Road Test Checklist: What to Bring

Your physical driver's licence card

This is the item that turns people away. You must present your valid, original Ontario licence card: the G1 card for a G2 test, the G2 card for a G test. A photo of it on your phone is not accepted. A photocopy is not accepted. If the card is lost or damaged, get a replacement or a temporary licence from ServiceOntario before test day, and if you are carrying a temporary paper licence, bring government photo ID with it and confirm with DriveTest that it will be accepted.

Check the expiry date now, not the night before. An expired licence means no test and no refund.

The rest of the documents

• Booking confirmation. Print the email or have it ready on your phone. The name must match your licence exactly.
• Glasses or contact lenses if your licence has a corrective-lens condition. Testing without them is not permitted.
• Vehicle ownership (registration) for the car you are using, in the car. If it is a family member's car, their permit is fine; it just has to be present.
• Proof of insurance for that vehicle. A paper slip or the insurer's digital card is accepted.
• Payment if you are paying a retest fee at the counter rather than online: $53.75 for a G2 road test, $91.25 for a G road test.

The car: what the examiner inspects

DriveTest does not supply a vehicle. Before the test begins the examiner walks around the car and asks you to demonstrate that it is safe. If anything fails, the test does not go ahead.

• Headlights, brake lights, tail lights and all four turn signals
• Horn
• Parking brake that holds
• Tires with visible tread and proper inflation
• Windshield free of cracks in the driver's view, working wipers, clean windows and mirrors
• Working seat belts and doors that open from inside and out
• Valid plates and current validation
• No warning lights on the dash, no loose items, and no dash-mounted phone in use

Test the lights with someone standing behind the car the night before; a brake light is the one that fails most. Or remove the variable altogether with a road test package: instructors' cars are inspected week after week and come with a warm-up drive and a ride home.

Timing, cancellations and the night before

• Arrive 30 minutes early. Parking, the check-in kiosk and the vehicle inspection all happen before your appointment time. Late arrivals usually lose the slot.
• Cancel or reschedule at least 48 hours ahead or the fee is forfeited. If you are sick or the car is not ready, move the test in time.
• Know the route to the centre. Our centre guides cover parking and arrival at Downsview, Etobicoke, Metro East, Port Union, Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington, Oshawa, Newmarket and Hamilton.
• Eat, sleep, and do a warm-up drive. Thirty to sixty minutes on the roads around the centre right before the test is the single best thing you can do for your nerves.
• Phone silent and away. Using it during the test ends the test.

The checklist