How fishing and hunting fees are used
Learn how your fees are invested to improve fishing and hunting in Ontario.
Sources of revenue
The province spends 100% of hunting and fishing revenue on fish and wildlife management. This includes revenue from:
- commercial and recreational licence fees
- royalties
- fines and penalties
Improving fishing and hunting
We use funds collected from fishing and hunting to:
- stock almost 8 million fish a year in lakes across Ontario
- maintain and improve Fish ON-Line, a mobile fishing information application
- have conservation officers on duty to enforce our laws
- invest in public communications to promote fishing and hunting and inform the public
- conduct research and monitoring to inform policies on fish and wildlife populations, such as moose harvest guidelines
Supporting enforcement and safety
Revenue collected supports:
- safety and education campaigns for hunting and fishing
- charges for poaching and unsafe hunting
- conservation officers on duty (working over 90,000 hours a year)
Conservation Officer Powers and Authorities
Supporting conservation
Your fees also support conservation efforts to:
- protect native fish from invasive species (such as invasive carp, formerly known as Asian carp, and round goby)
- improve habitat for fish and wildlife
- monitor for diseases that affect fish and wildlife
- stock and re-establish fish species by operating 9 fish culture stations
- survey fish and wildlife populations (such as size, age, numbers and general health)
Protecting fish and wildlife health
Annual reports
To read our previous annual reports visit https://collections.ola.org/ser/302250/.
Updated: May 15, 2025
Published: July 17, 2014