Overview

Any person who owns or is in possession of honey bees or used beekeeping equipment in Ontario requires a valid certificate of registration from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA).

Certificates of registration are issued by OMAFRA’s Apiary Program. A valid certificate of registration is required by all beekeepers and proof of registration is needed to apply for permits or funding programs and to receive honey bee inspection services from OMAFRA. There is no fee for registration.

Regulatory requirements under the Ontario Bees Act

The Bees Act is the legislation that regulates beekeeping in Ontario. The main purpose of the Act is to protect the health of honey bees and it includes requirements for obtaining a certificate of registration from the Provincial Apiarist.

Who should register

Any person who owns or is in possession of honey bees or used beekeeping equipment in Ontario is required to register with the OMAFRA Apiary Program. This includes anyone who keeps bees for personal or business use.

Beekeepers with an expired registration certificate are required to submit a registration renewal if still in possession of honey bees or used beekeeping equipment.

First-time registration

New beekeepers (for example, those registering with OMAFRA for the first-time) should register prior to purchasing or obtaining honey bee colonies. If a beekeeper has obtained honey bees and is not yet registered, they must promptly obtain a registration certificate.

Registration process

New beekeepers, or beekeepers who have not registered their beekeeping operation with OMAFRA’s Apiary Program, must complete and submit a registration form to the Apiary Program.

Registration form

Fill in the registration form and submit the completed form via:

  • email to BeekeeperRegistration@ontario.ca
  • fax to 226-314-0983

  • mail to:

    Apiary Program
    Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
    Animal Health and Welfare Branch
    1 Stone Road West, 5th Floor NW
    Guelph, ON N1G 4Y2

For support with the registration form contact the Apiary Program:

Once you become registered with OMAFRA’s Apiary Program, you can enroll in the Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal (also referred to as the Beekeeper Portal or simply the Portal) and renew your registration online.

Required information for registration

The information provided at the time of registration allows the Apiary Program to be able to contact the beekeeper and, if required, to easily locate the bee yard(s) for inspection. The Apiary Program will only process complete and accurate registrations. If a registration is missing any required information, it will be sent back to the registrant for revision.

The following information is required when registering as a beekeeper with OMAFRA:

  • beekeeper contact information
    • first and last name
    • business name for your beekeeping operation (if applicable)
    • phone number
    • mailing address
    • CRA business number (if registering a beekeeping business)
  • bee yard information — provided for each bee yard location containing honey bees or used beekeeping equipment
    • number of honey bee colonies in the yard
    • physical address of the yard
    • landowner name
    • landowner phone number or email address

You can use AgMaps if you require assistance identifying the physical address and other location details of your bee yard(s). AgMaps is an interactive online mapping tool that provides location information, such as GPS coordinates, lot and concession, roll number and more. To identify the location of your bee yard(s) in AgMaps:

  1. Launch AgMaps in your internet browser.
  2. Navigate to the "Markup & Printing” tab near the top of the page.
  3. Select the "Create Map" button.
  4. Choose "Bee Yard Registration Sketch" under the "Select Type of Map" list.
  5. Select the "Pin" icon found in the left-hand column. This will allow you to click a point on the map to auto-populate information about the chosen location.
  6. Locate your bee yard on the map and select the location. Various fields of information, such as Lot and Concession, will automatically populate into the left-hand column. By this point, you should see all the location information that is required to register your bee yard. Proceed to the next step if you wish to export the location information and the map for your records.
  7. Fill in any missing information about the bee yard in the left-hand column. Once all the information is entered click "Export Map."
  8. The system will create a printable map. When the file is ready, click "Open File." The map will open in a new window.
  9. In the new window you can select to print or save your map.

Registration renewal

It is recommended that you plan ahead and renew your registration early to avoid potential disruptions to your operation. The ideal time to renew your registration is prior to the expiry of your registration certificate. The benefits of renewing your registration before it expires include:

  • the increased likelihood that your registration will be renewed and your registration certificate will be issued prior to the start of the following beekeeping season
  • easier viewing, updating and registering of yards that are still active if renewing in the Portal

Beekeepers in possession of a valid registration certificate, who are still in possession of honey bees or used beekeeping equipment, should register up to 60 days prior to the expiry of their certificate. The Apiary Program will send registration renewal reminders to registered beekeepers prior to the expiry of their registration certificate.

How to renew

Online

Register online through the Beekeeper Portal by logging into the Government of Ontario’s My Ontario website.

Registrations submitted through the Beekeeper Portal have the shortest processing time.

Registration form

Fill in the registration form and submit the completed form via:

  • email to BeekeeperRegistration@ontario.ca
  • fax to 226-314-0983

  • mail to:

    Apiary Program
    Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
    Animal Health and Welfare Branch
    1 Stone Road West, 5th Floor NW
    Guelph, ON N1G 4Y2

For support with the registration form contact the Apiary Program:

When to renew

An expiration date is printed on each registration certificate issued by the Apiary Program. The expiry date indicates when a registration certificate is no longer valid and must be renewed if the beekeeper is still in possession of honey bees or used beekeeping equipment.

The length of time for which a registration certificate is valid depends on the total number of colonies operated by the beekeeper at the time of registering.

Beekeepers with 50 or more colonies at the time of registration will be issued a registration certificate that is valid for one calendar year. Beekeepers with fewer than 50 colonies at the time of registration will be issued a registration certificate that is valid for three calendar years. A beekeeper with a valid three-year registration, whose hive count increases to 50 or more hives, will be issued a revised certificate of registration by the Apiary Program which expires at the end of the calendar year in which the hive count increased to 50 or more.

Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal

Login to the My Ontario website to access the Beekeeper Portal.

In October 2017, OMAFRA launched the Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal, an online platform which provides beekeepers with 24/7 access to bee-related services. Since the launch of the Beekeeper Portal, numerous updates and improvements have been made. The Portal allows beekeepers to:

  • apply for beekeeper registration renewal
  • add new bee yards to a registration or update previously registered bee yards and beekeeper contact information at any time
  • apply for Queen and Nuc Permits
  • view the status of permit and registration applications
  • view and download current inspection reports, Queen and Nuc Permits and registration certificates

How to enroll in the Beekeeper Portal

For previously registered beekeepers only (not first-time registrants or new beekeepers), enrolling in the Beekeeper Portal is a 2-step process:

  1. Visit the My Ontario website to begin the process of creating your My Ontario account. My Ontario is the Ontario government's online access point for a variety of online services. For detailed instructions on how to create a My Ontario account, please refer to the Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal user guide.
  2. Use your one-time account set-up number from OMAFRA to access the Beekeeper Portal for the first time. Refer to the Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal user guide for information how to get an account number.

For help with My Ontario account set-up or the Beekeeper Portal, contact the Ask OMAFRA Beekeeper Portal support team by emailing Ask.OMAFRA.Portal@ontario.ca. 

After you register or renew

Registration applications and renewals will be processed on a first come, first served basis.

Registration renewals submitted through the Beekeeper Portal have the shortest processing delay. Given the high volume of registration renewals received by the Apiary Program, it may take several weeks before a submitted registration or renewal is processed. Once processed, the Apiary Program will issue a registration certificate to the registrant.

Beekeepers who provide a contact email on their registration will be notified via email once their registration has been processed. The notification email will contain an electronic copy of their registration certificate. Beekeepers who have not provided a contact email on their registration will receive their registration certificate via mail.

Registration certificate

A valid certificate of registration is required by all beekeepers. Proof of registration is needed to apply for permits or funding programs and to receive honey bee inspection services from OMAFRA.

A registration certificate will only be issued to beekeepers who have submitted a complete and accurate registration to the Apiary Program.

Registration certificate information

A registration certificate will display:

  • beekeeper ID# (unique to each registered beekeeper)
  • beekeeper or business name
  • beekeeper or business address
  • total number of registered honey bee colonies
  • total number of registered bee yards
  • registration certificate expiry date

Update your registration information

Beekeepers who have been issued a valid registration certificate should provide the Apiary Program with updated information on their bee yard locations, colony numbers and contact information, should they change at any point prior to the expiry of the registration certificate. 

OMAFRA apiary inspectors will not attend a bee yard for a requested inspection (such as an inspection for a permit or a pest/disease concern) if the beekeeper does not hold a valid registration or if the necessary information (such as the bee yard address) is absent or incomplete. It is the beekeeper’s responsibility to keep their registration information accurate and up to date with OMAFRA.

Examples and guidance for maintaining accurate registration information

Bee yards: When a registered beekeeper places colonies in a new or unregistered bee yard, the beekeeper must add this yard to their registration immediately by communicating this change in writing (mail or email) to the Apiary Program or by submitting the new yard details via the Beekeeper Portal.

Honey bee colonies: The number of colonies operated by beekeepers may fluctuate throughout the season. Beekeepers are required to provide accurate colony counts for each of their bee yards when renewing their registration. Beekeepers may also update OMAFRA at any time with information they deem important for their records or activities.

Here are some examples of parameters where a beekeeper should look to update the Apiary Program immediately with regards to their colony counts:

  • for a commercial beekeeper (those beekeepers operating 50 or more colonies):
    • an increase or decrease of 30% or more of the colonies within their operation
  • for a non-commercial beekeeper (those beekeepers operating 49 or fewer colonies):
    • an increase or decrease of 70% or more of the colonies within their operation if already under 10 colonies
    • 50% or more of the colonies within their operation if already at 10 colonies or more
    • an increase to 50 or more colonies within their operation