Red Tape for Experienced Drivers

Section 5.5 grants the Minister authority to end automatic foreign license recognition from "non-reciprocal" countries, requiring drivers with licenses from those jurisdictions to complete Ontario's written and road tests regardless of their legitimate credentials and driving experience.​

This forces skilled, experienced drivers from certain countries (predominantly Global South nations) to re-test as if they were new drivers, despite years or decades of safe driving. The policy wastes immigrants' skills and credentials while imposing financial burdens—testing fees, vehicle rental, time off work, potential income loss during re-licensing.​

The selective application to "non-reciprocal" countries enables discrimination. Drivers from Western nations often benefit from recognition agreements, while drivers from countries without such agreements face full re-testing regardless of their actual driving skills or safety records.

This policy signals to immigrants that their skills and credentials don't matter in Ontario—they'll be treated as incompetent regardless of their actual abilities. It contradicts Ontario's economic need for skilled workers and undermines social cohesion by creating unnecessary barriers. If road safety were the actual concern, the solution would be evidence-based assessment of individual driving skills, not blanket rejection of credentials based on country of origin.

This also enables employers to employ discriminatory practices by making a valid license a job requirement, even if it has nothing to do with the job.

Commercial Trucking Disrupted

Section 5.5 imposes new restrictions for applicants for commercial driver licenses (Class A, B, C, D) including needing to drive in Canada for a full year before driving commercially. This explicitly excludes visitors and many temporary residents from obtaining commercial licenses required for trucking, delivery, rideshare, and other driving employment.

This provision devastates immigrant-heavy industries including trucking, food delivery, rideshare services, and logistics. Thousands of newcomers legally authorized to work hold work permits qualifying them for employment—but Bill 60 adds an additional barrier by requiring verification through ministry processes.
Minister Sarkaria frames this as addressing "bad actors who use fraudulent documents," but provides no data showing widespread fraud. The actual impact falls on legitimate workers navigating complex immigration systems while trying to earn livelihoods.

Immigrant truck drivers (many from South Asian, East African, and Eastern European communities), rideshare and delivery workers dependent on driving for income, logistics and transportation companies facing labour shortages, construction workers needing commercial licenses, families dependent on immigrant workers' incomes from driving employment, temporary foreign workers legally authorized to work but now facing additional barriers.