Basic requirements for admission include:

1. Photo ID with signature
2. Valid medical certificate
3. A valid permit (if a student) or licence
4. Letter of recommendation within last 30 days
5. Proof of relevant experience (35 hours flight time in airplanes)

CARs 401.26

NOTES: Training for the Private Pilot Licence [PPL] required 45 hours of training. This must include 17 hours of dual training with an instructor which include, 3 hours of dual XC, 5 hours of instrument training, and 5 hours of solo XC training, which includes a SOLO 150NM trip with at least 2 full stop landings, .

You are probably doing the maths and trying to calculate the required times and see that they do not add up to 45 hours. Why? 17 hours of dual instruction and 12 hours of solo training are the minimums for that requirement. That is only 29 hours. This means the remaining 16 hours can be made up of either dual or solo training. As stated above you will need a minimum of 35 hours before you can take the PPL flight test. You do not need to have passed the PPL written exam [PPAER] to be admitted to the PPL flight test. However, you will need to have passed it to be issued your Canadian Private Pilot Licence.

The PPL is your licence to fly! After successfully completing the requirements you are able to train for a night rating, a multi engine rating, an instrument rating, a VFR OTT rating, and a seaplane rating.