A total of 31 new summary offences with higher fine amounts have been designated under the Nova Scotia Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act and related regulations to strengthen enforcement in the shore-based fish buying and processing sector.
“We’ve heard the concerns of the seafood industry and are taking strong action,” said Kent Smith, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture in the Jan. 22 media release.
“Designating new summary offences with significant fines reflects our commitment to combatting illegal activities. This step, along with others, will ensure that our seafood industry continues to grow responsibly while making our rural coastal communities safer.”
In November 2025, Smith announced a dedicated compliance unit of inspectors that will focus on wharves and seafood facilities, where the Province is the regulator. Their role includes monitoring, inspecting, investigating and acting on regulatory offences.
The new unit will include four inspectors responsible for monitoring, inspecting and investigating regulatory compliance and acting on offences. They will work with federal and provincial enforcement services, including Department of Natural Resources conservation officers. Enforcement actions could include fines, licence suspension, loss of licence and formal charges.
In addition to the new summary offences, the Province has also:
- set up a new audit program;
- increased maximum fines under the Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act to $1 million from $100,000 for the first offence and up to $2 million for a second offence;
- modernized the Fish Buyers and Fish Processors Regulations and policies with clearer requirements for agents, designated buyers, buyers and processors;
- implemented new licence conditions to require enhanced reporting of buying data to help with enforcement and compliance;
- hired a new licence compliance analyst to assess buyer and processor data for non-compliance and to collaborate with other enforcement agencies;
- contracted a forensic accounting firm to carry out in-depth, third-party forensic audits of records collected from licensed buyers and processors to assess potential wrongdoing;
- and are continuing to push for modern cross-jurisdictional regulatory tools like boat-to-plate traceability.
The Province is also investigating improved ways to trace lobster and snow crab, Nova Scotia’s most valuable species.
Examples of the new summary offences include: falsifying, unlawfully altering or destroying documents, which has a $5,000 fine for a first offence and $10,000 for subsequent offences and buying or processing illegally caught fish — a $25,000 fine for a first offence and $50,000 for subsequent offences (plus additional fees). The summary offence changes are in effect, and conservation officers can now issue these tickets.
It is estimated up to 30 per cent of annual lobster landings in Atlantic Canada go unreported, representing up to $400 million in unrealized taxable income for Nova Scotia.
