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Welcome to Access Q™
As a recreational fisher or stakeholder, you can lease your halibut quota by fax, phone or over the web.
Here's how.
Step 1: Obtain an Experimental Licence from DFO
The easiest way to do this is by filling in DFO's online Expression of Interest for the Halibut Experimental Recreational Fishery - 2013 Season. Once DFO receives and processes your submission they will send you a licence application form. There is no charge for the experimental licence.
If you participated in the Halibut Experimental Recreational Fishery in 2012 and are re-applying for the program, you do not have to complete an Expression of Interest form. Instead, please provide DFO with your contact information and their Groundfish Management Unit will contact you.
Once you have received your licence application, sign it and return it to DFO who will create an experimental licence and licence number for you within their management system. They will also send you your licence and conditions, along with a paper log book for keeping track of your catch throughout the season.
An experimental licence must have at least 10 pounds of quota on it to commence fishing.
2013 Recreational Halibut Fishing in British Columbia
For the 2013 season, the standard BC tidal water recreational licence allows the holder to retain one halibut per day, with two in possession. The maximum lengths for the two halibut permitted in your possession are 83 cm and 126 cm. DFO has also announced the 2013 Halibut Experimental Recreational Fishery. Under this program, interested recreational stakeholders can hold an experimental licence that will allow them to lease halibut quota and fish beyond the limits of the standard recreational fishing licence. |
Step 2: Contact Access Q™ to obtain your quota
By Fax
1.866.849.IQMI (4764) |
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On the Web
Access Q™ |
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By Phone
1.855.751.FISH (3474) |
| Download Fax Request form |
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Access Q™ Online Service |
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- Available 24/7
- Requests and credit card payments processed within 24 hours
- Quota transferred when payment confirmed
- Download Fax Request form
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- Available weekdays 8am-4pm, except statutory holidays
- Requests and credit card payments processed immediately
- Quota transferred when payment confirmed
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Step 3: When your transaction is completed
IQMI provides you with a Provisional Record of Quota Lease which you print and keep with you. We notify DFO and they in turn send you an updated licence amendment reflecting the amount of halibut quota transferred onto your experimental licence.
In cases where you have successfully returned quota, IQMI sends you a completed Temporary Transfer Request Form which you print, sign and fax to DFO. When DFO notifies us that that they have transferred the quota off of your experimental licence, IQMI sends payment directly to you.
You should also know...
- Our ability to fulfill a request for commercial quota depends on how much quota remains in our quota 'pool' at any given time. We start the season with a significant amount of quota in hand and work continuously with commercial halibut fishers to replenish the 'pool' as quickly as demand requires. If we run out, we will post a notice telling our customers whether and when we expect to have more quota available.
- Our ability to fulfill a request to return quota requires us to first find someone to lease that quota. We work continuously with commercial halibut fishers and so far have been able to return quota consistently and on terms that work for all parties. However, demand for halibut quota in both commercial and recreational sectors varies throughout the season. Hence, although we will always offer the best terms we can, those terms will vary.
- There are upper limits on the amount of each transaction, but there is no limit to the number of transactions you can request. One limit is set by the maximum transaction amount that PayPal™ will process. The dollar value of each transaction is also determined by quota lease price, which can change weekly. We also place put a poundage limit on each transaction to help ensure that we can make quota available for as long as possible to recreational customers, large and small. We embed these limits in the system and manage them throughout the season.
- We publish a lease price for commercial-to-recreational transfers each week and show it to you up front. We work continuously with participants in the halibut sector who estimate a likely quota price range for each week. We use that information to publish a fair lease price that normally remains fixed for seven days. We provide that price to you up front, along with the date on which it will expire. We use the number of pounds you request and calculate your total lease cost for you, at which point you can choose whether to proceed. If you come back to us again before the date that price expires, your lease cost per pound will be the same. Everyone who uses Access Q™ during the same period will see the same lease price per pound of quota.
- Access Q™ is a completely confidential service. We do not share your identity or personal details with other recreational stakeholders, commercial fishers or their representatives. We must send details of each transaction to DFO for validation and recording, but that's it. And we do not retain any of your credit card information. Credit card payments are all managed within the secure PayPal™ system, which is separate from the Access Q™ platform.
- Each transaction requires payment before quota can be transferred onto a recreational licence. The Access Q™ service is set up to get you the quota you need, when you need it, as quickly and conveniently as possible. The convenience of real-time credit card payments is obviously an important part of this. We will also accept payments by cheque or bank transfer, but must remind customers that we cannot transfer quota or provide a Provisional Record of Quota Lease until those payments are received and funds have cleared.
- We make every effort to ensure that the transaction details you provide are correct. We also provide detailed Terms of Use for you to review as part of each transaction, so that you will know what happens if errors should occur.
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Bulletins
08-Apr-2013:
Third Consecutive Year of AccessQ™ Recreational Halibut Quota Leasing Service. IQMI is once again offering interested recreational stakeholders secure, convenient access to quota for the 2013 Halibut Experimental Recreational Fishery. more
22-Mar-2012:
IQMI Again Provides Access Q™ Recreational Halibut Quota Leasing Service. IQMI is pleased to offer interested recreational stakeholders secure, convenient access to quota for the 2012 Halibut Experimental Recreational Fishery. more
24-Jan-2012:
Final Week for Recreational Fishers to Reconcile their 2011 Halibut Quota. IQMI is reminding recreational halibut fishers holding experimental licences that they have through the end of January to reconcile their quota. more
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