Yes – the classifications that DFO gives to licence holders will still remain the same.

If a fish harvester wanted to move to a higher level of certification, he or she must complete the below steps:

Step 1 – registrant makes application to move higher.

Step 2 – applicant documents previous training and sea time.

Step 3 – registrar assesses application to determine if higher classification warranted.

An appeal process will be available if necessary.

Fish harvesters will be certified at one of three levels: Certified Professional Fish Harvester – Licence Holder (L) and Non – Licence Holder (NL), Professional Fish Harvester – Licence Holder (L) and Non-Licence Holder (NL) and Apprentice. A full outline of the criteria in each of the certification levels is included in the governance policy of the board.

Stage 1 – Those Registered with FHRCBNS will be sent an information collection form that will permit the initial certification assessment.  This will capture years of service and/or training previously obtained.

Stage 2 – Complete the assessment – Each returned form will be reviewed to ensure: certificate #s, date of issue and date of expiry are all provided. At this point certification can be offered on an honour basis.

Stage 3 – Offer a service of centralized storage for all certificates. This will represent a Verified Certification status. It would also be possible to provide proof of certification to 3rd parties (DFO and other government agencies) if interested.

After registration is received, the fish harvester will be entered into the system and assessed at one of the three levels of certification. It will be determined what level a fish harvester is by his/her past experience and training. Existing industry will be grandfathered and new entrants come in as Apprentices. (Note: the certification process has not yet been implemented)