How to Become a Guide Outfitter

To be licenced as a guide outfitter in British Columbia, you must qualify as follows:

  • you must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada (i.e., be a landed immigrant).
  • you must have held assistant guide licences in British Columbia for a total of 24 months and have actively guided during that time (or have an authorization from a regional manager of the fish and wildlife program, exempting you from this requirement, as provided for in section 100(2) Wildlife Act amended by section 24 Wildlife Amendment Act 1999).
  • you must have public liability insurance applicable to your business of not less than $2,000,000.00 (see s.1.01 B.C. Reg. 338/82 as amended by s.3 B.C. Reg. 25/2005).
  • you must satisfy the regional fish and wildlife manager of the region in which you intend to acquire a guide area, that you have a working knowledge of the Wildlife Act and the Commercial Activities Regulation, B.C. Reg. 338/82, Division 1, Guides. To do this you must complete an exam which tests the individual's knowledge of relevant components of the Wildlife Act and regulations, the Wildlife Act Commercial Activities Regulation and the Hunting and Trapping Regulations Synopsis. For information about the exam, you may contact your local Government Agent office or the Fish & Wildlife Branch in Victoria at 250 387-9725.

To be licenced as an assistant guide (game) in British Columbia, you must qualify as follows:

  • you must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada,
  • you must be 19 years of age of older, and
  • have a guide outfitter willing to employ you to guide hunters in his or her guide area and under his or her jurisdiction.

The administration of hunting guides in British Columbia is carried out under provisions of the Wildlife Act and Commercial Activities Regulation (B.C. Reg. 338/82) and a number of Administrative Procedures. Some pertinent facts you should be aware of are:

  • There are 245 guide outfitters in British Columbia at present. Each guide outfitter is licenced to guide resident and non-resident hunters in an exclusive guide area with clearly defined and legally described boundaries. The guide areas vary considerably in size and availability of big game species. Guide outfitters hire about 1100 assistant guides each year, and guide approximately 4,500 hunters in total each year.
  • The responsibility for issuing guide licences and guide outfitter certificates lies with the regional fish and wildlife managers in the 8 wildlife management regions in the province.
  • The guide outfitter licence is issued annually and allows the guide outfitter to operate a guiding business. Without the licenced guide outfitter there can be no business.
  • A licenced guide outfitter may apply to the regional manager for a guide outfitter certificate which gives him or her the exclusive guiding privileges in that guide area for a period not exceeding 10 years. The certificate may be renewed any time after the fifth anniversary for a further 10 years. The certificate does not confer any property rights on the holder, and only the rights of the person named on the certificate would be recognized by the province.
  • Private arrangements to financially invest in or “back” a guide business are not reflected in a guide outfitter certificate, nor are they taken into account when the certificate is granted. Anyone who wishes can enter into a financial agreement with a legitimate guide outfitter, and is not required to disclose this to B.C. Environment. Our dealings are always with the licenced guide outfitter.

  • Under section 61 of the Wildlife Act, a regional manager has the power to suspend, cancel or refuse to renew a guide outfitter’s licence or certificate. Under section 63 of the Act, if a guide outfitter’s licence is cancelled, his or her privileges in and to a guide outfitter’s certificate terminate, and the guide outfitter must surrender the certificate to the regional manager. Private investors need to be aware that if this happens, the guide area reverts to the Crown.
  • The most usual way for guide areas to change hands is through direct purchase of the guiding rights by the prospective buyer from the existing guide. The actual “sale” of the guide area (price and any other terms of the deed of sale) is a private matter between the retiring guide and the intending guide. However, any transfer of the guiding rights in an area must be approved and authorized by the regional fish and wildlife manager.
  • Occasionally, a newly activated guide area or one that has been forfeited to the Crown may become available. Under the Wildlife Act, in such cases “… the privilege of guiding in that area shall be advertised for sale by the regional manager and sold by tender or by any other prescribed means to a person qualified to hold a guide outfitter licence.”

The Wildlife Act RS Chap. 488 and the Commercial Activities Regulation (B.C. Reg. 338/82) will give you detailed information. To obtain complete copies of these, contact Crown Publications Inc.

To make application for a guide outfitter or assistant guide go to the Permit and Authorization Service Bureau.