A Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Licensing a Boat in BC

licensing a boat in BC

If you own or are looking to own a pleasure craft, then you’re probably aware of the importance of licensing a boat in BC. This will, after all, provide you with a proof of ownership at an official capacity and a permit of sorts to operate without the need for registration. Keeping your license valid is a process in and of itself, so let’s go over some of its different components.

Licensing a Boat in BC

So, when will you need to be licensing a boat in BC? There are very specific guidelines for this sort of situation. If you have a pleasure craft equipped with motors of 10 horsepower (7.5 kilowatts) or more, even if it is a personal watercraft, that is maintained or operated in Canada, you will need to obtain the corresponding license. This way, you can avoid having to register the vessel and still be able to operate it in accordance with Transport Canada. You can conveniently do this through our platform.

Getting a Duplicate

If something happens to your license, be it that you misplaced it or it was damaged, you will need to replace it. Don’t worry, the license is still technically valid, but you will have to get an official replacement in order to continue to operate properly. You won’t have to go through the whole process all over again, but you will have to submit the duplicate application, which you can also find here on our website.

Updating the License

Did you recently change your address or the boat’s hailing port? Do you need to update one of the vessel’s specifications? Well, your pleasure craft license will need to be updated in order to reflect. However, this form cannot help you with a transfer of ownership, that will be a different process altogether. But if you need to change anything related to licensing a boat in BC, we’ll have the way for you to do it.

Transferring the License

If a boat has changed owners, the new one will not necessarily have to go through the process of licensing a boat in BC all over again. At least, they won’t have to do it if the vessel was previously licensed already. You can simply submit the transfer of license form, which will update it in order to officially reflect the new owner of the boat. This will also apply when you are adding or removing owners from the license, so be sure to keep that in mind as well.

Applying for Renewal

The renewal form will be of great use when your license is soon expiring. Even though it’s always good to do this kind of thing in advance, you won’t be able to do this until you are at least three months away from the expiration date. Just don’t let your pleasure craft license expire! Especially when you have access to convenient renewal tools here on our platform. Here you can easily submit the forms for licensing a boat in BC. You can do that and more here on our website. Just give us a call at +1 (800) 419-9569 or email us at info@canadianvesselregistry.ca if you need any help