---
title: "Fernie dog licences: fees and how to get one"
question: "How do I get a dog licence in Fernie, and what does it cost?"
place: Fernie, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/fernie
category: Pets, animals and wildlife
owner: municipal
owner_body: City of Fernie
sources_read: 2026-11-05
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/dog-licence/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/dog-licence.json"
---

# Fernie dog licences: fees and how to get one

**Question:** How do I get a dog licence in Fernie, and what does it cost?

**Short answer:** Every dog over four months old in the City of Fernie needs a City licence for the calendar year. Buy it at City Hall, 501-3rd Avenue. The fee is $15 for a neutered or spayed dog and $35 for one that is not.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Fernie, https://www.fernie.ca)  
**Cost:** $15 neutered male or spayed female; $35 unneutered male or open female; replacement tag $1. Aggressive dog $150, vicious dog $227, dangerous dog $567. No early-payment discount, late fee or seniors discount was found.  
**How long:** Licences run January 1 to December 31 each year and expire on December 31.  
**Where:**
- In person: Fernie City Hall, 501-3rd Avenue, Fernie, BC
- Phone: City Hall, 250-423-6817
- Phone: Bylaw Services, 250-423-2244
- Email: Bylaw Services, bylawservices@fernie.ca

## Key facts

- **Licence required:** Yes. Every dog over four months old kept on a parcel needs a valid licence for the current calendar year, and the licence tag must be worn on the dog's collar or harness at all times.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, s. 4.1, 4.4](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "No person shall keep or permit to be kept on a parcel a Dog over the age of four" … "(4) months unless a valid and subsisting Dog Licence for the current calendar year" … "a valid Dog Licence tag is displayed on the Dog"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Issued by:** The City of Fernie. Applications go to the City's Corporate Officer, and licences are sold at City Hall.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, s. 4.3](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "Every application for a Dog Licence shall be made to the Corporate Officer"
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility, Licensing your Dog](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html)
  - Official wording: "For sale at City Hall (501-3rd Avenue)"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Fee, spayed or neutered:** $15 a year for one neutered male or spayed female dog.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, Schedule A](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "One neutered male or spayed female dog; $15.00"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Fee, not spayed or neutered:** $35 a year for one unneutered male or open female dog.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, Schedule A](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "One unneutered male or open female dog; $35.00"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other fees and discounts:** Replacement tag $1. Aggressive Dog licence $150, Vicious Dog licence $227, Dangerous Dog licence $567. Impoundment: $50 first, $75 second, $100 third and later, plus $10 a day board.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, Schedule A](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "Replacement tag. $1.00" … "Aggressive Dog $150.00" … "Vicious Dog $227.00" … "Dangerous Dog $567.00" … "first impoundment: $50.00" … "second impoundment: $75.00" … "third and subsequent impoundments: $100.00"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Renewal:** Every licence runs from January 1 to December 31 and expires on December 31.
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, s. 4.2](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "Every Dog Licence issued under this Bylaw shall expire on the thirty-first day of" … "December next following the date on which the licence was issued"
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility, Licensing your Dog](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html)
  - Official wording: "Valid from January 1 to December 31 each year"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **How to get one:** Buy at City Hall, 501-3rd Avenue. The application needs the owner's name and address, where the dog is kept, and a description of each dog (name, sex, colouring, age, breed, spayed or neutered).
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility, Licensing your Dog](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html)
  - Official wording: "Visit City Hall to purchase your Dog Licence."
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, s. 4.3](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "a full description of each Dog that must be licensed, including name, sex,"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Fine, unlicensed dog:** Municipal ticket $200 for an unlicensed dog over four months, and $200 for not having the licence tag on the dog. (Sources differ: The City web page calls $50, $75 and $100 the "fine" for not having a licence. Those match the impoundment fees in Schedule A of the bylaw, not the ticket schedule. The ticket schedule (Bylaw 2041) sets $200. The ticket schedule heading says "Animal Control Bylaw No. 2436, 2021" but Schedule 1 of the same bylaw still lists "Animal Control Bylaw No. 2346, 2018" (repealed); the appendix sections match Bylaw 2436.)
  - Source: [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 2041, Appendix 7 of Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 2041, s. 4.1 and 4.4](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/55199)
  - Official wording: "Unlicensed dog over four (4) months 4.1 $200.00" … "Failure to affix dog license tag 4.4 $200.00"
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility, Licensing your Dog](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html)
  - Official wording: "The fine for not having a dog license is $50.00 for the first impoundment, $75.00 for the second and $100.00 for the third"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021
  - Source: [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021, Title and Part 4](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
  - Official wording: "This Bylaw may be cited as" … "ANIMAL RESPONSIBILITY BYLAW NO. 2436, 2021"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

Under the [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927), no one may keep a dog over four months old in the City of Fernie without a valid licence for the current calendar year. The tag must be on the dog at all times.

## Steps

1. Go to City Hall, 501-3rd Avenue, to buy the licence.
2. Give the owner's name and address, where the dog is kept, and a description of the dog, including whether it is spayed or neutered.
3. Pay the fee ($15 or $35) and take the tag.
4. Put the tag on the dog.

## Good to know

- A municipal ticket for an unlicensed dog is $200, and so is a ticket for not having the tag on the dog. The City page calls $50, $75 and $100 a "fine"; those amounts match the bylaw's impoundment fees.
- Impoundment fees are $50 the first time, $75 the second and $100 the third and after, plus $10 a day for board. An impounded unlicensed dog also needs its licence fee paid.
- Lost tags are replaced on application to the Bylaw Enforcement Officer.
- The City's page names City Hall only. Ask City Hall whether you can pay online or by card.

## What you'll need

- Owner's name and address, where the dog is kept, and a description of each dog (name, sex, colouring, age, breed, and whether spayed or neutered)

## Official forms and pages

- [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021 (PDF)](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927)
- [Animal Responsibility, City of Fernie](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html)

## Related questions

- [Fernie dog leash rules and off-leash areas](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/dog-leash-rules.md)
- [Fernie rules for aggressive and dangerous dogs](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/dangerous-dogs.md)
- [How many dogs or cats you can keep in Fernie](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/how-many-pets.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Dog licence fees in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/dog-licence.md)
- [Sparwood](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/sparwood/dog-licence.md)
- [Cranbrook](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/cranbrook/dog-licence.md)
- [Elkford](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/elkford/dog-licence.md)
- [Kimberley](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kimberley/dog-licence.md)
- [Canal Flats](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/canal-flats/dog-licence.md)
- [Creston](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/creston/dog-licence.md)

## Sources

- [Animal Responsibility, City of Fernie](https://www.fernie.ca/EN/main/residents/city-services/animal-responsibility.html) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Animal Responsibility Bylaw No. 2436, 2021 (PDF), City of Fernie](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/127927) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 2041 (PDF), City of Fernie](https://fernie.civicweb.net/document/55199) (read 2026-11-05)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 9 of 9 facts was matched to the official text. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with City of Fernie. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/dog-licence/_