Transport Canada is proposing changes to the Pleasure Craft Licensing program. This document describes the context, policy rationale and analyses that informed the proposed changes.
Related acts and regulations: Canada Shipping Act, 2001, Small Vessel Regulations (SOR/2010-91)
On this page
- Executive summary
- 1.0 Purpose
- 2.0 Issue
- 3.0 Objective
- 4.0 Current environment
- 5.0 Fee modernization at Transport Canada
- 6.0 Cost analysis
- 7.0 Pricing analysis and proposed fees
- 8.0 Proposed regulatory amendments
- 9.0 Service standards
- 10.0 Implementation
- 11.0 Stakeholder Consultation and Engagement
- Annex A – International comparison of fees charged to receive an identification document for a pleasure craft
Executive summary
A Pleasure Craft Licence is a document issued by Transport Canada. Each licence includes a unique licence number. The number identifies the vessel and the licence holder, and gives search and rescue personnel access to important information in an emergency. Transport Canada's Pleasure Craft Licensing Program develops and maintains the regulations, standards, policies and guidelines related to licensing Canadian pleasure craft.
Currently, there are over 2.7 million licences in TC's database, but many contain outdated information. This makes it hard to identify a craft's owner in an emergency or when it is necessary to take action on wrecked or abandoned vessels.
While over 100,000 pleasure craft licensing service requests are processed each year, the program doesn't charge fees. This means that the program is funded solely by Canadian taxpayers.
Transport Canada proposes to introduce a service fee of $15 to process an application to obtain, renew, transfer, or duplicate a Pleasure Craft Licence. The fee will be included in the Small Vessel Regulations. These regulations will also be updated to give TC expanded authority to suspend or cancel a licence. Also, the validity period for all licences will be reduced to 5 years, regardless of when they were issued. This will help keep the licence database up-to-date. It will also strengthen vessel owner identification, accountability and compliance with safety and environmental regulations.
Analysis shows that it costs Transport Canada about $15.55 to process one pleasure craft licence transaction. The proposed fee of $15 was set by considering this transaction cost, as well as how licensing services benefit individuals, what other countries charge for similar services, and the economic profile of pleasure craft owners in Canada.
The introduction of a service fee for pleasure craft licensing will allow Transport Canada to balance the financial burden of the program's costs between the public and those who use pleasure craft licensing services. This project is part of Transport Canada's plan to modernize transportation laws, regulations, fees and services.
1.0 Purpose
This document is a Fee Proposal outlining the introduction of a fee regime for Transport Canada's (TC) Pleasure Craft Licensing program, and describes the context, policy rationale, costing and pricing analyses that have been considered in its development.
The Fee Proposal serves as a tool for engagement with Canadians, particularly pleasure craft owners who use TC's licensing services and other program stakeholders. Comments on the content of this document can be submitted to TC Let's Talk Transportation website.
TC will consider all comments received on this Fee Proposal, and expects to pre-publish the proposed regulatory changes in the Canada Gazette, Part I, in spring/summer 2021.
2.0 Issue
Transport Canada's Pleasure Craft Licensing program is responsible for developing and maintaining regulations, standards, policies and guidelines related to licensing of Canadian pleasure craft. A Pleasure Craft Licence (PCL) is a document with a unique licence number which serves as identification for the vessel. Currently, there are over 2.7 million PCLs in the Pleasure Craft Electronic Licensing System (PCELS), but many of these contain outdated information, making it challenging to identify a pleasure craft's current owner in an emergency, and difficult for regulatory bodies to take action on problem vessels such as those left wrecked or abandoned. As well, while over 100,000 transactions are processed each year, there are no fees associated with the program so all administration costs are covered by Canadian taxpayers.
3.0 Objective
Under this Fee Proposal, TC proposes to introduce a single, fixed fee to process an application to obtain, renew, transfer, or duplicate a PCL. This new service fee will shift the financial burden of the program's service delivery costs from Canadian taxpayers to the pleasure craft owners who benefit from the program. As described below in Section 8, additional regulatory changes will be introduced alongside the service fee, such as a new 5-year licence validity period, which will improve the accuracy of the vessel ownership information in the PCELS.
4.0 Current environment
4.1 Program profile
Pleasure craft licensing is an integral part of TC's overall Marine Safety and Security program. As noted, a PCL is a document with a unique licence number for a pleasure craft which serves as identification for the vessel and allows search and rescue personnel to access important information in an emergency. The PCL also supports vessel owner accountability and compliance with safety and environmental regulations. The PCL must be carried on board the vessel at all times and the number must be displayed on both sides of the boat's bow.
Currently, pleasure craft licensing requirements apply to vessels powered by an engine of 10 horsepower (7.5 kW) or more which are not otherwise registered with TC in the Canadian Register of Vessels or the Small Vessel Register. Unlike registration, licensing does not provide title (i.e., legal proof of ownership) to the vessel. However, a sales contract for a pleasure craft would offer such proof. A vessel used for pleasure, recreation, or daily living is a pleasure craft.
PCLs can be obtained online through the PCELS, or by traditional mail. Since 2010, PCLs have been issued with a 10 year validity period. Licences issued prior to 2010 had a lifetime validity.
A PCL should not be confused with a Pleasure Craft Operator Card (PCOC). A PCOC must be carried on board and shows that the operator understands basic rules and how to safely operate a boat. In these ways, a PCOC is similar to a driver's licence. Meanwhile, as mentioned, a PCL serves primarily to identify pleasure craft licence holders and their vessels.
Pleasure craft licensing also supports enforcement of The Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act (WAHVA), which is a key measure under the Government's Oceans Protection Plan that aims to protect Canada's waterways and marine ecosystem. The Act establishes a compliance and enforcement regime for wrecked, abandoned and hazardous vessels and strengthens vessel owner responsibility and accountability. PCL data is used to identify owners of wrecked and abandoned pleasure craft. However, law enforcement agencies across Canada have told TC that enhancements to the licensing program are needed to improve the quality and accuracy of vessel owner information in the PCELS. The long or nonexistent renewal frequency for 10-year and lifetime PCLs, respectively, mean that vessel owner details can easily become outdated.
4.2 Statutory framework
The Canada Shipping Act, 2001 provides the authority to make regulations respecting fees for services provided in administering the Act. Specifically, Paragraph 35(1)(g) of the Act states that the Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, make regulations and set fees for pleasure craft licensing services. Part 10 of the Act regulates pleasure craft licensing and safety, while sections 100 to 112 of the Small Vessel Regulations (SVR) set out more detailed pleasure craft regulatory requirements. The proposed fee to obtain, renew, transfer, or duplicate a PCL will be added to the SVR.
4.3 Existing fees
As noted, there are currently no fees being charged for licensing services provided to pleasure craft owners, and Canadian taxpayers are covering the full cost of providing these services.
5.0 Fee modernization at Transport Canada
Some TC services have been provided to individuals and industry free of charge while fees for other services have not been updated in over 20 years and therefore do not reflect the real cost to TC to deliver those services. As a result, Canadian taxpayers are bearing a high proportion of the costs of providing services to transportation stakeholders.
The Service Fees Act (SFA) was enacted in 2017 and provides an updated legal framework governing fee setting. The SFA represents the Government's commitment to modernizing its services and delivering value to Canadians. The SFA applies to all TC fees that currently exist and those that TC plans to introduce.
Over the next few years, TC will:
- introduce new fees
- increase existing fees
- simplify fee structures
Fee modernization will be achieved primarily through regulatory changes. It is part of a broader plan to:
- modernize laws, regulations, rules and standards
- ensure TC continues to uphold safety, security, and environmental objectives
- ensure TC can continue to support innovation in the transportation sector
6.0 Cost analysis
TC undertook a costing exercise to estimate the cost of delivering pleasure craft licensing services. The exercise adhered to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat's (TBS) Guide to Cost Estimating and followed TC's Guideline on Costing for Fee Modernizationto arrive at credible cost estimates.
6.1 Determining full cost
Costing for cost recovery purposes requires calculation of the “full cost” of delivering services. According to the Financial Administration Act and applicable TBS guidance, full cost is the upper legal limit that can be recovered through service fees, and represents the departure point for pricing decisions.
A full cost estimate comprises all relevant resource costs incurred to provide a service, including direct and indirect costs, specifically:
- employee salaries
- operating and maintenance
- professional services, including payments to service delivery partner organizations
- amortization of capital assets
- internal services and program support
- centrally managed costs, such as employee benefit plans
- services provided by other departments, such as office accommodations
TC developed a costing model that captures these cost elements and applies principles of activity-based costing to assign costs to activities and services provided by the department based on their use of resources. For PCL services, the cost estimate is built on a combination of historical program delivery expenditures and future spending plans for administration of the modernized program.
The results of the analysis indicate that once fees are in place, the average full cost of delivering the Pleasure Craft Licensing program will be an estimated $10.75 million per year. This figure represents the annual average program cost over a 15-year period, from 2022–2023 when fees will be introduced, to 2036–2037. Year to year, program cost estimates fluctuate in parallel with the varying number of PCL transactions that will be processed. This variation in transaction volumes is a result of the staggered basis by which existing lifetime and 10-year validity PCLs will be transitioned to the new 5-year validity regime, as discussed further below in Section 8, Proposed Regulatory Amendments.
The average annual full cost of administering the Pleasure Craft Licensing program ($10.75 million) was divided by the estimated annual average number of PCL transactions (about 690,000) to calculate the cost per unit to process one PCL transaction ($15.55). This unit cost applies to all transactions (new, duplicate, renewal, and transfer of a PCL) as there is minimal difference in the effort required to process these different types of requests.
The unit cost of $15.55 represents the starting point for pricing, however other considerations have been taken into account when setting the final proposed price, as described below.
7.0 Pricing analysis and proposed fees
7.1 Pricing analysis
TC applied a series of pricing considerations to determine the proposed fee levels. The factors considered include:
- Public-Private Benefit Assessment: Determines the level of benefit that accrues to users of pleasure craft licensing services versus the Canadian public generally
- International comparison: Examines comparable jurisdictions to see what, if any, fees are charged for similar services under other regimes
- Impact on users of pleasure craft licensing services: Assesses the impact fees would have on current and prospective PCL holders
The results of the pricing analysis indicated that setting fee levels at a rate that could recover up to 100 percent of program costs was appropriate. How each pricing factor was considered is described below.
7.1.1 Public-Private Benefit Assessment
Determining what constitutes public benefit vs. private benefit is fundamental to decisions regarding what services should be subject to fees and what the cost recovery rate (the percentage of the costs paid by the user) should be.
A Public-Private Benefit Assessment (PPBA) was conducted using the PPBA tool developed by TBS. The PPBA tool estimates the degree to which a service provides private benefits to the requestor, above and beyond those enjoyed by the general public.
The PPBA tool indicated that 100 percent of the benefits of TC's pleasure craft licensing services accrue to the PCL holder. In particular, PCL holders enjoy the ability to lawfully participate in a leisure activity. They also benefit from improved safety since their vessels are easily identified in an emergency. Without giving consideration to any other factors, when 100 percent of the benefit of a service accrues to the service recipient, it is reasonable to expect that they would pay a high percentage of the costs associated with providing that service.
7.1.2 International comparison
Comparing pleasure craft licensing approaches between countries is challenging because of differences in the types of services provided and how the services are delivered and governed. There are no international guidelines for the licensing of pleasure craft so each country sets its own requirements. As a result, the size of craft required to obtain a licence can vary as can the cost to obtain the licence. In addition, pleasure craft licensing is a federal responsibility in Canada, while other countries tend to administer similar programs at the provincial or state level, and most of these jurisdictions provide documents that serve to both identify the vessel and to establish title to the vessel. As noted, in Canada a PCL is a means of identification only.
Nonetheless, many U.S. states and Australian territories have pleasure craft licensing / registration regimes with similarities to the Canadian program, particularly with respect to charging fees to receive an identification document for a pleasure craft. Seven of the most comparable regimes are described below. Additional details are presented in Annex A.
Florida (U.S.A.)
The State of Florida requires the registration and titling of any vessel equipped with a motor and any non-motor-powered vessel larger than 16 feet in length intended for use on public waterways. A vessel registration acts like a Canadian PCL as it serves to identify the vessel. Registrations can be renewed for either one-year or two-year periods, and vessels must be registered and visibly numbered within 30 days of purchase. The fees charged for registration vary from $5.50 to $189.75 USD based on the length of the vessel. Reduced registration fees apply to recreational vessels equipped with an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) or when the owner possesses a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB). A portion of the registration fee helps the state protect its water resources (including removal of abandoned vessels) and funds boating amenities. Counties may also add an additional surcharge on registration for removal of abandoned vessels and other activities to improve boating. An additional fee is charged for titling the vessel.
Minnesota (U.S.A.)
The State of Minnesota requires the licensing of all motorized and non-motorized vessels, except for non-motorized vessels of ten feet or less in length. Vessels of more than sixteen feet in length are also required to be titled. Vessel licences are valid for three years. Licensing fees range from $10.50-$90.00 USD based on several factors, of which vessel length is the most significant, plus an issuing fee of $8.50 USD. A surcharge of $10.60 USD is also applied which funds programs that prevent and/or reduce environmental and economic harm caused by invasive species. An additional fee is charged for titling the vessel.
Michigan (U.S.A.)
The State of Michigan requires the registration of nearly all motorized watercraft used on the state's public and private waterways. Non-motorized vessels used for commercial purposes are also subject to registration, and all vessels 20 feet long or longer or which have a permanently affixed engine must also be titled. The fees charged for registration range from $5.00-$448.00 USD based on the type and length of the vessel, and it is valid for 3 years. An additional fee is charged for titling the vessel.
California (U.S.A.)
The State of California requires the registration and titling of almost all vessels; some exceptions include boats propelled manually and non-motorized sailboats of eight feet or less in length. Vessel registrations are valid for two years. The fees charged for registration vary from $19.00 to $93.00 USD depending on whether or not the application was submitted in an odd or even numbered year and whether the application is from a resident or non-resident. California allocates some revenue from registration fees to the abatement of abandoned pleasure craft. Additional charges apply for vessels using alternative fuel or technology, quagga mussel infestation prevention, and for vessel titling.
Wisconsin (U.S.A.)
The State of Wisconsin requires registration of most recreational vessels; exceptions include boats propelled manually and non-motorized sailboats of 12 feet or less in length. Vessel registrations are valid for three years. The fees charged for registration vary from $17.00 to $105.00 USD depending on the size of the boat and whether or not it has a motor. Vessels over 16 feet must also be titled and a separate fee applies. An additional fee is charged for titling the vessel.
Washington (U.S.A.)
The State of Washington requires registration of most recreational vessels; exceptions include human-powered vessels and vessels less than 16 feet long with a motor of 10 horsepower or less (when vessels are used on non-federal waters only). Vessel registrations must be renewed annually. The registration fee ($10.50 USD) is supplemented by a number of additional fees, including a $5 USD derelict vessel and invasive species removal fee and a $1 USD derelict vessel removal surcharge, that are charged with each vessel registration (including renewal). In addition to the registration and related fees, Washington boaters are subject to an annual excise tax at a rate of 0.5 percent of the fair market value of the vessel. An additional fee is charged for titling the vessel.
Australia
Australia also requires registration of most powered vessels. Like the U.S., Australian vessel registration is handled at the state level. As detailed in Annex A, the types of vessels requiring registration vary from state to state, but overall, the Australian regime requires more types and sizes of vessels to be registered compared to the Canadian program. An Australian vessel licence or registration is valid for one year, and in all jurisdictions the price to licence a vessel for one year is higher than what TC proposes to charge for a PCL every five years.
International comparison summary
A direct comparison between TC's proposed PCL fee and licensing fees elsewhere is challenging since other jurisdictions require licensing or registration for different types and lengths of vessels, have varied validity periods, and sometimes include vessel titling in the fee. However, even before considering validity periods, TC's proposed PCL fee is already smaller than the comparable fee for all but the smallest vessels. TC is proposing a 5 year validity for a PCL, meaning Canadians would pay renewal fees less frequently than pleasure craft owners elsewhere. Overall, it is clear that the proposed PCL fee would be less expensive than the comparable fee in all of the regimes examined when the renewal frequency is considered.
7.1.3 Stakeholder impact analysis
A primary goal of TC's fee modernization initiative is to have those who benefit the most from services pay a greater share of the costs. This goal must be balanced with TC's role as a regulator and economic enabler. The fees proposed for the Pleasure Craft Licensing program were developed by taking into consideration pleasure craft owners' ability to pay fees.
Current and prospective PCL holders are the main stakeholder group that will be impacted by the proposed fees. As of April 2020, approximately 2.7 million pleasure craft are licensed in Canada. Though PCLs are issued to requestors nationwide, a large share of licenses are associated to vessels in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.
Other program stakeholders include boating safety organizations such as the Canadian Safe Boating Council, manufacturer organizations such as the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA), marine dealers/retailers, training organizations such as Boat Smart, local authorities, and marine enforcement agencies.
The economic footprint of Canada's recreational boating industry is significant. According to the NMMA, in 2015 about 12.4 million Canadians (43% of the population) participated in boating in some capacity. The association also estimates that the recreational boating industry contributes over $5.5 billion to Canada's GDP annually, and is responsible for sustaining more than 75,000 jobs.
The recreational boating industry also has a positive impact on related industries, including marinas, fishing, outfitting, and tourism. The NMMA estimates that in 2016, Canadians spent a total of $5.7 billion on boating trips within Canada and foreign visitors spent an additional $160 million. The majority of this spending went towards the food and beverage, transportation, and accommodations sectors. About three-quarters of the spending occurred in Ontario, Québec, and British Columbia, which corresponds to the provinces with the most PCLs.
While the coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted many facets of the Canadian economy, anecdotal evidence suggests that Canadians have increased their participation in recreational boating in 2020. Notably, TC has recorded a significant increase in the number of people seeking to obtain their PCOC. Between April and June, during the height of the pandemic, about 95,000 Canadians successfully passed a boating safety course and were issued a PCOC. This is approximately double the number of PCOCs issued during these months in a typical year.
A studyFootnote 1 commissioned by TC found that introducing modest fees for pleasure craft would have no discernible impact on boat owners' purchase of pleasure craft or on the continued operation of existing pleasure craft. The coronavirus pandemic does not alter this conclusion. TC's proposed PCL fee of $15 is minimal relative to the cost of purchasing, operating and maintaining a pleasure craft. Therefore, the introduction of this fee is not expected to have a negative impact on the economic circumstances of pleasure craft owners or related industries.
Other program stakeholders, such as law enforcement agencies and boating safety organizations, can expect positive impacts from the change to a 5 year PCL validity period, as the increased renewal frequency will allow vessel owner details to be kept up-to-date in the PCELS.
The introduction of the new PCL fee may also coincide with the launch of a Vessel Remediation Fund (Fund), financed by vessel owners, to address abandoned and wrecked vessels in Canadian waters. This Fund, which was announced as part of the National Strategy on Abandoned and Wrecked Vessels under the Oceans Protection Plan, could be financed by a modest regulatory surcharge created under WAHVA and would be separate from the new PCL service fee. This is similar to the approach adopted by the State of Washington and other jurisdictions in the United States. TC is currently examining options, and plans to engage with stakeholders in the coming months on a more concrete proposal, which would include an assessment of stakeholder impacts.
7.2 Proposed fee
TC considered the factors described above to arrive at the proposed fee of $15 to process an application to obtain a new PCL or to renew, transfer, or duplicate a PCL. The fee reflects TC's level of effort to provide licensing services, the benefits that accrue to boat owners, and their ability to absorb this new fee which is lower than comparable fees in other jurisdictions. Since it costs TC about $15.55 to process a PCL transaction, the $15 fee represents a 96% cost recovery rate. Considering the 5-year validity period, the $15 fee works out to just $3 per year.
No fee is proposed to make changes to personal information (e.g. change of address; change of name) or to cancel a PCL. This will ensure that vessel owners are not discouraged from keeping their contact and vessel information up-to-date.
8.0 Proposed regulatory amendments
In addition to the introduction of a fee regime for PCL, other regulatory amendments are proposed to improve the quality of the information in the PCELS and strengthen program administration, including improved enforcement of, and compliance with, the SVR and WAHVA.
Proposed regulatory amendments include:
- Bringing grandfathered PCLs that have no expiry date into a five-year validity regime and reducing the ten-year validity period for PCLs to five years:
- for existing 10-year PCLs, the new 5-year validity period will take effect at the end of the current validity period
- for existing lifetime PCLs, the new 5-year validity period will be phased-in on a staggered basis over 6 years, between 2022 to 2023 and 2027 to 2028
- TC will begin sending reminder notices to PCL holders to let them know renewal is approaching, including for existing 10-year and lifetime PCLs when they are due to be transitioned into the new five-year validity regime
- Expanding the application of the SVR to include:
- all pleasure craft, regardless of length, equipped with motors of 10 horsepower (7.5 kilowatts) or more, including personal watercraft, which are principally maintained or operated in Canada
- all pleasure craft (including all power-driven and sail-alone vessels) above 6 metres in length, with the exception of human-powered boats (e.g. canoes, kayaks)
- Reducing the timeframe for owners to notify of a name or address change from 90 days to 30 days, and specify 30 days for the buyer to notify of a sale or transfer of a vessel.
- Allow for the easier cancellation of PCLs.
9.0 Service standards
Currently, TC partners with a service delivery organization to process applications received online or by mail for new PCLs, and for requests to renew, transfer, or duplicate a PCL. The existing service standard is that a new, renewed, transferred, or duplicate PCL will be e-mailed or mailed within five (5) business days of receipt of the application, provided the application is complete and all supporting documentation is attached.
TC proposes to retain the current service standard after the introduction of fees, as shown below. TC will continue to e-mail PCLs to requestors who applied online, and mail PCLs to requestors whose applications were received through traditional mail.
| Services and fee | Proposed service standard |
|---|---|
|
Fee ($15) to process an application for a new, renewed, transferred, or duplicate Pleasure Craft Licence (Service standard type: timeliness standard) |
Process applications received and send the licence within five (5) business days of receipt of a fully completed application, including all required supporting documentation |
At present, in accordance with the SFA and the Low Materiality Fees Regulations, since the proposed fee is under $51 it would not be considered a “material fee.” This means that TC would not need to create formal service standards with respect of the fee, or remit a portion of the fee in cases where the service standard is not met.
TC will nonetheless strive to adhere to the service standard described above, which will also ensure compliance with the requirements of the TB Policy and Directive on Service and Digital. In the future, should the Department obtain greater flexibility to designate fees as material and pursue this designation for the PCL service fee, remissions would take place in accordance with TC's Remission Policy and the TB Directive on Charging and Special Financial Authorities.
10.0 Implementation
Guidance and explanatory materials will be developed for both TC staff and the pleasure craft boating community to ensure that the new fee is applied consistently across Canada, and to ensure that stakeholders can clearly understand how and when the fee will be applied and what their responsibilities and liabilities will be under the revised SVR. These materials will be developed based in part on feedback received from stakeholders in response to this Fee Proposal as well as throughout the regulatory process necessary to amend the SVR. The guidance material will be ready before the new fee comes into force.
Since the proposed fee would not be considered a “material fee,” it would not be adjusted annually based on the Consumer Price Index published by Statistics Canada. However, if in the future the PCL fee is designated as material, pricing could be adjusted automatically every year.
11.0 Stakeholder Consultation and Engagement
Over the past several years, TC frequently indicated to stakeholders, including at the Canadian Marine Advisory Council (CMAC) and the National Recreational Boating Advisory Council (NRBAC) meetings that the PCL program would eventually be subject to service fees.
Throughout 2017 and 2018, with the support of the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), TC also led cross country stakeholder engagement sessions on the implementation of the National Strategy on Abandoned and Wrecked Vessels, under the Oceans Protection Plan. At these sessions, stakeholders called for more proactive federal measures to prevent and remove problem vessels. This included strengthening vessel owner responsibility and accountability through enhanced owner identification systems. Law enforcement agencies across Canada have also confirmed in consultations that enhancements to the PCL system are needed to improve the quality and accuracy of vessel owner information.
While this fee proposal focuses on the new PCL service fee, it also considers the broader context of the work being done under WAHVA, such as the potential creation of a new Vessel Remediation Fund, which would be used to clean up abandoned and wrecked vessels left in Canadian waters.
TC will deploy efforts to seek feedback from the general public and pleasure craft owners. To enable comments from the general public, this fee proposal will be published on Let's Talk Transportation webpage and the consultations will be promoted on social media.
TC also acknowledges that stakeholder groups (e.g., the pleasure craft industry, non-governmental organizations, recreational sectors, other levels of government, and law enforcement agencies), as well as Indigenous communities and groups other than PCL users, may be interested in the proposed PCL fee. As such, TC will use a variety of means to consult impacted and interested stakeholders, including virtual face-to-face engagement sessions and webinars. The date and time of these webinars will be advertised on the Let's Talk Transportation webpage in advance.
The views of pleasure craft owners and other interested parties will be taken into account and reflected in the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement that will be published with the proposed regulations in the Canada Gazette, Part I, in spring/summer 2021. It is expected that the new fee regime will come into force in fall 2022.
Annex A – International comparison of fees charged to receive an identification document for a pleasure craft
- For jurisdictions with a separate fee for vessel titling, titling fees are not shown. Often, fees cover both registration/licensing and titling together
- Fees listed for states in the U.S.A. are in USD
| Locale | Fees | Validity period |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (proposed) |
|
5 years (proposed) |
| Florida (U.S.A) |
|
1 year or 2 years |
| Minnesota (U.S.A) |
|
3 years |
| Michigan (U.S.A) |
|
3 years |
| California (U.S.A) |
|
2 years |
| Wisconsin (U.S.A) |
|
3 years |
| Washington (U.S.A) |
|
1 year |
| Australia |
|
1 year |