Getting you drivers License in BC

The official line is: You need a BC drivers license if you've been living in BC for 3 months.

Don't ask me how they know when you got here. Don't ask me what happens if you are here for 6 months (intending never to drive), then decide you are going to start driving. Don't ask me what if you leave the province and come back. I don't know!

Basically, the process is:

1. do your knowledge test
2. do your practical test
3. drive legally
   

But here are some details you will need for navigating these seemingly simple tasks:

1. Get an ORIGINAL letter from Vicroads (or RTA) stating the date of issue on your license. My victorian one didn't show an issue date. So the only way to prove I had 10 years driving experience was to get this original letter. A fax didn't cut it!
2. get the rules handbook from an ICBC outlet for free and study up http://www.canpages.ca/list.jsp?nt=C&na=icbc&ct=Greater%20Vancouver&pr=BC
   
3. Do the practice tests on the icbc website: http://icbc.com/
   
4. go to an ICBC office to sit your test - you need to pay a fee and bring your aussie lisence. It's one of those take-a-ticket-and-wait things, so if you're going on a Friday after work, be prepared to wait a few hours. They are a government organisation and don't give a SHIT about customer service. BE AWARE - you will need to forefeit your aussie lisence when you pass your knowledge test. So think about: whether you need to drive in the forthcoming few weeks, how you're going to get home from the icbc office, what you're gonna do for ID in the following few weeks.
   
5. Try to book in a driving exam on the ICBC site as quick as you can (because you'll be driving illegally until then!). You may only find availability in the immediate week, or in about 6 weeks time! The immediate spots are there due to cancellations.
6. Read the additional guidelines in a manual you can get from the ICBC site before your test. You might also like to go for a refresher with an instructor. http://www.canpages.ca/business/BC/greater-vancouver/driving-instruction/R4-264600.html
   
7. Go to an instructor NEAR the school you booked into and ask them to take you on the route the examiners take! You will learn some good pointers on right-turns-on-red, 360 checks b4 reversing, ending school zones, and other things that don't come naturally!
8. You will get your aussie lisence back when you pass your driving exam

Good luck! It might seem stressful but I found no problem with the process. A lot of blogs are overly cycnical of the process. But I think you only hear from the people who fail. My examiner was reasonable, polite and looked for signs of experience rather than looking for reasons to fail me!

hope this helps!