According to recent statistics, some 40.5% of foreign-born drivers fail the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) driving test. Additionally, they also have more accidents on Quebec roads, which is why the provincial Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Geneviève Guilbault, has announced new rules to regulate access to driving privileges for immigrants originating from specific countries and settling in La Belle Province. “The huge rise in immigration to Quebec is having a major impact not only on our services, but also the safety on our roads,” she justified.
Failure of the driving test will now have consequences
Currently, new immigrants have six months in which to request the exchange of their foreign driver’s licence for a Quebec driver’s licence. Note that this 180-day period is considerably more permissive than in most other provinces. Newcomers typically have 90 days to exchange their foreign licence for the right to drive in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan; and only 60 days in Ontario. Worse yet, in Quebec, during that 180-day grace period, new drivers who fail at the SAAQ road test can continue to drive in La Belle Province.
That will likely change this month, once new measures announced by Minister Guilbault receive Royal Assent. Afterwards, immigrants from countries without reciprocity agreements who fail the SAAQ road test will no longer be able to drive alone.
What’s a “reciprocity agreement” mean? SAAQ driver’s licence written exams and driving tests are not required for Canadians from other provinces; for Americans; and for nationals of some 15 countries that have a reciprocity agreement with Quebec. More details below.
Steered towards a learner’s licence
Instead, new immigrants who fail their practical test will be required by the SAAQ to obtain a learner’s licence, which will prohibit them for driving solo for as long as they have not passed the road test. If they wish to drive, they will have to be accompanied either by a driving instructor; or by the holder of a Quebec driver’s license (class 5) that has been valid for at least two years.
Such an amendment to the Règlement sur les permis will enable new immigrants “to perfect their driving knowledge and skills with the help of an accompanying driver, while waiting for test retake,” explains SAAQ spokesman Gino Desrosiers. He also points out the new measure “is fair to new drivers residing in Quebec who, if they fail the road test, must (also) continue to learn and develop their driving skills by continuing to practice with their learner’s licence.” In both cases, road test retakes are permitted every 28 days.
A 40.5 % failure rate
In 2023, reports the SAAQ, some 40.5% of foreign license-holders failed their Quebec driving test. That’s two out of five applicants. “With high failure rates among newcomers, it was imperative to tighten the rules for access to driving,” says Minister Guilbault. “The change we have made ensures that a person who has demonstrated his or her inability to drive cannot continue to do it alone, until he or she has demonstrated his or her ability to respect the rules and adopt safe driving behaviours.”
Earlier this fall, radio host Paul Arcand addressed this very subject in La Presse, sharing testimonials from driving assessors reporting new foreign motorists running through stops, cutting off other motorists, disrespecting priorities at crosswalks, ignoring speed limits, and failing to check their blind spots when changing lanes.
Twice as many recognition requests—but twice as many accidents
In past years, requests from abroad for driver’s licence experience recognition have more than doubled — from 49,919 requests (in 2022) to 85,329 requests in 2023, per the SAAQ. It’s more than likely the year 2024 will have ended with some 120,000 requests on the books.
Roughly speaking, in the last 36 months, some 250,000 new drivers from abroad have been added to the nearly seven million licensed drivers in Quebec. The latest SAAQ data, however, show new arrivals from countries without reciprocal agreements with Quebec have an accident frequency of 3.94 per 1,000 licensed drivers. This is almost double the accident rate for drivers from other Canadian provinces (2.79 per 1,000 licensed drivers). For holders of a driver’s licence issued by one of the reciprocating countries (see the list below) the SAAQ reveals the accident frequency (2.39 per 1,000 holders) is even lower than that of Canadian licence holders.
Truth be told, when you’ve just arrived from a country with winters unlike Canada’s, when you know virtually nothing about North American road safety codes, and have never experienced Quebec potholes, let alone Montreal traffic jams and roadworks—you need to perfect your driving skills.
An information campaign is being prepared by the SAAQ to encourage new immigrants “to be well prepared to pass their written exams and driving tests, and to seek out the resources they need to practice and familiarize themselves with Quebec’s traffic rules and road safety,” says spokesperson Gino Desrosiers. In the meantime, can we strongly recommend newcomers register with a CAA-Quebec-recommended driving school as soon as possible?
Reciprocity for Canadians, Americans, and some Europeans and Asians
The new measures announced by Minister Guilbault do not apply to Canadians from other provinces, nor to Americans. They also don’t apply to nationals of a dozen European nations; and three Asian countries with which Quebec has a reciprocal agreement. Here’s the list of countries that fall under that banner.
- Austria
- Belgium
- Canada (other provinces)
- Germany
- Great Britain (England, Wales, and Scotland)
- France
- Isle of Man
- Netherlands (Holland and Netherlands Antilles)
- Northern Ireland
- Switzerland
- United States
- Japan
- South Korea
- Taiwan
Indeed, immigrants from these countries can exchange their driver’s licenses without having to undergo SAAQ written exams and road tests as long as the license issued by their province, state, or country is valid.
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