontario licence. The insurer looks at history to help set a price. A record accepted by one doesn’t settle what the other will do with it.

The Ministry of Transportation checks some foreign driving history through licence-exchange agreements. The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario considers that history valid for pricing personal auto policies. The regulator expects insurers to count it as soon as they can before January 1, 2027. That guidance isn’t a new law promising to accept every foreign record. The driver should ask what history the company counted and what else it needs.

If the company asks for a letter about past insurance, it should say who must write it and which coverage dates and claims it must show. It should also say whether the letter needs a translation. Getting the right letter can take time after leaving the previous country.

A driver can bring a driving extract to Canada to help show their past driving history.

That gives them a record to share, instead of asking the company to rely on their description of years spent driving.

When comparing car insurance for Toronto drivers, a newcomer should ask how each company used those records.

Each company should get the same details so that a lower quote doesn’t reflect missing history or different coverage. Keeping copies together makes the right record easier to send when someone asks for it. Before agreeing to the policy, the driver should know which licence class and history the company used, along with the coverage being priced.

Choose the Ontario coverage

Required protection

Ontario requires third-party liability insurance with a limit of at least $200,000. This helps cover the driver’s legal responsibility for injuries or damage to others. Drivers can buy a higher limit. The minimum isn’t a recommended amount for every household.

Uninsured automobile coverage is required too. The policy must also include medical, rehabilitation and attendant-care accident benefits. Those benefits remained required after the July 1, 2026 changes. They help pay for eligible needs after an injury. They don’t pay to fix the car.

Optional vehicle and accident benefits

Collision coverage generally covers damage from a collision. Comprehensive generally covers theft and certain other insured damage. Ontario doesn’t require drivers to buy either one. A loan or lease may require them, though. The buyer needs to check that agreement as well as the quote.

Direct compensation property damage normally comes with the policy. A driver can opt out. Before doing so, they should ask the company what it would stop covering. A lower bill doesn’t tell them what they would give up.

Income replacement and several other accident benefits became optional in July 2026. Someone buying a first policy should check which benefits it includes. A driver who already has a policy should check the renewal too. The chosen benefits continue unless the customer agrees in writing to change them.

Give accurate vehicle and driver details

The form must give the real address, exact car details, yearly kilometres and use. It should name the regular drivers and the person who uses the car most.

The driver shouldn’t use someone else’s address to get a quote. They shouldn’t name an occasional driver as the main driver either. Those errors can cause problems with coverage.

A trip to work differs from a paid delivery. The driver must tell the company about deliveries, rideshare or other business driving before they happen.

The driver can ask for a quote on the car before buying it. Each company needs the same foreign-history records. The quotes should use the same liability limits, deductibles, car coverage and accident benefits. There isn’t one price for newcomers that predicts what everyone will pay.

Confirm coverage before driving

A licence allows someone to drive. It doesn’t prove that the car is insured. The driver needs both, even during the first 60 days when a valid foreign licence can still be used.

Before collecting or registering the car, the driver should confirm the date and time the policy starts.

They also need proof of insurance. Ontario drivers must carry their licence, vehicle registration and insurance evidence.

A quote alone doesn’t start the coverage. The insurer must explain the policy and confirm what the driver has bought.

Settlement services can help with unfamiliar forms. Newcomer Women’s Services Toronto helps with driver’s licence applications and settlement documents. That help can make the forms easier to understand while the newcomer gets the licence, registration and insurance ready.

Sidak Singh Dhanoa

I am a born Canadian citizen and growing daily with my content on INC – Immigration News Canada, developing into an empathetic person and knowing the other side of the story. Born in Toronto, exploring Canada from coast to coast, embracing the nomadic lifestyle.