Hunting guiding licence or certificate

[Guest truth70]

how do i obtain a guiding licence or certificate if i want to start up a outpost camp for hunting and fishing and where can i go to see if i want to obtain tags for this camp for bear moose deer etc. hunting off my property and crown land as i was hunting this year and the conservation officer asked me if i was guiding a friends father inlaw when he checked me out as he seen that i didn't have my gun out as it was still in the case........

[Guest MNR]

MNR Answer: To answer your question properly, we need to consider who you want to guide and what species of wildlife is being hunted.

The only persons legally required to employ a guide for hunting in Ontario are non-residents hunting for migratory birds in the Lake St. Clair area and for moose and deer in the territorial district of Rainy River. In those areas, a person can only guide a maximum of two hunters at a time. Guide licences are available from MNR offices for a fee of $7.75 and are only available to residents of Ontario or Canadian citizens.

With the guiding question out of the way, now let’s discuss starting a hunting and fishing outpost camp and tag allocations for moose, bear and deer.

Ontario’s Moose tag allocation system does provide a separate allocation of tags to the tourism industry. This allotment varies from Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) to WMU. In WMU 13 for example, only 1.6 per cent of the total allocation of the sustainable harvest goes to the tourism industry. It is virtually impossible to obtain any of this share of the allocation without buying an existing business. The Ontario Moose and Bear Allocation Committee, made up of private citizens oversees the distribution of the allocation. Non-residents must go through a registered tourist operator to hunt moose except in some WMUs if non-residents are landowners or have immediate relatives in Ontario who can apply in the moose draw.

Harvest of Black Bear by non-residents also requires the hunter to go through a registered tourist outfitter who is licensed to operate a Bear Management Area (BMA). Again there are exceptions for landowners and immediate relatives in some WMUs. These BMA areas are allocated to individuals through a competitive process which is again overseen by the Ontario Moose and Black Bear Allocation Committee. BMA operators cater almost entirely to non-residents and have harvest limits placed on them which are dependent on the size of their respective BMA.

There is no special allocation for white-tailed deer to the tourist industry. Non-residents can purchase deer licences (antlered) at any licence issuer and hunt where there is an open season for non-residents.

As for other wildlife species that the tourist industry caters to (wolf for example) there are no special requirements for the hunter to be accommodated by a registered tourist operator or to be guided.

If you wanted to cater to resident moose, deer, bear, wolf hunters (rent out your camp and provide guiding services to them) there wouldn’t be any permits needed from MNR. If you wanted to provide that service to residents but wanted to set up an outpost camp on Crown land, then you would need to obtain a Land Use Permit from MNR.

Ross Johnston

Community Liaison

Conservation Officer

Suite B001, 435 S. James St.

Thunder Bay, ON P7E 6S8

Telephone: 807-475-1521

Facsimile: 807-475-1527

Email: ross.johnston@ontario.ca

website: www.mnr.gov.on.ca