Acceptable identity documents

You must provide original identification documents that prove your legal name and date of birth in order to receive an Ontario Photo Card. You must provide original identification documents that prove your legal name, date of birth, and signature in order to Register a Vehicle. The lists below indicate what documents will satisfy these requirements.

On this page Skip this page navigation

Expired documents are not acceptable, with the exception of an Ontario driver’s licence or Ontario enhanced driver’s licence that is expired less than one year.

All documents must be originals, valid and in French or English. If your document is not in French or English you must provide the originals with a certified translation. Learn more about approved translations

List 1: only 1 document is required to satisfy both data elements

Identity documents	Legal name^{footnote 1[1]}	Date of birth	Signature
1. Passport - Canadian^{footnote 2[2]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
2. Passport - Foreign^{footnote 2[2]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
3. Canadian Citizenship Card with photo^{footnote 3[3]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
4. Canadian Permanent Resident card with or without signature	Yes	Yes	Yes (if signature is included)
5. Record of Landing (IMM 1000) Exceptions: see footnotes^{footnote 2[2]}^{footnote 4[4]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
6. Confirmation of Permanent Resident (IMM 5292) accompanied by a valid passport from country of origin	Yes	Yes	Yes
7. Report Pursuant to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IMM 1442) with photo^{footnote 5[5]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
8. Student Authorization/Study Permit (IMM 1442)^{footnote 5[5]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
9. Employment Authorization /Work Permit (IMM 1442)^{footnote 5[5]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
10. Visitor Record (IMM 1442)^{footnote 5[5]}	Yes	Yes	Yes
11. Temporary Resident’s Permit (IMM 1442)^{footnote 5[5]} - formerly Minister’s Permit/Extension of Minister’s Permit	Yes	Yes	Yes
12. Secure Certificate of Indian Status Card - issued on or after December 15, 2009, by Indian & Northern Affairs Canada	Yes	Yes	Yes
13. Driver’s licence or enhanced driver’s licence - issued by Ontario^{footnote 6[6]}^{footnote 7[7]}	Yes	Yes	Yes

List 2: 2 documents are required to satisfy both data elements for vehicle registration where proof of signature is required

Identity documents	Legal name^{footnote 1[1]}	Date of birth	Signature
14. Canadian birth certificate, or a proof of birth document issued by a U.S. jurisdiction^{footnote 8[8]}	Yes	Yes	N/A
15. Canadian Permanent Resident Card without signature (issued after February 4, 2012)	Yes	Yes	N/A
16. Government-issued proof of marriage document (issued by the jurisdiction that registered the event)	Yes	N/A	N/A
17. Certified copy of statement of live birth (issued by Ontario only)	Yes	Yes	N/A
18. Certificate of Indian Status (laminated card issued by Indian & Northern Affairs Canada)	Yes	N/A	Yes
19. U.S. Passport Card	Yes	Yes	N/A
20. Nexus Card and FAST/EXPRESS Card	N/A	Yes	N/A
21. Driver’s licence or enhanced driver’s licence - issued by another Canadian or U.S. jurisdiction Ontario driver’s licence or enhanced driver’s licence is proof of all three data elements, see list 1	N/A	N/A	Yes
22. Identity card - issued by a Canadian or U.S. jurisdiction (enhanced or non-enhanced)	N/A	N/A	Yes
23. Ontario health card	N/A	N/A	Yes
24. Ontario student card with signature^{footnote 9[9]}	N/A	N/A	Yes
25. Declaration from a guarantor (SR-LD-40)^{footnote 10[10]}	N/A	N/A	Yes
26. Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) identity card	N/A	N/A	Yes
27. Canadian Department of National Defence Driver’s Licence (DND 404)	N/A	N/A	Yes

List 3: only 1 document is required to satisfy both data elements for a name change

Identity documents	Legal name^{footnote 1[1]}	Date of birth	Signature
28. Government-issued proof of marriage document Canadian or foreign issued by federal/provincial/territorial/state government original or certified copy Support document for proof of change of surname only. This support document allows applicant to adopt spouse’s surname for use on Ontario Photo Card. Religious institution/church/ceremony-issued proof of marriage documents are not acceptable.	Yes	N/A	N/A
29. Change of name certificate Canadian or foreign issued by federal/provincial/territorial/state government Support document for proof of change of name only.	Yes	N/A	N/A
30. Court order, showing legal name, date of birth and court seal obtained for purposes of name change, divorce, or adoption Support document for proof of change of name, change of surname only, for adoption, and for change to date of birth.	Yes	Yes	N/A
31. Sworn affidavit with support documents^{footnote 11[11]} Where no date of birth or only partial date of birth (e.g. only the year) is available, a sworn affidavit with support documents is required to confirm the date of birth.	N/A	Yes	N/A

Updated: July 27, 2023

Published: November 13, 2012

Footnotes

footnote[1] Back to paragraph The legal name is the one registered at birth or the one changed legally through adoption, court order/change of name certificate or marriage.
footnote[2] Back to paragraph Applicants identified as a child on their parent’s Passport/Canadian Record of Landing/Canadian Refugee Status Claim must provide an additional document that provides proof of his/her signature, e.g., a valid U.S. or Canadian driver’s licence/identity card, an Ontario student card, or if these are not available, an applicant may voluntarily produce a valid Ontario health card.
footnote[3] Back to paragraph Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) regards the name on the non-picture side of the Canadian Citizenship Card, issued until the late 1990s, as the legal name since this name is taken from a birth certificate or an immigration document; therefore, the name on the non-picture side of these cards is to be used in creating the applicant’s photo card record. A Canadian Citizenship document issued beginning February 1, 2012, is not valid as proof of any of the three data elements.
footnote[4] Back to paragraph If information on Record of Landing (IMM 1000) is amended, an IMM 1436 is issued. The IMM 1436 must then be accompanied by the IMM 1000. Note that a CIC document (e.g., IMM 1000, IMM 1436, etc.,) cannot be laminated.
footnote[5] Back to paragraph Canadian Immigration Form 1442 (commonly used for Student Authorization/Study Permit, Employment Authorization/Work Permit, Visitor Record or Temporary Resident’s Permit) only satisfies the signature data element if there is a pre-printed area on the form for the holder’s signature. Applicants who present a Canadian Immigration Form 1442 without a pre-printed area for the holder’s signature must provide another piece of acceptable identification that proves their signature. Note that a CIC document (e.g., IMM 1000, IMM 1442, etc.) cannot be laminated.
footnote[6] Back to paragraph Ontario driver’s licence fulfils all data elements (legal name, date of birth, and signature (for registering a vehicle)). Exception: the name on the driver’s licence must follow the current naming policy. If the driver’s licence does not comply with the standard, additional ID is required. For example, if the first name on the licence is “J-David,” additional ID documents are required to prove that “J-David” or “James David” is the applicant’s full name.
footnote[7] Back to paragraph Licence must not be expired for more than one year.
footnote[8] Back to paragraph A birth certificate that indicates the certificate is “void if laminated” will not be accepted if it is laminated. Quebec birth certificates issued before January 1, 1994 are not acceptable.
footnote[9] Back to paragraph Ontario student card must bear the applicant’s signature which must match the signature on the application form. The validity of the Ontario student card is based on its expiry date. If a specific date is indicated on the card, e.g., day/month/year, that date is to be taken as the expiry date. If a validation period, e.g., 2005/2006, is indicated on the card, that card is considered to be valid up to and including December 31, 2006. This card can be accepted as identification of proof of signature only. The signed Ontario student card can be accepted for proof of signature if the signature portion is part of the card. However, if the Ontario student card does not have a signature requirement as part of its issuance process, subsequent signing of the card is not acceptable as proof of signature. If the applicant does not have any other document to prove his/her signature, the applicant may present a Declaration from a guarantor.
footnote[10] Back to paragraph All applicants for an original photo card, regardless of age, who do not have the standard proof of signature documentation, will be allowed to present a completed Declaration from a guarantor attesting to their signature at the time of application. These applicants are still required to provide original identification document(s) that prove legal name and date of birth.
footnote[11] Back to paragraph The sworn affidavit must be signed by a Commissioner of Oaths/Notary Public, and must state the legal name, date of birth and reason why no date of birth or only partial date of birth is available. Supporting documents include: certified copies of school records employment records or place of worship records with an original seal or stamp indicating “certified true copy” signed by an authorized signing officer for the institution or organization (if there is no such seal or stamp, a statement from the authorized signing officer indicating that the record is a certified true copy is acceptable) Form 39 (formerly Form 37) issued by the Office of the Registrar General of Ontario and is for a child born in another country and adopted in Ontario, or an insurance policy that has been in effect for more than 3 years