Pleasure Craft Operator Card (Boating Safety)

Federal law now requires that all operators of recreational powered watercraft used on Canadian waters must have the  Pleasure Craft Operator Card (boating license).  The Pleasure Craft Operator Card is mandatory, regardless of age, length of boat, or engine horsepower.

Acquiring this Operator Card requires passing a 50 question multiple choice exam with a score of at least 75%.

There are three ways to acquire the Pleasure Craft Operator Card.  First, candidates may take the test online.  These tests are not supervised.  The latest version of these tests is quite difficult and anyone who does not prepare thoroughly is NOT likely to pass.  To qualify to write the test online one must first register for and successfully complete a seven chapter online course.  Each chapter of the course ends with a quiz.  Each of the seven quizzes must be passed before one can go on to the next chapter.  Only when all seven quizzes have been passed is one eligible to write the final exam.

The second option is to attend a one day class followed by a supervised on-paper test.  These tests are closed book.  Groups of 10 or more can take our course, write the exam, and get their permanent Pleasure Craft Operator card for $100 per person.  The course fee includes everything (in-class instruction by a certified instructor, the official exam, a Temporary Operator Card (issued immediately upon successful completion of the test), and your permanent Canadian Coast Guard Pleasure Craft Operator Card, forwarded to you by first class mail)

The third option is to study and prepare at home, and then to write the supervised, on-paper test.  Candidates who choose this option should look up our affiliated free online boating safety course at : http://www.freecourse.ca.  Several other self study resources are also available.  Candidates may wish to investigate the transport Canada website at http://www.tc.gc.ca/boatingsafety for additional information.   We offer test challenges for candidates who choose this option.  The cost for a test challenge is $30, payable only if the candidate passes the exam.

The government allows 75 minutes to take the 50-question exam.  If a candidate fails by only a few points, testing agents are allowed to have the candidate attempt the failed questions a second time immediately.  If after attempting the failed questions a second time the candidate still cannot pass the test, he or she should review freecourse.ca’s free online course and book another test time no less than 24 hours after the failed test.