TORONTO — The grace period for renewal of Ontario driver's licences, licence plate stickers and health cards is coming to an end.
The government on Wednesday announced it is reinstating renewal requirements that were waived last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
There's still lots of time, though, to make arrangements.
The new deadline for products that expired on or after Mar.1, 2020 is Feb. 28, 2022.
Heavy commercial vehicle owners will need to renew their vehicle validations by Dec. 31, 2021.
Novice licence holders (class G1, G2, M1 or M2) will have until Dec. 31, 2022 to requalify for or upgrade their novice licence.
Individuals who have not renewed their products during the grace period will have to pay the fee for previous years, in addition to the current year renewal fee.
The government said it's encouraging people to use ServiceOntario's online renewal option, at ServiceOntario.ca.
It has temporarily waived requirements for people to renew their driver's licences in person, including those for drivers aged 80 and over.
"The majority of Ontarians have continued to renew their documents during the pandemic," said Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney.
"I strongly encourage those who have deferred renewals to plan ahead and renew their documents online."
Mulroney said about 17 per cent of Ontarians are currently using expired driver's licences, plate stickers and other documents.
