Canada Shipping Act, 2001 ( S.C. 2001, c. 26)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

Short Title

Marginal note: Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 .

Interpretation

Marginal note: Definitions

2 The definitions in this section apply in this Act.

[Repealed, 2001, c. 29, s. 72]

• (a) in respect of a Canadian vessel, the person referred to in subsection 14(1);
• (b) in respect of a fleet registered under Part 2, the person referred to in subsection 75.03(5); and
• (c) in respect of a foreign vessel, the master. ( représentant autorisé )

means a vessel charter agreement under which the charterer has complete possession and control of the vessel, including the right to appoint its master and crew. ( affrètement coque nue )

means a licence, permit, certificate or other document that is issued by the Minister of Transport under Part 1 (General), 3 (Personnel), 4 (Safety), 9 (Pollution Prevention — Department of Transport) or 11 (Enforcement — Department of Transport) to verify that the person to whom or vessel to which it is issued has met requirements under that Part. ( document maritime canadien )

means a vessel that is registered or listed under Part 2 (Registration, Listing and Recording) or that is exempted under the regulations from the registration requirement in subsection 46(1). ( bâtiment canadien )

means a vessel that is not a Canadian vessel or a pleasure craft. ( bâtiment étranger )

means a vessel that is owned by and is in the service of Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province or that is in the exclusive possession of Her Majesty in that right. ( bâtiment d’État )

means the volume of a vessel as determined by a tonnage measurer or calculated in accordance with the regulations made under paragraph 77(h). ( jauge brute )

means a facility that is used or that will be used in the loading or unloading of hazardous and noxious substances to or from vessels. ( installation de manutention de substances nocives et potentiellement dangereuses )

means the person in command and charge of a vessel. It does not include a licensed pilot, within the meaning of section 1.1 of the Pilotage Act , while the pilot is performing pilotage duties under that Act. ( capitaine )

means a facility, including an oil terminal, that is used or that will be used in the loading or unloading of petroleum in any form, including crude oil, fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse and refined products, to or from vessels. ( installation de manutention d’hydrocarbures )

means a person carried on a vessel by the owner or operator, other than

• (a) a person carried on a Safety Convention vessel who is
  • (i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or
  • (ii) under one year of age;
  • (i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or
  • (ii) a guest on board the vessel, if the vessel is used exclusively for pleasure and the guest is carried on it without remuneration or any object of profit;

  means a vessel that is used for pleasure and does not carry passengers, and includes a vessel of a prescribed class. ( embarcation de plaisance )

  has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the Canada Marine Act . ( administration portuaire )

  means prescribed by regulations made by the Governor in Council. ( Version anglaise seulement )

  • (a) a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act ; or
  • (b) a corporation incorporated under the laws of Canada or a province. ( personne qualifiée )

  means the Canadian Register of Vessels established under section 43. ( Registre )

  means a vessel in respect of which the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, listed in Schedule 1, applies. ( bâtiment assujetti à la Convention sur la sécurité )

  means the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada established by subsection 2(1) of the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Act . ( Tribunal )

  means a boat, ship or craft designed, used or capable of being used solely or partly for navigation in, on, through or immediately above water, without regard to method or lack of propulsion, and includes such a vessel that is under construction. It does not include a floating object of a prescribed class. ( bâtiment )

  includes emoluments. ( gages )

  • 2001, c. 26, ss. 2, 323, c. 29, s. 72
  • 2011, c. 15, s. 37
  • 2014, c. 29, s. 58
  • 2023, c. 26, s. 350

  Marginal note: Descriptive cross-references

  3 If, in any provision of this Act, a reference to another provision of this Act is followed by words in parentheses that are or purport to be descriptive of the subject-matter of the provision referred to, those words form no part of the provision in which they occur but are inserted for convenience of reference only.

  Marginal note: Regulations

  4 The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, make regulations prescribing anything that may be prescribed under section 2.

  • 2001, c. 26, s. 4
  • 2005, c. 29, s. 15

  PART 1 General

  Her Majesty

  Marginal note: Binding on Her Majesty

  5 Except as otherwise provided, this Act is binding on Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province.

  Objectives

  Marginal note: Objectives of Act

  6 The objectives of this Act are to

  • (a) protect the health and well-being of individuals, including the crews of vessels, who participate in marine transportation and commerce;
  • (b) promote safety in marine transportation and recreational boating;
  • (c) protect the marine environment from damage due to navigation and shipping activities;
  • (d) develop a regulatory scheme that encourages viable, effective and economical marine transportation and commerce;
  • (e) promote an efficient marine transportation system;
  • (f) develop a regulatory scheme that encourages the viable, effective and economical use of Canadian waters by recreational boaters;
  • (g) ensure that Canada can meet its international obligations under bilateral and multilateral agreements with respect to navigation and shipping;
  • (h) encourage the harmonization of marine practices; and
  • (i) establish an effective inspection and enforcement program.

  Application

  Marginal note: Exclusion

  • 7 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, this Act does not apply in respect of a vessel, facility or aircraft that belongs to the Canadian Forces or a foreign military force or in respect of any other vessel, facility or aircraft that is under the command, control or direction of the Canadian Forces.
  • Marginal note: Regulations (2) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, make regulations varying or excluding the application, in respect of government vessels, of any provision of this Act.
  • Marginal note: Conflicts with foreign rules (3) Regulations made under this Act do not, unless they expressly provide otherwise, apply in respect of a Canadian vessel in the waters of a country other than Canada if the regulations are inconsistent with a law of that country that, by its terms, applies in respect of the vessel when in the waters of that country.

  Marginal note: Application of this Part

  8 This Part applies in respect of Canadian vessels everywhere, in respect of foreign vessels in Canadian waters, and in respect of pleasure craft that are not Canadian vessels but that are in Canadian waters or in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada. However

  • (a) regulations made under paragraph 35(1)(d) in respect of pollution also apply, if they so state, in respect of foreign vessels in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada; and
  • (b) subsections 10(2.1) and 35.1(1) also apply in respect of foreign vessels in waters in the exclusive economic zone of Canada.
  • 2001, c. 26, s. 8
  • 2018, c. 27, s. 688
  • 2023, c. 26, s. 351

  Ministerial Responsibility

  Marginal note: Role of Minister of Transport

  9 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Minister of Transport is responsible for the administration of this Act.

  Powers of Ministers

  Marginal note: General

  • 10 (1) The Minister of Transport or the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans may, with respect to that Minister’s responsibilities under this Act,
    • (a) establish consultative bodies;
    • (b) issue bulletins, guidelines and standards; and
    • (c) enter into agreements or arrangements respecting the administration or enforcement of any provision of this Act, the regulations or an interim order made under subsection 10.1(1) or (1.1) and authorize any person or organization — including a provincial government, a local authority and a government, council or other entity authorized to act on behalf of an Indigenous group — with whom or which an agreement or arrangement is entered into to exercise the powers or perform the duties and functions under this Act that are specified in the agreement or arrangement.
    • 2001, c. 26, s. 10
    • 2003, c. 22, s. 224(E)
    • 2018, c. 27, s. 689
    • 2023, c. 26, s. 352

    Marginal note: Interim order — Minister of Transport

    • 10.1 (1) The Minister of Transport may make an interim order that contains any provision that may be contained in a regulation made, under this Act, on the recommendation of only that Minister, if he or she believes that immediate action is required to deal with a direct or indirect risk to marine safety or to the marine environment.
    • Marginal note: Authorization to make interim order (1.1) The Minister of Transport may, subject to any restrictions or conditions that the Minister may specify, authorize the Deputy Minister of Transport to make, for the purpose referred to in subsection (1), an interim order that contains any provision that may be contained in a regulation made, under this Act, on the recommendation of only that Minister.
    • Marginal note: Cessation of effect (2) An interim order made under this section has effect from the time that it is made or from any later date that may be specified in the interim order, but ceases to have effect on the earliest of
      • (a) the day on which it is repealed;
      • (b) the day on which a regulation made under this Act that has the same effect as the interim order comes into force;
      • (c) one year after the effective date of the interim order or any shorter period that may be specified in the interim order, unless the effective period is extended by the Minister of Transport or the Governor in Council;
      • (c.1) the day that is specified in the order of the Minister of Transport extending the interim order, if the Minister extends the effective period of the interim order, unless the effective period is extended by the Governor in Council; and
      • (d) the day that is specified in the order of the Governor in Council, if the Governor in Council extends the effective period of the interim order.
      • 2018, c. 27, s. 690
      • 2023, c. 26, s. 353