- There is no national driver's licence check. Each province and territory issues and verifies its own; ICBC, for example, publishes its official pages at icbc.com.
- CELPIP and IELTS offer verification services that organizations use with a registration number and PIN or a Test Report Form; IRCC says it verifies results submitted in Express Entry profiles.
- CNO strongly encourages employers to check every nurse in its public register, Find a Nurse; a doctored screenshot of that register has been used in a fraud case.
- IRCC says to check that an email sender's domain ends in .gc.ca or Canada.ca, and that it never uses free email services to contact you.
The route for each document
| Document | Official route | Our guide |
|---|---|---|
| Driver's licence | The issuing province or territory. For employers and others, ask the holder and use the agency's own process; Ontario's liquor regulator publishes a feature checklist for venue staff, and Alberta publishes its card's security features. | By province, fake licences |
| Identity card used to prove age | Look at the physical card, photo, dates, UV and raised features, as AGCO advises. | Fake ID |
| Canadian passport and its fees | The Government of Canada's passport pages on canada.ca; fees from 31 March 2026: $163.50 (10-year adult), $122.50 (5-year adult), $58.50 (child). | Passport scam sites |
| Language test result | CELPIP SIVS with registration number and PIN; IELTS Online Verification Service; IRCC verifies Express Entry results. | Checking results |
| Nurse | The provincial college's public register; in Ontario, CNO's Find a Nurse. | Fake nurses |
| International driving permit | CAA is the only issuer; $32 as of 1 December 2025. | IDP |
| Social Insurance Number | Service Canada's SIN program; always free. | SIN scams |
| Immigration representative | Must be licensed: a consultant, a lawyer or a Quebec notary; check with the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants or the law society. | Immigration fraud |
| Job offer under the TFW Program | The employer must ensure no recruitment fee is charged to the worker. | LMIA scams |
Is this message really from the agency?
| Check | Source |
|---|---|
| IRCC email: domain ends in .gc.ca or Canada.ca; not Gmail, Yahoo Mail or Hotmail. | IRCC |
| IRCC will not start a conversation on social media; check that a social account is verified. | IRCC |
| ICBC does not text about driving infractions or debt and does not ask you to pay through a text link. | ICBC |
| Service Canada does not ask for your SIN by phone unless you phoned them. | ESDC |
| A page asking you to pay should show the address you typed or bookmarked, with the padlock and https. | IRCC scam page |
Three rules that cover every case
- Go to the issuer yourself. Type or bookmark the address; do not follow an advert or a text.
- Verify at the source, not on the paper. A screenshot, a PDF and a printed code can all be faked. A lookup on the issuer's system cannot.
- Treat a request for payment through an unusual route as an answer. IRCC's list of what it never does is a good model: personal bank deposits, private money transfers, phone payments.
A short method for a document not listed here
- Find the issuer. Ask who creates the record: a province, a federal department, a test company, a college.
- Find the issuer's own page, by searching its name and choosing the address that belongs to the issuer, not an advert.
- Look for a verification route that works from the issuer's side: a public register, a verification service for organizations or a phone line.
- If no route exists, say so and ask the person to obtain a fresh copy from the issuer rather than relying on a copy.
What we could not check
We did not find a public tool for a member of the public to verify another person's driver's licence in any province, so we do not describe one. Verification for TEF Canada and TCF Canada results is not described because we did not open it. See how we research.
Frequently asked questions
How can I check if a Canadian driver's licence is real?
There is no national check. Compare the card with the issuing province's published features, and follow the agency's own process for employers. Ontario's liquor regulator lists UV, raised-text and number checks for venue staff.
How do I verify a nurse's registration?
Use the provincial college's public register. In Ontario that is the College of Nurses of Ontario's Find a Nurse, which CNO strongly encourages employers to use for every nurse.
How do I know an IRCC email is real?
IRCC says the sender's domain should end in .gc.ca or Canada.ca, and that IRCC never uses free email services such as Gmail, Yahoo Mail or Hotmail.
Where do I verify a language test result?
CELPIP's verification system and the IELTS Online Verification Service serve organizations; IRCC says it verifies the results you submit in your Express Entry profile.
Where do I apply for a passport?
Through the Government of Canada's pages on canada.ca. Fees since 31 March 2026 are $163.50 for a 10-year adult passport, $122.50 for five years and $58.50 for a child.
Sources and official links
- ServiceOntario
- AGCO: tips for checking ID
- Alberta: driver's licence security features
- Passport and travel document fee changes (in effect 31 March 2026)
- IRCC: Express Entry language test results
- CELPIP: Score and Identity Verification System
- IDP IELTS: beware of IELTS scams
- College of Nurses of Ontario: unregistered practitioners
- CAA: International Driving Permit
- Employment and Social Development Canada: protecting your Social Insurance Number
- IRCC: online and telephone immigration scams
- ESDC: program requirements for low-wage positions (recruitment fees)
- ICBC: warning customers about text message scam (3 September 2025)