Vessel owner responsibilities

Owning a boat comes with a lot of responsibility. Owners are responsible for:

If you own a boat or are considering getting one, check out Transport Canada's guide on how to be a responsible boat owner.

Under the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act it is illegal to:

abandon your vessel
deliberately cause your vessel to:
- sink
- strand
- ground
- become a wreck, by failing to maintain it
leave your vessel:
- in the same area for more than 60 consecutive days within a radius of 3 nautical miles without the authorization of the location's owner
- adrift for more than 48 hours without taking measures to secure it
take possession of a wreck before reporting it to Transport Canada, unless it's in danger and you need to secure or otherwise protect it
enter into Canada with a wreck found outside of Canadian waters, without first reporting it to Transport Canada

Responsible parties under the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act must:

alert the CCG if involved in a maritime casualty that resulted in a wreck and mark the wreck
comply with any directions and/or inspection powers of the CCG or Transport Canada

Owners of vessels that pollute must:

report marine pollution immediately
implement their pollution emergency plan
use their own resources to clean-up the spill or hire a designated response organization (certified by Transport Canada) to do so on their behalf
pay for the clean-up and damages

Page details

2025-11-10