Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In most Canadian provinces and territories, yes: a doctor who believes a patient is unsafe to drive must tell the licensing authority. In a few provinces reporting is optional, and in British Columbia the duty only kicks in if a patient keeps driving after being warned. Ontario also makes nurse practitioners and optometrists report certain conditions. A report is not a verdict; the licensing office reviews it and decides.
Reporting rules by province and territory
The table below shows the reporting duty for physicians. The Ontario and BC rows come from the official government text. The other rows come from the Canadian Medical Protective Association’s summary for doctors, which is not a government source, so check the current position with the provincial licensing office.
| Province or territory | Physician reporting | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario | Mandatory for listed conditions; discretionary for others | Highway Traffic Act s.203. Physicians, nurse practitioners and optometrists (vision only) must report |
| British Columbia | Mandatory only if the patient keeps driving after a warning | Motor Vehicle Act s.230. Also covers optometrists, psychologists and nurse practitioners |
| Alberta | Discretionary | Check with Alberta Transportation |
| Quebec | Discretionary | The CMPA notes the Collège des médecins expects a report if a patient is a serious risk and keeps driving after a warning |
| Nova Scotia | Discretionary | Check with the Registry of Motor Vehicles |
| Saskatchewan | Mandatory | Check with SGI |
| Manitoba | Mandatory | Applies to patients of driving age who hold a licence |
| New Brunswick | Mandatory | |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | Mandatory | |
| Prince Edward Island | Mandatory | |
| Yukon | Mandatory | Applies to patients of driving age who hold a licence |
| Northwest Territories | Mandatory | |
| Nunavut | Mandatory | Under the territorial Motor Vehicles Act |
Ontario: who must report and what
Ontario has the most detailed published rules. Under section 203 of the Highway Traffic Act:
- Must report: physicians, nurse practitioners and optometrists, for high-risk medical conditions, vision conditions and functional impairments set out in Ontario Regulation 340/94. Optometrists report vision only.
- May report: physicians, nurse practitioners, optometrists and occupational therapists, for other conditions they believe make driving dangerous. Police sometimes send reports too.
Optometrists must report any of these vision findings:
- best-corrected visual acuity below 20/50
- a visual field of less than 120 continuous degrees horizontally, less than 15 degrees above and below fixation, or less than 60 degrees to either side of the vertical midline
- double vision (diplopia) within 40 degrees of the fixation point in primary position
Ontario lists the kinds of high-risk conditions that can lead to a suspension, including sudden incapacitation, impaired judgment or planning, motor or sensory impairment, impaired vision and uncontrolled substance use disorder.
British Columbia: the section 230 duty
Section 230 of BC’s Motor Vehicle Act applies to medical practitioners, nurse practitioners, optometrists and registered psychologists with a patient aged 16 or older. They must report the patient’s name, address and condition to the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles if both of these are true:
- in their opinion, the patient has a medical condition that makes it dangerous to the patient or the public for them to drive
- the patient keeps driving after being warned of the danger
So in BC, following your doctor’s advice to stop driving is what keeps a mandatory report from being triggered. More on how RoadSafetyBC handles reports is in RoadSafetyBC medical fitness.
Are doctors protected for reporting?
BC’s section 230 says no action for damages can be brought against a practitioner for making a report, unless it was made falsely and maliciously. For other provinces, check the protection wording in the provincial highway or motor vehicle law. The CMPA tells doctors they will generally not be faulted for breaching confidentiality when reporting in good faith.
What happens after a report
In Ontario
- A report of a mandatory condition results in a licence suspension.
- A discretionary report does not always lead to suspension. The ministry may ask for follow-up information, an occupational therapist’s functional assessment or other assessments.
- You can appeal some decisions to the Licence Appeal Tribunal, for a fee, but not a suspension for failing to meet the mandatory vision standards.
Elsewhere
The pattern is similar: the licensing office reviews the report against the national CCMTA standards, may ask for more medical information or a driving assessment, and then keeps, conditions, suspends or reinstates your licence. Getting your licence back usually means sending updated medical reports showing you now meet the standard.
What this means for a learner
- You still have to declare conditions yourself on your application. Do not rely on your doctor to do it.
- If your doctor advises you not to drive, that applies to practice drives with a supervisor too.
- For condition-specific waiting periods, see epilepsy, diabetes and vision.
Back to the hub: Driving with a medical condition or disability in Canada.
Sources
- Government of Ontario, “Reporting a driver for medical review” (ontario.ca)
- Government of British Columbia, Motor Vehicle Act, section 230 “Report of health professional” (bclaws.gov.bc.ca)
- Canadian Medical Protective Association, “Do you need to report your patient’s fitness to drive?” (cmpa-acpm.ca)