Canada Radio Station License

[eheffa]

HI all,

I have been dutifully paying every year for a VHF Radio License for our Nordic Tug 37 VHF marine radios but I bristle at the thought of forking over $36.79 every year for essentially... nothing.

The regulations state that if we stay in Canadian Waters we would be exempt from this, but why would the Canadian Govt need to license us so that we can use our radios outside Canadian waters & outside Canadian jurisdiction. The only non-Canadian waters we take the boat are either Washington State or Alaskan waters and as I understand it the authorities there do not even require a VHF radio operators' certificate.

Does anyone know if the American Authorities demand that Canadian boats have a Station License? Would Canadian authorities inspect a boat returning to Canada and ask to see said license?

Anyone else in this position?

________

From the Canadian Regulations website:

Do I need a licence for the marine radio equipment on board my vessel?

You will not require a licence if you meet both of the following criteria:

the vessel is not operated in the sovereign waters of a country other than Canada.
the radio equipment on board the vessel is only capable of operating on frequencies that are allocated for maritime mobile communications or marine radio navigation. You can verify whether the frequencies you use are in the maritime mobile band by referring to Regulation by Reference RBR-2.
If you do not meet both of the above criteria, you will require a radio licence. You can contact your local Industry Canada office for more information. All of the Industry Canada offices can be found in RIC-66.

Any comments and thoughts appreciated.

-evan

[rbk]

It is rare they enforce it on Canadians in US waters but it is technically a requirement in the US and in other parts of the world governments take it very seriously.

[sailormed]

In ma part of the world I have a license that stays valid without a yearly fee. However I have to pay a yearly tax on the VHF. So we are roughly equal.

[eheffa]

Well it looks like I should just suck it up and pay but I'm curious as to what percentage of recreational boaters who cross the border pay for this Station license?

-evan

[rbk]

From banter on some channels including 16 sometimes I think the majority of ‘boaters’ don’t have their station license, ROM or half a brain for that matter. Chances are you’ll never need to present it if you have it. The second you don’t have it someone will want to see it.

[peter loveridge]

I pay for the licence as I occasionally give medical advice to boats at sea and the coastguard asks for my call sign. Given the use, I claim the fee as a tax deduction. I've never been asked to produce the licence in either Canada or the US, and I doubt if even 1% of the boats in NS. including commercial fishing boats have one. None of the boats in my marina , except me, have one

[Mike OReilly]

I paid religiously for many years. Then, for some reason, it slipped by my notice. I haven't paid since. I've certainly never been questioned about it, and I know no one who has.

I appreciate it is 'the law,' but it seems like a silly law. Make it like boat registration; a one-time fee. Make it requirement to update info as it changes. Or get rid of it entirely.

[Mirage35]

Yep, I'm with Mike on this one. The Canadian government justifies a lot of fees (e.g. the cost of nautical charts) on the basis of "cost recovery". On that basis a one-time fee for a boat licence would make sense to me.

[rslifkin]

I pay for the US licenses (ship's station and operator's license) for 2 reasons: Other countries (only of concern for Canada for me) require that foreign operators be licensed, so while I don't need the license in the US, I do technically need it to go to Canada. And the ship's station license provides an MMSI that's entered into the international database (free MMSIs in the US are not), so the proper info will come up when they look up my MMSI in the event of a DSC distress call while in Canada or elsewhere.

[eheffa]

Thank you for the comments everyone.

I think that in balance it makes sense to continue to pay the annual fee (as unjustified as it seems...)


But the thought that I could use it as a business expense is intriguing... After all, I should be prepared, just in case, to use my radio to provide medical advice ;-)

-evan

[roland stockham]

Well said rslifkin. I have seen a few threads like this which basically as "if I don't pay ... will I get caught". A perfectly legitimate question would be "what does the license fee support and is it a fair amount". In this case I believe (but may be wrong) the fees go towards maintaining the epirb system but also to managing the network so that channels stay clear and effective, both very good and effective services. If a fee is charged I will pay it because I believe I have a moral duty as a responsible boat owner to pay my dues, comply with the rules and manage my boat safely. I don't need a police force to stop me and enforce things that I should do. The marine authorities are there to support all marine activity and generally do a good job but an important part of that is that individual boaters will take note and abide by the rules in just the same way that we would stop and assist a boat in distress, not because we get a ticket if we don't but because it is the right thing to do. And thank goodness, I don't want to see traffic cops on the water.

[Mike OReilly]

Wow, that turned ugly fast. Suddenly because I don't pay my radio license fee, I no longer stop to help fellow boaters, or manage my boat safely . That's a really offensive suggestion Roland.

It is possible to find a shade between black and white. The world is not either-or.

There are other radio bands in use which do not require station licenses. And I have never heard of these fees being collected to maintain the EPIRB system. If you can point to where this is the case, then I might change my practice.


Yes, I do make my own decisions when faced with some laws that don't make sense. I'm sorry, but I do think for myself (sometimes).

[Eder]

I don't pay...been around a bit and has never been a problem.



With Trudeau tweeting away millions of our dollars frivolously I think I'll keep a few of my after tax dollars to spend on beers rather than let the sock puppet gas it for me.

[rbk]

I think with the invention of mass communication of the internet people forget how powerful a radio really is until you’re caught off the coast of (insert authoritarian country here) with a radio capable of transmitting information to nearly the other side of the world and you’re being accused of espionage. It is easy to brush off old tech as obsolete more so in developed worlds but governments have been toppled and wars won with radios and in the right hands can and will most likely be done again.

[BM2023]

Originally Posted by eheffa

Well it looks like I should just suck it up and pay but I'm curious as to what percentage of recreational boaters who cross the border pay for this Station license?

-evan

In the Netherlands the annual fee, for 2020, is set at € 42 (60 Canadian Dollars). In many other European countries there are no annual fees's and if there are any it is not substantial, like in Canada and the Netherlands.