My grandson is 15 and drives in Saskatchewan. Can he drive when visiting us in Ontario?

Our grandson is a resident of Saskatchewan. He turned 15 in March, has completed the classroom portion of the Saskatchewan driver training and has been issued a Saskatchewan learner’s license that allows him to drive during daylight hours with a licensed adult beside him. He will be visiting us in Ontario this summer. Is it legal for him to drive here with us? – Tim

If you have a learner’s permit from any province, Ontario’s roads are yours to discover – if you’re 16 or older.

Ontario is one of a handful of provinces that states a minimum age for out-of-province drivers.

“Any driver coming to Ontario must be at least 16 years of age to drive in Ontario regardless of the requirements of a learner’s permit in another province,” said Constable Nicola Morris, a spokeswoman for the Ontario Provincial Police Highway Safety Division.

Learners’ permits – a G1 in Ontario and a Class 7 in a few other provinces – allow new drivers to get some experience behind the wheel as long as there’s a fully licensed adult in the front passenger seat.

In most provinces, including Ontario, you have to be at least 16 to get a learner’s permit. But, if you’re in a high school driver’s education class, you can get one in Saskatchewan at 15 and in Manitoba at 15½ – otherwise, it’s 16 in both provinces. You can get a learner’s licence at 14 in Alberta and at 15 in the three territories.

While a few other provinces, including Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, specifically state that out-of-province drivers must be at least 16, most don’t state a minimum age.

In British Columbia, for instance, visiting drivers don’t have to be 16, even though that’s B.C.’s minimum age for a learner’s permit, the Insurance Corp. of British Columbia, which handles licensing, said in an e-mail.

That means a 14-year-old learner from Alberta can drive with supervision on B.C. roads, even though B.C. learners have to be 16, ICBC said.

“I have never pulled over a learner from another province, but technically they can drive in B.C.,” RCMP Corporal Melissa Jongema, a spokeswoman for B.C. Highway Patrol, said in an e-mail. “If they are a supervised learner, they can drive wherever they need to go.”

Local restrictions?

Not only are learners prohibited from driving alone in any province, they must also abide by other conditions, depending on the province.

In every province, learners must have a zero blood alcohol concentration (BAC). British Columbia, Saskatchewan and the Yukon ban using any mobile device – even if it’s hands-free.

So, when learners are visiting another province, do they have to follow local restrictions?

We first asked Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation. It didn’t answer the question, but repeated what’s on its website.

“Visitors to Ontario are allowed to drive on Ontario roads with their driver’s licence from their home jurisdiction for up to three months provided their driver’s licence is valid and they are at least 16 years of age, have proper insurance for their vehicle, carry an original or exact copy of their vehicle registration permit and follow all traffic laws, rules of the road and safe driving procedures,” MTO spokeswoman Tanya Blazina said in an e-mail.

But the OPP’s Morris said your licence restrictions travel with you – so if you have a Saskatchewan learner’s permit and you’re driving in Ontario, for example, you would follow Saskatchewan’s licence restrictions.

“It is their home conditions that apply,” Morris said. “I will add, though, that all other Ontario traffic laws apply, despite what their home province’s laws are.”

While Ontario learners are not allowed on the 400-series highways unless they’re with a licensed driving instructor, a 16-year-old learner from another province would be allowed to drive on Highway 401 as long as they have adult supervision, OPP’s Morris said.

“If you do not feel competent and skilled to drive on a 400-series highway at the appropriate speed and you don’t have experience doing that, consider an alternate route,” Morris said.

Morris said visiting drivers of any age are expected to know and understand local laws, including distracted-driving laws and speed limits; being a visitor “isn’t an excuse.”

“You have a responsibility to know those laws,” she said.

Have a driving question? Send it to globedrive@globeandmail.com and put ‘Driving Concerns’ in your subject line. Emails without the correct subject line may not be answered. Canada’s a big place, so let us know where you are so we can find the answer for your city and province.

Have a driving question? Send it to globedrive@globeandmail.com and put ‘Driving Concerns’ in your subject line. Emails without the correct subject line may not be answered. Canada’s a big place, so let us know where you are so we can find the answer for your city and province.