On Wednesday, April 15, 2020 Bill 30 – The Fisheries Amendment, Forest Amendment and Provincial Parks Amendment Act passed legislation.
The bill “amends three acts to allow the electronic sale of resource-based licences, such as hunting and angling licences, along with park vehicle permits. Bill 30 supports moving Manitoba forward with enhanced online opportunities and the modernization of an outdated manual licensing process. E-licensing is about improving customer service, convenience and accessibility.”
The MWF is pleased that this bill has passed legislation and thanks not only the Minister of Conservation and Climate – The Honourable Sarah Guillemard, Premier Brian Pallister and the current Government for bringing E-Licensing to the province but also NDP party leader and leader of the opposition – Wab Kinew for supporting the bill, and for his following comments made during the debate:
“I’d also share with the House that we did receive a letter from the Manitoba Wildlife Federation, who, of course, represents many members and many clubs right across the province and they’re always very strong advocates for their membership, and they did point out what I do take to be a serious point, which is, because of the public health precautions that are being put into place right now around social distancing and physical distancing, that many hunters and fishers in the province won’t even be able to secure their licenses using the old techniques, the pen and paper technique, if you will, because many of those vendors are now closed as a public health precaution. So it makes sense to provide another avenue for people to secure these licenses, to do it online, especially because we know that, you know, people are going to be wanting–people are going to want to fish once the ice opens up everywhere across the province.
And importantly, I think we also want to bear in mind that being out on the land angling, hunting, just being out there in the bush right now is one of the healthy activities that we can undertake…”
“If you’re lucky enough to say, you know, live within a short drive of one of the lakes, or live within a short drive of a forested area, then that is perhaps a good activity for you to be able to continue during the time of the pandemic.
And certainly, the Manitoba Wildlife Federation articulated their argument using almost exact same words. They were advocating for their members’ right to continue to go out on the land, and that’s an argument that makes a lot of sense to me, just given–again–the brief bit of information that I shared about how I grew up. And, of course, for many indigenous families, the relationship to the land is essential.”
You can read the full transcription of the debate right here.
Since the launch of E-Licensing, the MWF has been fielding a lot of questions ranging from “Do we need to print Hunting Licenses?” to “What are the $4.50 admin fees for?” The answers to these questions and many others can be found right here.
For people that prefer to visit a retailer, you can find a list of retailers that are able to process your licenses right here. Simply use the search function and enter your city/town or Postal Code.
If you would prefer to purchase your licenses over the phone or if you would like assistance in getting your licenses set up, you can call 1-877-880-1203. The call centre hours are 8:00AM – 9:00PM until November 30. Then 8:00AM – 5:00PM December 1, February 28th. License sales will be available 7 days a week.
If you are having issues with the E-Licensing website, you can call 1-877-880-1203 or email E-Licensing support directly by visiting here.
Finally, we have had many questions about the Big Game Draw. The Province of Manitoba has responded with the following:
Please be advise that the Multi-Level Draw is now available online at https://www.manitobaelicensing.ca/cust.multileveldraws.page.
Public can now “Sign In Or Create Account” to access and verify your personal profile. Your priority level(s) for the 2020 draws will be listed on your personal profile. If you have any questions on accessing your account or have any questions about entering a draw application, please contact the elicensing Help Desk at 1-877-880-1203.
If a hunter has participated in the draw that they have to contact the Aspira call centre to get an CUSTOMER ID number to look up their account. If public have questions about the Multi-Level Draw, please Contact Aspira Help Desk 1-877-880-1203. The draw application deadline is May 31, 11:59 pm, 2020.
For more information on the Landowner Elk and Big Game Draw Application Guides, Game Hunting Areas Map, Hunting Season Choice (HSC) Charts and Landowner Elk Lands Owned Declaration Form, click on: https://manitoba.ca/sd/fish_and_wildlife/wildlife.
Please note: There have been disruptions that delayed the distribution of game tags ordered prior to April 24. We are working with Aspira to ensure that these orders are fulfilled as quickly as possible. Orders made now should be on the promised delivery time of 5-7 business days. We appreciate your patience as we work to address this during these challenging times.
