Get a refund or credit for your licence plate sticker or driver’s licence

Overview

You may be eligible to get a credit or refund for your licence plate sticker and/or driver’s licence.

Heavy commercial vehicles and snowmobiles

If you own a heavy commercial vehicle or snowmobile you may be able to get a credit or refund for your licence plate sticker. For example, you may receive credits for returning a licence plate prior to its renewal date.  

How to use your credit

You can use credit to pay for other vehicle licensing transactions – including renewing another plate registered to you.

When you’re ready to use your credit:

• make sure you have the licence plate number linked to the credit
• visit a ServiceOntario centre
• tell the customer service representative that you wish to use your credit, before they start to process your transaction

Heavy commercial vehicles

If the plate is attached to a heavy vehicle (more than 3,001 kg) you can request a refund or credit on any amount left on your plate sticker. 

Visit a ServiceOntario centre with your licence plates and the original vehicle permit (green ownership permit) and a customer service representative will discuss your credit or refund options with you. 

Snowmobiles

You can only request for a refund or credit for a snow vehicle validation sticker if the sticker has never been used. Refunds will be issued as a cheque in 4-6 weeks. 

Visit a ServiceOntario centre with your snow vehicle validation and the original vehicle permit (pink ownership permit) and a customer service representative will discuss your credit or refund options with you.

Passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds

We are providing a one-time refund for licence plate sticker fees to individual owners of passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds. This cheque refunds your licence plate renewal fees paid from March 2020 to March 12, 2022. 

Licence plate sticker refund cheques were not issued for licence plates with outstanding fines or tolls, such as:

• unpaid tolls
• unpaid fines for violations like parking or speeding tickets

If you owe defaulted fees, fines or tolls, learn how to make a payment online to receive your refund. Individual customers who pay all outstanding fees, fines or tolls by March 13, 2024 and qualify for the one-time validation refund, will automatically receive a cheque in the mail.

Licence plate sticker fee refund cheques will be offered until March 13, 2024.

Refunds are not available for vehicles registered to companies or businesses.

Licence place sticker refund replacement cheques

If your licence plate refund cheque was lost, stolen, damaged, or sent to a deceased person, please contact ServiceOntario at 1-800-387-3445 (TTY: 1-800-268-7095) by March 31, 2025.

You may be required to submit supporting documents to qualify for reissuance. Submit all  documents by March 31, 2025, to qualify for a cheque replacement. Ensure your current address and address on your driver’s licence and vehicle permit (green ownership document) match. It’s the law to update your driver’s licence and vehicle permit within 6 days of a move.

Refund amount

The amount you get back will depend on when you last renewed and how much you paid.

We will provide refunds for full months of paid validation; partial months are not refundable. For example, if your validation started on May 15, the refund period begins the following month.

You will receive a refund for the number of full months of paid validation that falls on or after March 1, 2020, even if you renewed your licence plate sticker prior to this date.

Refund cheques for licence plate validation credits

You may receive a refund cheque because you had a credit for a previously returned licence plate. Since renewals are now free, you will be refunded the credit amount.

If you have questions about your refund cheque, call 1-888-333-0049.

Moved to another province, territory or out of Canada

If you’ve moved out of the province and would like your refund sent to your new address, please contact us by:

1. Writing and signing a letter, including your:
   • VIN (vehicle identification number)
   • Ontario plate number
   • Ontario RIN (registrant identification number) or Ontario driver’s licence number
   • full name, as it appears on the Ontario vehicle permit
   • current address recorded on your Ontario driver’s licence or vehicle permit
   • mailing address where you want your refund cheque to be mailed
   • date, signature and contact details (email and/or telephone number)
   • reason for the request (licence plate refund to be sent to new address)
2. Mail your refund request to:

   ServiceOntario
   Licence Renewals Section
   P.O. Box 9100
   Kingston Ontario
   K7L 5K3

Refunds for licence plate stickers for a deceased person

You can deposit cheques in the name of the deceased directly into the account of the estate if the executor has endorsed it to the estate. Speak to your financial institution about your options.

To have the refund cheque issued “in the Estate of”, you must:

1. Send us a written letter that includes:

• the deceased person’s name
• Ontario driver’s licence number or Registrant Identification Number (RIN)
• plate number
• photocopy of either:
  • the death certificate, or
  • a notification of death from the police, judiciary, or lawyer
• the address where you would like the refund cheque to be sent

2. Mail your letter to:

Ministry of Transportation
Vehicle Program Development Office
87 Sir William Hearst Avenue
Room B05
Toronto, Ontario
M3M 0B6

Cheque replacement requests for the one-time licence plate sticker fees refund (only for passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds) will be accommodated until March 31, 2025. 

Driver’s licence

If you’ve moved out of the province or have stopped driving in Ontario, you can request a refund for each 6-month part of your driver’s licence fee (for example, 18 months remaining before expiry). If you are within 6 months of expiry, you will not be eligible for a refund.

Your refund will be calculated from the date your driver’s licence is returned and cancelled.

Moved to another province, territory or out of Canada

1. Write and sign a letter to the mailing address below and include:
   • your new mailing address
   • your Ontario driver’s licence number, or your name and date of birth
   • a photocopy of either:
     • your new driver’s licence, issued by the new licensing authority where you currently live and which shows the date of issue
     • a confirmation letter from the licensing authority where you live, which says that you are now a licensed driver in that place and includes the date that you surrendered your Ontario driver’s licence
2. Mail your refund request to:

Ontario Shared Services Revenue and Billing Management
LCS Operations
159 Cedar Street, 6^th Floor, Suite 600
Sudbury, Ontario
P3E 6A5

Don’t want your driver’s licence anymore

You can choose to voluntarily surrender a valid driver’s licence if you’re moving or because of your age or health.

If you do surrender your driver’s licence, you can get a refund for each unexpired 6-month period remaining on the licence. If you are within 6 months of expiry, you will not be eligible for a refund.

You can surrender your driver's licence:

In-person

Bring your driver’s licence to a ServiceOntario centre.

By mail

1. Write and sign a letter that includes your name and your driver’s licence number.
2. Mail the letter along with your driver’s licence (the physical card) to:

   Ontario Shared Services
   Revenue and Billing Management
   LCS Operations
   159 Cedar Street, 6^th Floor, Suite 600
   Sudbury Ontario P3E 6A5

Driver’s licence refunds for a deceased person

You can get a refund for a driver's licence for someone who died:

In person

Bring the driver’s licence and either the death certificate or a notification of death from the police, judiciary or lawyer to any ServiceOntario centre.

By mail

1. Gather the deceased person’s:
   • driver’s licence
   • photocopy of either
     • the death certificate, or
     • a notification of death from the police, judiciary or lawyer.
2. Write and sign a letter requesting a refund and include
   • the address where you would like the refund to be sent
3. Include the above-noted items with your letter and mail to:

   Ontario Shared Services
   Revenue and Billing Management
   LCS Operations
   159 Cedar Street, 6^th Floor, Suite 600
   Sudbury, Ontario
   P3E 6A5