Do out-of-province tickets go on your Ontario record?
Some do. A conviction in another Canadian province or territory, New York or Michigan adds demerit points to your Ontario driving record just as if the offence had happened in Ontario.
The ticket on its own does nothing to your record. The conviction does, and under Ontario’s rule a guilty plea, a finding of guilt or forfeited bail in the other jurisdiction all count as one.
Ontario keeps two lists, one for points and one for suspensions.
Traffic offences that add Ontario points
- Speeding
- Failing to obey a stop sign
- Failing to obey a signal light (a red light)
- Failing to stop for a school bus
- Racing
- Failing to remain at or return to the scene of a collision
- Careless driving
Criminal offences that bring an Ontario suspension
- Impaired driving
- Dangerous driving
- Criminal negligence
- Vehicular manslaughter
- Failing to remain at the scene of a collision
- Driving while disqualified or prohibited
Leaving the scene of a collision sits on both lists. As a traffic offence it carries 7 points. As a criminal conviction it leads to a suspension.
To see whether points came back to Ontario, check the total on your own 3-year driver record.
Which provinces and states count on an Ontario licence?
The table below sorts it by place. The short version: the rest of Canada, New York and Michigan count, and other states are a grey area.
The Highway Traffic Act lets the Minister enter reciprocal agreements with any province, territory or US state, and Ontario Regulation 339/94 lets the Registrar record points for an Ontario resident’s conviction in any of them as if it had been entered here.
| Where you were convicted | Ontario demerit points? | What applies |
|---|---|---|
| Another Canadian province or territory, Quebec included | Yes, for the listed offences | Criminal driving convictions there lead to an Ontario suspension. |
| New York | Yes, for the listed offences | Named in Ontario’s list. Tickets are in mph; the points table below gives rough conversions. |
| Michigan | Yes, for the listed offences | Named in Ontario’s list. Tickets are in mph; the points table below gives rough conversions. |
| Any other US state, such as Florida, Ohio, Vermont or Pennsylvania | Not on Ontario’s published list | The regulation allows points for a conviction in any US state, so it is not ruled out. |
| Outside Canada and the US | Not covered by the points rule | The rule covers provinces, territories and US states only. |
How many points does an out-of-province ticket add?
The same number the equivalent offence carries in Ontario. Careless driving in Quebec carries the same 6 points it carries in Toronto.
The points are recorded as of the date of the offence and count for two years from that date, on the same clock as a ticket written on the 401. Here is what each listed offence is worth in Ontario.
| Conviction outside Ontario | Ontario demerit points |
|---|---|
| Speeding, 1 to 15 km/h over (under about 10 mph) | None |
| Speeding, 16 to 29 km/h over (about 10 to 18 mph) | 3 points |
| Speeding, 30 to 49 km/h over (about 19 to 31 mph) | 4 points |
| Speeding, 50 km/h or more over (about 32 mph or more) | 6 points |
| Failing to obey a stop sign | 3 points |
| Failing to obey a signal light (red light) | 3 points |
| Failing to stop for a school bus | 6 points |
| Racing | 6 points |
| Careless driving | 6 points |
| Failing to remain at the scene of a collision | 7 points |
Points from a trip ticket do not sit in a separate bucket. They join whatever you already have, and Ontario’s warning letters and suspensions count every point from offences within any two-year period.
Novice drivers face extra Ontario rules for some convictions. If you hold a G1, G2, M1, M2, M1-L or M2-L, a lawyer or paralegal can tell you how a conviction elsewhere is treated.
Every threshold, from the first warning letter up, is laid out in the Ontario demerit points chart. For speed bands, fines and how long a conviction stays visible, see speeding tickets and your driving record.
What about tickets from Florida, Ohio or other US states?
Ontario’s published list names only New York and Michigan, so a ticket from another state is not one Ontario says it counts. The regulation, though, is written to cover a conviction in any US state.
The ticket itself is handled under the law of the state that issued it, and a lawyer there can advise you on it. Even if Ontario adds no points, the insurance application still asks about every conviction from the last 3 years, so it can still come up when you buy insurance.
Whichever state the ticket came from, the check is the same: once it is resolved, pull your record and look at the point total. You can get your driving record online from anywhere with your Ontario licence number.
Will your insurer find out about an out-of-province ticket?
Assume it will come up. Points Ontario adds are on the driving record your insurer reads, and the standard Ontario application asks for every conviction from the last 3 years arising from the operation of any automobile.
Nothing in that question limits it to Ontario, so a ticket that added no Ontario points can still belong on the form. Before you answer, order your driving abstract online so you know what your record shows.
For what insurers read on the record and why the 3-year window matters to them, see drivers abstracts for insurance.
What happens after a criminal driving conviction outside Ontario?
If the conviction is in another province or territory, or under a law named in one of Ontario’s reciprocal agreements, Ontario suspends your licence. Impaired driving, dangerous driving and the other criminal driving offences on Ontario’s list bring a suspension rather than demerit points.
Under the Highway Traffic Act, the suspension matches the one for the same Criminal Code conviction in Ontario: one year for a first, three years for a second and an indefinite suspension for a third.
That suspension appears on your 3-year driver record, which lists suspensions and reinstatements for the past three years. If you are facing a charge, a lawyer where it was laid can advise you. For how a conviction like this reads on an Ontario record, see impaired driving and your driving record.
Should you pay, fight or ignore a ticket from another province or state?
Never ignore it. In Ontario an unanswered ticket can become a conviction without a hearing, and a conviction in a province or state on Ontario’s list adds points just as one entered here would.
Other provinces and states set their own deadlines and rules for unanswered tickets, so read the deadline printed on yours the day you get it.
Paying is not a neutral act either. In Ontario, paying a ticket is a guilty plea and a conviction.
Read the ticket closely
Note the offence, the speed for a speeding ticket, and the deadline to respond. The offence and the speed decide the Ontario points; the deadline decides how long you have to act.
Match it to the Ontario points
Use the table above. Speeding 16 to 29 km/h over (about 10 to 18 mph) is 3 points; careless driving is 6. Add that to what you already carry.
Decide before the deadline
If you want to dispute it, speak to a lawyer or paralegal who handles traffic cases where you were ticketed, before you pay anything.
Check your Ontario record afterwards
Once the ticket is resolved, order your 3-year record and read the point total and any suspension entries. Points appear once Ontario records the conviction, so check again if they are not there yet.
How do you check what came back to your Ontario record?
Order your 3-year Ontario driver record and read it. It shows your current demerit point total, convictions from the past three years, your licence status and any suspensions, so points added for a trip ticket show up in the total.
Your 3-year record shows
- Your current demerit point total, including points Ontario added for an out-of-province conviction
- Highway Traffic Act and Criminal Code convictions from the past three years
- Suspensions and reinstatements from the past three years
- Your licence status: licensed, unlicensed or suspended
- Active fine suspensions
It will not show
- A ticket that has not been resolved yet, anywhere
- A charge that ended without a conviction
- Points more than two years past their offence date, which no longer count in the total
- Your insurance claims history, which insurers hold
It is easy to pay a trip ticket and assume it stayed in Quebec or New York. Your record is where any added points or suspension will show, and it is the same record an employer or insurer looks at. The guide on what is on an Ontario driver abstract explains every field, and how to check your demerit points shows where the total sits.
Get your Ontario drivers abstract for $39.99: one short form, no account, and the PDF arrives in your inbox instantly after payment. Occasional delays can occur.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Quebec speeding ticket put points on my Ontario licence?
Yes, once you are convicted. Quebec is a Canadian province, so a speeding conviction there adds the points the same speed would carry in Ontario: 3 for 16 to 29 km/h over, 4 for 30 to 49 km/h over and 6 for 50 km/h or more over.
Will a small speeding ticket in New York or Michigan add Ontario points?
Not if you were 15 km/h or less over the limit, which is about 9 mph or less. Ontario gives no points for that band, so the same conviction in New York or Michigan adds none. It is still a conviction, and the standard Ontario insurance application asks about every conviction from the last 3 years.
My New York ticket is in miles per hour. How many Ontario points is that?
Ontario’s speeding bands are set in km/h, and 1 mph is about 1.6 km/h. So 10 to 18 mph over works out to roughly the 3-point band (16 to 29 km/h), 19 to 31 mph over to the 4-point band and 32 mph or more over to the 6-point band. These are rough conversions, so treat a speed near the edge of a band as uncertain.
Is paying an out-of-province ticket the same as pleading guilty?
For Ontario’s purposes, a guilty plea, a finding of guilt or forfeited bail elsewhere all count as a conviction. In Ontario itself, paying a ticket is a guilty plea. If you are unsure what paying means where you were ticketed, ask a lawyer or paralegal there before you pay.
How long do points from an out-of-province conviction last?
Two years from the offence date, the same as points from a ticket written in Ontario.
Can a ticket from another province get my Ontario licence suspended?
Yes. Its points count toward the same totals as Ontario tickets, so it can push a full licence to 15 points or a novice licence to 9 points, which brings a 30-day or 60-day suspension the first time. A criminal driving conviction in another province, or under a law named in one of Ontario’s reciprocal agreements, leads to an Ontario suspension directly.
Do tickets from outside Canada and the US go on my Ontario record?
Not under Ontario’s out-of-province points rule, which covers only provinces, territories and US states. The ticket is handled under the law of the country that issued it, and a lawyer there can advise.
Do out-of-province points show up right away?
Not when the ticket is written. Points are added only after a conviction, so nothing is added while the ticket is still open. They appear once Ontario records the conviction, so if your 3-year record does not show them yet, check again later.
Sources: Out-of-province demerit points follow Ontario Regulation 339/94 (Demerit Point System), section 4, and the point values in its table. Reciprocal agreements and the suspensions tied to them follow the Highway Traffic Act, sections 40 and 41. Paying a ticket as a guilty plea and convictions entered when a ticket goes unanswered follow the Provincial Offences Act. The insurance question is from the standard Ontario Application for Automobile Insurance (OAF 1).