Pacific Region Licences
On this page:
- Number of personal licences issued by type
- Number of commercial fishing licences issued, by species
- Number of commercial fishing vessels registered, by size
Browse this section to find statistics on commercial fishing licences issued by Fisheries and Oceans Canada in the Pacific Region. You will also find information collected through the registration of commercial fishing vessels. Data are available from 1985 onward.
The number of individual annual commercial licence holders in the Pacific region has been declining since its peak in 1987 to a new low of 4,057 in 2023, down 74% over this period. These individual license holders were issued a total of 5,512 species-specific licences, down 4% from 2022. Over the most recent decade (compared to 2014), the number of individual licence holders and the total number of commercial fishing licences issued are down by 33% and 13%, respectively. Herring (32%), Salmon (24%), and Shrimp/Prawn (8%) represent the majority of commercial licences issued in 2023.
Northern Native Fishery Co (NNFC) Salmon licences were converted to the Communal Commercial licence category in 2023. No U.S.A. Albacore Tuna licences were issued as the Canada-US Pacific Albacore Tuna Treaty expired on 31 December 2022 and no agreement was in place to allow transboundary fishing in 2023.
Continuing its long-term trend, the number of registered commercial fishing vessels in the Pacific region declined slightly from 2022 to 2,150. The number of registered commercial fishing vessels has decreased by 14% from 2014 and 33% from 2004. Smaller vessels (less than 45 ft in length) represent 82% of the total fleet, while mid-size vessels (45 ft to 100 ft) and large-size vessels (more than 100 ft) represent about 18% and 1%, respectively. The relative shares of the vessel sizes have remained consistent over time.
For further information on the declining numbers of fishing licences and vessels, please refer to the DFO Pacific Region report Overview of socio-economic concerns in Pacific Region fisheries related regulations, policies and practices (2023).
Data tables:
Personal licenses information
(Number of personal licences issued by type)
Species information
(Number of commercial fishing licences issued, by species)
Vessel information
(Number of commercial fishing vessels registered, by size)
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