SGI will allow Ukrainian drivers to switch their licenses for Saskatchewan ones if they wish. (File Photo/CKOM News Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Ukrainian Drivers in Saskatchewan

SGI plans license exchange program for Ukrainian drivers

Jun 8, 2022 | 4:00 PM

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has seen refugees arrive from various parts of Ukraine all over Canada. Quite a few of them have come to Saskatchewan, and now it will be easier for them to get on the roads.

Starting right away, anyone who holds a valid Ukrainian driver’s license can exchange it for a Saskatchewan driver’s license with SGI. It’s similar to the policy SGI has with other countries where their driver’s licenses are recognized as equivalent to a license in Saskatchewan.

“We are extending that to Ukrainian driver’s licenses,” said SGI media relations manager, Tyler McMurchy. “They’re called Ukrainian Category B passenger vehicle licenses and that’s the equivalent of a Saskatchewan class five.”

Because Saskatchewan has such a large Ukrainian population — according to the Saskatchewan government, as much as 13 per cent of the province traces at least some of their ancestry to that country — a lot of Ukrainians have been arriving in this province, sometimes to join family members.

“We haven’t seen a huge number (of applicants) at this point, but with this change we may see those numbers increase,” McMurchy said. “We expect that to happen. It’s hard to say exactly how many people will take advantage of this, but if it does make the transition to their new life in Saskatchewan a bit easier, that’s something we are hopeful we can help out with.”

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Thanks to work with Manitoba’s public insurer, MPI, SGI was able to streamline the process a little bit. They’ve also reviewed the driving requirements for getting a license in Ukraine, which McMurchy described as “pretty rigorous”.

“We are confident that someone coming to Saskatchewan with a Ukrainian driver’s license will be able to operate a vehicle on our roads safely,” said McMurchy.

Arriving in a new country is a stressful enough experience as it is, especially when you’ve been forced to go there by war. The hope for McMurchy is this will make a difficult time at least a little bit easier for some people.

“We are hoping that this will offer a bit of relief for somebody knowing that they can come to Saskatchewan,” McMurchy said, “and continue to drive without having to go through the process of driver education and testing because they’ve already faced that in their home country.”

McMurchy added a Ukrainian driver has to go through 140 hours of learning, a road test and a closed course test before they get their license in their home country.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP