For nearly eight million vehicle owners, the Ontario government plans to eliminate licence plate renewal fees and the requirement to have a licence plate sticker for passenger vehicles, light-duty trucks, motorcycles and mopeds, effective March 13, 2022. It will save Oakville drivers $120 per year per vehicle.
Vehicles will still require renewal stickers to ensure insurance and payment of toll fees.
"As the cost of living continues to go up, our government is cutting costs for families to make life more affordable," said Premier Doug Ford. "Eliminating the fee to renew your licence plate and refunding the cost of doing so for the past two years is a concrete way we can put and keep more money in the pockets of hard-working Ontarians."
The province will refund eligible individual owners of vehicles for any licence plate renewal fees paid since March 2020. Upon passage, vehicle owners will receive a cheque in the mail starting at the end of March and throughout April.
“For many families, driving is an absolute necessity. Eliminating licence plate renewal fees and stickers are part of our government’s commitment to supporting drivers as we continue to build Ontario’s transportation network, including by building the Bradford Bypass and Highway 413,” said Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Transportation.
To receive a refund cheque, vehicle owners who have moved recently will need to confirm that their address information on their vehicle permit or driver’s licence is up-to-date at Ontario.ca/AddressChange by March 7, 2022 and pay any outstanding fees, fines or tolls. For more information and/or assistance with changing an address, vehicles owners can call ServiceOntario’s dedicated line at 1-888-333-0049.
Corporate-owned vehicles
Under the proposal, the province will also eliminate renewal fees for passenger, light-duty commercial vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds owned by a company or business. However, no refunds will be given from March 2020 to March 2022.
“Starting next month, eliminating renewal fees for vehicles owned by a company or business is just one of the many ways we are supporting small businesses across the province so they can continue to thrive and contribute to their communities,” said Nina Tangri, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction.
Licence plate renewal is still required.
Vehicle owners will still be required to renew their licence plate every one or two years at no cost to confirm their automobile insurance is valid and pay any outstanding Highway 407 tolls and other municipal fines. The government is working with partners to develop a new, more user-friendly process that will continue to validate automobile insurance requirements, support law enforcement efforts and collect municipal fines and unpaid Highway 407 tolls.
Automated Licence Play Recognition technology
The Ontario government is also investing in Automated Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology as part of its commitment to provide police with the tools they need to do their jobs, improve public safety and strengthen roadside law enforcement efforts across the province. An ALPR system can read thousands of licence plates per minute, allowing officers to process more information on licence plates. It also can capture vehicles of interest such as amber alerts, drivers with a suspended licence, and stolen vehicles.
Renewal fees and requirements for licence plate stickers for heavy commercial vehicles and snowmobiles remain unchanged.