To hunt a black bear in Ontario nonresidents must have an Outdoors Card,
a non-resident black bear licence, a bear
tag and a black bear hunting validation
certificate. The non-resident black bear
licence is valid in both the spring and
fall seasons. The black bear hunting
validation certificate can be obtained from
a bear operator (operator of a tourist
establishment, guide or air carrier) licensed
to provide black bear hunting services to
non-residents or from the ministry (refer
to exemptions). A non-resident hunter
using a licensed bear operator must hunt
only in the areas designated on the black
bear hunting validation certificate received
from the operator. These areas can include
Crown or private land located within a Bear
Management Area (BMA) and private land
located within a WMU designated on the
operator’s licence. The operator’s licence
does not permit the operator to provide
bear hunting services on private land
located within a BMA licensed to another
operator. The operator must have the
landowner’s permission in order to provide
black bear hunting services to clients on
private land.
The following non-residents are not
required to use a licensed bear operator. In
these cases, the non-resident can contact
a Ministry office to apply for a validation
certificate.
• A non-resident hunting with an immediate
relative who is an Ontario resident
licensed to hunt black bear in a WMU that
has an open season for non-residents.
An immediate relative is a person’s
grandparent, parent, spouse, child, sibling
or grandchild.
• A non-resident who is the owner of
property in a WMU that has an open black
bear season for non-residents. Only one
validation certificate will be issued for a
property each year and you must only
hunt in the WMU where the property is
located.
