British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996 (SOR/96-137)

1 [Repealed, SOR/2017-58, s. 35]

Interpretation

• 2 (1) The definitions in this subsection apply in these Regulations.

  Act

  Act means the Fisheries Act. (Loi)

  angling

  angling means fishing with a hook and line, with or without a rod. It does not include fishing with a set line. (pêche à la ligne)

  Area

  Area has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007. (secteur)

  artificial fly

  artificial fly means

  • (a) in non-tidal waters, a single-pointed hook that is dressed only with fur, feathers, hair, textiles, tinsel, wire or any combination of those materials and to which no external weight or external attracting device is attached; and

  • (b) in tidal waters, a hook, or two hooks tied in tandem, dressed only with fur, feathers, hair, textiles, tinsel, wire or any combination of those materials. (mouche artificielle)

  day

  day means a calendar day. (jour ou journée)

  fin fish

  fin fish means all fish other than crustaceans, echinoderms, molluscs, shellfish and marine mammals. (poisson à nageoires)

  fly fishing

  fly fishing means angling with a line to which only an artificial fly is attached. (pêche à la mouche)

  foul hook

  foul hook means to hook a fish in any part of its body other than the mouth. (casaquer)

  gill net

  gill net has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993. (filet maillant)

  hatchery trout

  hatchery trout means a trout of any kind that has a healed scar in place of the adipose fin. (truite d’élevage)

  hatchery chinook salmon

  hatchery chinook salmon means a chinook salmon that has a healed scar in place of the adipose, pelvic or pectoral fin, or in place of a maxillary. (saumon quinnat d’élevage)

  hatchery coho salmon

  hatchery coho salmon means a coho salmon that has a healed scar in place of the adipose, pelvic or pectoral fin, or in place of a maxillary. (saumon coho d’élevage)

  kokanee

  kokanee means a land-locked sockeye salmon. (kokani)

  management unit

  management unit or M.U. means an area designated as a management unit in section 2 of the Management Unit Regulation made pursuant to the Province’s Wildlife Act. (zone d’aménagement ou Z.A.)

  mesh size

  mesh size has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993. (maillage)

  natural bait

  natural bait means any foodstuff or natural substance other than wood, cotton, wool, hair, fur or feathers. It does not include fin fish other than roe. (appât naturel)

  non-tidal waters

  non-tidal waters eans the waters of the Province other than tidal waters. (eaux sans marée)

  overall length

  overall length with respect to a fish, means the distance measured from the tip of the nose to the fork of the tail or, where there is no fork, to the tip of the tail. (longueur totale)

  Province

  Province means the Province of British Columbia. (province)

  Region

  Region means a region as described in section 3 of the Hunting Regulation made pursuant to the Province’s Wildlife Act. (Région)

  ring net

  ring net has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993. (bolinche)

  salmon

  salmon means a chinook salmon, a chum salmon, a coho salmon, a pink salmon or a sockeye salmon other than a kokanee. (saumon)

  set line

  set line means a fishing line that is left unattended in the water. (ligne fixe)

  spear fishing

  spear fishing means fishing with a spear or an arrow that is propelled by a spring, an elastic band, compressed air or a bow or by hand. (pêche au harpon)

  sport fishing

  sport fishing means fishing for recreational purposes. (pêche sportive)

  steelhead

  steelhead, in waters where anadromous rainbow trout are found, means a rainbow trout that is greater than 50 cm in overall length. (truite arc-en-ciel anadrome)

  stream

  stream means a watercourse formed by the perennial or intermittent flow of water between continuous, definable banks and includes a river. (ruisseau)

  Subarea

  Subarea has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007. (sous-secteur)

  surfline

  surfline has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007. (ligne de démarcation)

  tidal portion of the Fraser River

  tidal portion of the Fraser River means the following Subareas or portions of Subareas:

  • (a) Subarea 29-11 and Subareas 29-13 to 29-17;

  • (b) the portion of Subarea 29-9 bounded on the west by a line from a fishing boundary sign near the entrance to Canoe Passage, thence to a fishing boundary sign on Westham Island, thence following the westerly shoreline of Westham Island and Reifel Island to Pelly Point on Reifel Island, thence to Garry Point on Lulu Island; and

  • (c) the portion of Subarea 29-12 bounded on the west by a line from the most southwesterly point of Sea Island, thence following the westerly shoreline of that island to the Iona Island Road Causeway, thence following that causeway and continuing in a straight line in a northerly direction to a fishing boundary sign on the north shore of Iona Island, thence in a straight line in a northerly direction to a fishing boundary sign on the mainland. (partie à marée du fleuve Fraser)

  tidal waters

  tidal waters means the waters of the Areas set out in Schedule 2 to the Pacific Fishery Management Area Regulations, 2007. (eaux à marée)

  trout

  trout means brook trout, brown trout, cutthroat trout, Dolly Varden, lake trout, rainbow trout or steelhead. (truite)

  wild chinook salmon

  wild chinook salmon means a chinook salmon that is not a hatchery chinook salmon. (saumon quinnat sauvage)

  wild coho salmon

  wild coho salmon means a coho salmon that is not a hatchery coho salmon. (saumon coho sauvage)

  wild trout

  wild trout means a trout that is not a hatchery trout. (truite sauvage)

  year

  year means a period beginning on April 1 and ending on March 31. (année)

• (2) A reference in these Regulations to a species of fish by its common name as set out in column I of an item of Schedule I shall be construed as a reference to the species of fish whose scientific name is set out in column II of that item.

• (3) A reference in these Regulations to a measurement of mesh size, depth, length or any other dimension of a net shall be construed as a reference to a measurement taken when the net is wet.

Application

• 3 (1) These Regulations apply in respect of sport fishing in the Canadian fisheries waters of the Pacific Ocean and of the Province.

• (2) These Regulations do not apply in respect of fishing in waters to which the National Parks of Canada Fishing Regulations apply.

• (3) These Regulations do not apply in respect of fishing in the Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site.

• (4) These Regulations do not apply to fishing and related activities carried out under the authority of a licence issued under the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations.

General

4 Subject to these Regulations, no person shall molest or injure fish.

Protected Species

5 No person shall fish for, or catch and retain, any species of fish set out in the table to this section.

Gear Restrictions

• 6 (1) Subject to subsection (2), no person shall angle with more than one fishing line

  • (a) in any lake or stream; or

  • (b) for white sturgeon.

• (2) A person who is alone in a boat may angle with two fishing lines in a lake.

7 No person shall angle with a fishing line to which is attached a weight that is greater than one kilogram.

• 8 (1) Subject to subsections (2) to (4), no person shall angle with a fishing line to which more than one hook, artificial lure or artificial fly is attached.

• (2) A person may angle in the tidal portion of the Fraser River with two hooks, artificial lures or artificial flies, attached to a fishing line.

• (2.1) No person shall angle in the tidal portion of the Fraser River with a fishing line to which a barbed hook is attached.

• (3) Subject to subsection (4), a person may angle in tidal waters with any number of hooks attached to a fishing line if the hooks are used in combination to hold a single piece of bait.

• (4) A person who is angling in tidal waters for herring, northern anchovy, Pacific sand lance or squid may use any number of hooks on a fishing line.

9 No person shall fish with a dip net unless

• (a) it is hung on a frame that measures no more than 90 cm in its greatest dimension;

• (b) the frame is attached to a handle; and

• (c) the bottom of the dip net is closed to form a bag that is no longer than 1.5 times the greatest dimension of the frame.

Prohibited Methods

• 10 (1) No person shall

  • (a) use a light in any manner to attract fish, unless the light is submerged and attached to a fishing line within 1 m of the fish hook;

  • (b) catch or attempt to catch fish with snares; or

  • (c) wilfully foul hook or attempt to foul hook any fish other than herring, northern anchovy, Pacific sand lance and squid.

• (2) No person who accidentally foul hooks a fish in a lake or stream shall retain the fish.

Angling from a Vessel

11 No person shall angle from a vessel that is equipped with a motor in the waters set out in column I of an item of Schedule II situated in the M.U. set out in column II of that item during the period set out in column III of that item.

12 No person shall angle from a vessel in the waters set out in column I of an item of Schedule III situated in the M.U. set out in column II of that item during the period set out in column III of that item.

Possession

• 13 (1) No person shall possess more fish of a species, other than halibut, except at the person’s ordinary residence, than twice the daily quota for fish of that species prescribed by these Regulations.

• (2) No person shall possess more than 3 halibut, except at the person’s ordinary residence.

14 No person on board a vessel shall possess any halibut taken by sport fishing if there are any other fish on board the vessel that are destined for sale, trade or barter.

14.1 No person shall possess female Dungeness, red rock or king crab.

PART IFishing in Tidal Waters

Application

15 This Part applies to fishing in tidal waters.

16 The definitions in this section apply in this Part.

conservation stamp

conservation stamp means a stamp issued under section 17 that bears the words “salmon conservation/conservation du saumon” and the year for which the conservation stamp is valid. (timbre de conservation)

licence

licence means a tidal waters sport fishing licence issued under section 17. (permis)

Licences and Conservation Stamps

17 The Minister may issue a licence or a conservation stamp to a person on request and on payment of the applicable fee set out in the table to this section.

• NOTE: 

  For the purposes of this table, resident means a person who normally resides in Canada.

• 18 (1) No person shall

  • (a) fish unless the person holds a licence; or

  • (b) catch and retain salmon unless the person holds a licence to which is permanently affixed a conservation stamp that is valid for the same year as the licence.

• (2) Paragraph (1)(a) does not apply on the third Sunday in June or the Friday or Saturday immediately preceding that day.

19 [Repealed, SOR/2002-380, s. 3]

20 No person shall harvest herring spawn on kelp other than under the authority of a licence issued under the Fishery (General) Regulations, the Pacific Fishery Regulations, 1993 or the Aboriginal Communal Fishing Licences Regulations.

21 No person shall hold more than one licence.

Catch Records

22 A licence holder who catches and retains a lingcod or a chinook salmon shall immediately record the catch on the licence or, if a record can be made in a catch registry kept by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, in that registry.

22.1 The licence holder shall not alter the record made under section 22.

PART IIFishing for Fin Fish Other than Salmon in Tidal Waters

Application

23 This Part applies to fishing for fin fish other than salmon in tidal waters.

Close Times

• 24 (1) No person shall fish for fish of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule IV, in any Subarea, with a type of gear or by a method set out in column III of that item during the close time set out in column IV of that item.

• (2) The close time set out in column IV of item 21 of Schedule IV is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of fish set out in column I.

Daily Quotas for Individual Species

• 25 (1) No person shall catch and retain in a day more fish of a species set out in column I of Schedule IV, in any Subarea, than the daily quota set out in column II.

• (2) The quota set out in column II of item 21 of Schedule IV is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of fish set out in column I.

Aggregate Daily Quotas

26 No person shall, in a day, catch and retain more than

• (a) four wild trout and hatchery trout, in the aggregate, in any Subarea;

• (b) four wild trout and hatchery trout, in the aggregate; or

• (c) eight rockfish.

Annual Quotas

27 No person shall catch and retain in a year more than 10 lingcod in the aggregate from Areas 11 to 19, 28 and 29 and Subareas 20-5 to 20-7.

28 No person shall catch and retain more than one white sturgeon in a year.

Size Limits

29 No person shall catch and retain in any Subarea

• (a) a white sturgeon that measures less than 100 cm or more than 150 cm in overall length;

• (b) a wild trout that measures less than 30 cm in overall length;

• (c) a hatchery trout that measures less than 30 cm in overall length; or

• (d) a lingcod that measures less than 65 cm in overall length or that measures, with the head off, less than 53 cm in length when measured along the shortest length of the body to the tip of the tail.

Gear Restrictions

30 No person shall fish for fish of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule IV other than with a type of gear or by a method set out in column III of that item.

31 No person shall fish for eulachon or smelt with a gill net

• (a) that exceeds 7.5 m in length; or

• (b) that has a mesh size of less than 25 mm or more than 50 mm.

32 No person shall fish for eulachon or smelt with more than one net at a time.

PART IIIFishing for Crustaceans, Echinoderms, Molluscs and Shellfish in Tidal Waters

Application

33 This Part applies to fishing for crustaceans, echinoderms, molluscs and shellfish in tidal waters.

Close Times

• 34 (1) No person shall fish for fish of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule V, in any Subarea, with a type of gear or by a method set out in column III of that item during the close time set out in column IV of that item.

• (2) The close time set out in column IV of subitem 3(6) of Schedule V is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of crab set out in column I.

• (3) The close time set out in column IV of item 19 of Schedule V is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of fish set out in column I.

Daily Quotas for Individual Species

• 35 (1) No person shall catch and retain in a day more fish of a species set out in column I of Schedule V, in any Subarea, than the daily quota set out in column II.

• (2) The quota set out in column II of subitem 3(6) of Schedule V is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of crab referred to in column I.

• (3) The quota set out in column II of item 19 of Schedule V is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of fish referred to in column I.

Aggregate Daily Quotas

36 No person shall catch and retain in a day more than

• (a) 75 clams;

• (b) four Dungeness crab and red rock crab, in the aggregate, in all of Areas 11 to 20, 28 and 29;

• (c) six Dungeness crab, red rock crab and king crab, in the aggregate, in all of Areas 1 to 10 and 21 to 27 or in any Subarea outside the surfline;

• (d) 75 mussels; or

• (e) six purple-hinged rock scallops and weather-vane scallops in the aggregate.

Size Limits

• 37 (1) No person shall catch and retain

  • (a) an abalone that measures less than 100 mm in a straight line through the greatest breadth of the shell;

  • (b) a Dungeness crab that measures less than 165 mm in a straight line through the greatest breadth of the carapace; or

  • (c) a red rock crab that measures less than 115 mm in a straight line through the greatest breadth of the carapace

• (2) No person shall remove an abalone from its resting place without first ensuring that it is of a size greater than that described in paragraph (1)(a).

Gear Restrictions

38 No person shall fish for fish of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule V other than with a type of gear or by a method set out in column III of that item.

• 39 (1) No person shall fish for crab with more than two ring nets, dip nets and crab traps in the aggregate.

• (2) No person shall fish for crab with a ring net or crab trap unless a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number is attached to the net or trap.

• (3) Despite subsection (2), if two crab traps are attached to one ground-line, it is sufficient to attach a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number to one end of the ground-line.

• 40 (1) No person shall fish for shrimp with more than four shrimp traps.

• (2) No person shall fish for shrimp with a shrimp trap unless a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number is attached to the trap.

• (3) Despite subsection (2), if two traps are attached to one ground-line, it is sufficient to attach a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number to one end of the ground-line.

• (4) For greater certainty, if more than two traps are attached to one ground-line, paragraph 27(6)(b) of the Fishery (General) Regulations applies.

• 40.1 (1) No person shall fish for octopus with an octopus trap unless a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number is attached to the trap.

• (2) Despite subsection (1), if two traps are attached to one ground-line, it is sufficient to attach a tag, float or buoy that bears the operator’s name and telephone number to one end of the ground-line.

• (3) For greater certainty, if more than two traps are attached to one ground-line, paragraph 27(6)(b) of the Fishery (General) Regulations applies.

41 No person shall fish with an octopus trap that is made of open mesh or with a crab or shrimp trap unless the trap has a section in the top or in a side wall that has been laced, sewn or otherwise secured by a single length of untreated cotton twine no greater than grade No. 120, which, on deterioration or parting, produces a rectangular opening with a minimum size of 7 cm × 20 cm or a square opening with a minimum size of 11 cm × 11 cm.

41.1 No person shall set, operate or leave unattended in the water any octopus trap, ring net or crab or shrimp trap unless the tag, float or buoy attached to the ring net or trap bears the operator’s name and telephone number.

41.2 A line or rope attached to a trap referred to in any of sections 39 to 41.1 must be submerged in such a manner that the line or rope does not come into contact with a person or a boat.

PART IVFishing for Salmon in Tidal and Non-Tidal Waters

Application

42 This Part applies to fishing for salmon in tidal and non-tidal waters.

Close Times

43 No person shall fish for salmon of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule VI, in any Subarea, lake or stream, during the close time set out in column V of that item.

Daily Quotas for Individual Species

44 No person shall catch and retain in a day more salmon of a species set out in column I of an item of Schedule VI, of an overall length set out in column III of that item, in any Subarea, lake or stream, than the daily quota set out in column IV of that item.

Aggregate Daily Quotas

• 45 (1) No person shall catch and retain in a day, in any Subarea, lake or stream, more than

  • (a) four hatchery chinook salmon and wild chinook salmon, in the aggregate, that measure 50 cm or less in overall length;

  • (b) two hatchery chinook salmon and wild chinook salmon, in the aggregate, that measure more than 50 cm in overall length;

  • (c) four hatchery chinook salmon and wild chinook salmon, in the aggregate;

  • (d) four hatchery coho salmon and wild coho salmon, in the aggregate, that measure 35 cm or less in overall length;

  • (e) two hatchery coho salmon and wild coho salmon, in the aggregate, that measure more than 35 cm in overall length; or

  • (f) four hatchery coho salmon and wild coho salmon, in the aggregate.

• (2) No person shall catch and retain in a day more than four salmon, in the aggregate, from all waters.

Monthly Quota for Chinook Salmon

46 No person shall catch and retain in a month in any lake or stream, more than 10 chinook salmon, in the aggregate, that measure more than 50 cm in overall length.

Aggregate Annual Quotas

47 No person shall catch and retain in a year more than:

• (a) 20 chinook salmon, in the aggregate, from the waters of Subareas 19-1 to 19-4 and 20-5 to 20-7;

• (b) 15 chinook salmon, in the aggregate, from the waters of Area 12 (not including Subarea 12-14), Areas 13 to 18, Area 19 (not including Subareas 19-1 to 19-4), Area 28 and Area 29 (not including the tidal portion of the Fraser River);

• (c) 10 chinook salmon that measure more than 50 cm in overall length from the tidal portion of the Fraser River;

• (d) 30 chinook salmon, in the aggregate, from all tidal waters, not including chinook salmon that measure 50 cm or less in overall length that are taken from the tidal portion of the Fraser River; or

• (e) 10 chinook salmon that measure more than 50 cm in overall length from all non-tidal waters.

Size Limits

48 No person shall catch and retain a salmon of a species set out in column I of Schedule VI, in any Subarea, lake or stream, the overall length of which is less than the minimum overall length set out in column II.

Method, Gear and Bait Restrictions

49 No person shall fish for salmon by a method or with a type of gear or bait set out in column I of an item of the table to this section in any Subarea, lake or stream during the close time set out in column II of that item.

50 No person shall fish for salmon other than by angling.

PART VFishing for Fin Fish Other than Salmon in Non-Tidal Waters

Application

51 This Part applies to fishing for fin fish, other than salmon, in non-tidal waters.

Gear

52 Subject to section 53, no person shall fish other than by angling or with a set line.

Spears

53 A person may fish with a spear for burbot or fish of any species not listed in the table to section 58 in Regions 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8.

Set Lines

54 A person who is fishing with a set line shall not

• (a) use more than one set line;

• (b) use a hook that is less than 3 cm measured from the point to the shank; or

• (c) retain fish of any species listed in the table to section 58 other than burbot.

Close Times

• 55 (1) No person shall fish for, or catch and retain, fish of any species, in a lake or stream, from 23:00 hrs to 24:00 hrs on December 31.

• (2) The close time established by subsection (1) is considered to be fixed separately and individually for each species of fish.

Daily Quotas

• 56 (1) No person shall catch and retain in a day more fish of a species set out in column I of Schedule VII, of an overall length set out in column II, than

  • (a) the daily quota set out in column III or the daily catch limit under section 7 of the Yukon Territory Fishery Regulations, in respect of fish caught in Atlin Lake, Bennett Lake, Laidlaw Lake, Morley Lake, Tagish Lake, Teslin Lake, or in Rancheria River, Swift River or their tributaries; or

  • (b) the daily quota set out in column III, in any other case.

• (2) A person who, in a day, has caught and retained the daily quota for steelhead in a lake or stream shall cease fishing in that lake or stream for the rest of the day.

Aggregate Daily Quotas

57 No person shall catch and retain in a day from any lake or stream, more than

• (a) six wild rainbow trout and hatchery rainbow trout, in the aggregate;

• (b) one wild steelhead and hatchery steelhead, in the aggregate;

• (c) six wild cutthroat trout and hatchery cutthroat trout, in the aggregate;

• (d) six wild brown trout and hatchery brown trout, in the aggregate;

• (e) six wild brook trout and hatchery brook trout, in the aggregate;

• (f) six wild Dolly Varden and hatchery Dolly Varden, in the aggregate;

• (g) six wild lake trout and hatchery lake trout, in the aggregate;

• (h) four smallmouth and largemouth bass, in the aggregate; or

• (i) 25 wild kokanee and hatchery kokanee, in the aggregate.

58 No person shall catch and retain in a day a quantity of fish of a species set out in column I of an item of the table to this section, from all non-tidal waters, that exceeds the aggregate daily quota set out in column II of that item.

Monthly Quota for Steelhead

59 No person shall catch and retain in a month more than two steelhead in any lake or stream.

Annual Quotas

60 No person shall catch and retain in a year more than

• (a) 10 steelhead;

• (b) one white sturgeon;

• (c) five rainbow trout greater than 50 cm in overall length from the part of Kootenay Lake east of a line between signs posted at Balfour Point and Proctor Lighthouse;

• (d) five rainbow trout greater than 50 cm in overall length from Shuswap Lake, including Seymour Arm, Anstey Arm and Salmon Arm, Little Shuswap Lake, and the portion of South Thompson River (Little River) between those lakes and Mara Lake; or

• (e) five Dolly Varden and lake trout greater than 60 cm in overall length, in the aggregate, from Shuswap Lake, including Seymour Arm, Anstey Arm and Salmon Arm, Little Shuswap Lake, and the portion of South Thompson River (Little River) between those lakes and Mara Lake.

Miscellaneous

61 No person shall use as bait or possess for that purpose any freshwater invertebrate at a lake.

62 Subject to these Regulations, no person shall deposit any substance into the water for the purpose of attracting fish.

Method, Gear and Bait Restrictions

63 No person shall fish for any species of fish by a method or with a type of gear or bait set out in column I of an item of the table to this section, in a lake or stream, during the close time set out in column II of that item.

64 [Repealed, SOR/2022-70, s. 1]

65 [Repealed, SOR/2022-70, s. 1]