Provincial

Chicken small-lot permit or turkey Direct Vendor licence

Selling chicken without quota needs a small-lot permit (up to 2,000 birds a year, one per site); the 200-bird exemption is only for birds eaten on your own farm, and shops and restaurants may buy chicken only from a permit or quota holder. Turkey needs a Direct Vendor licence (up to 300 poults), sold only at the farm gate, farmers’ markets, independent butchers and independent restaurants — not at events, by delivery or to chains. Ducks, geese and spent laying hens aren’t covered by either board.

Who issues it
BC Chicken / BC Turkey Marketing Board
Cost
Chicken permit $20 a year; turkey licence $100 administration fee.

Do you need it?

You need it if

  • You sell chicken without quota (a small-lot permit, 200 to 2,000 birds a year).
  • You sell turkey without quota (a Direct Vendor licence, up to 300 poults).
Where this comes from

Sources

How to get it

  1. 1

    Register for Premises ID first

    Both boards ask for your Premises IDA free provincial number for any place that keeps livestock or poultry, so animals can be traced in a disease outbreak. Farm slaughter licences ask for it.All terms in the glossary number.

  2. 2

    Chicken: send the small-lot form and $20

    By email to the BC Chicken Marketing Board; one permit per site. It can take several business days.

  3. 3

    Turkey: send the Direct Vendor form and $100

    To the BC Turkey Marketing Board, with your poult numbers and placement dates, hatchery and processor.

Where this comes from

Sources

Once you have it

  • A chicken permit expires December 31 — apply every year, and report your placement and processing records or lose it.
Where this comes from

Sources

Which businesses need it

Meat, poultry & egg producersFor chicken or turkey

The rules behind this page

Last checked 5 November 2026. We check this guide regularly against Island Health, provincial and municipal sources, but regulations and laws change often and we can’t guarantee it is complete or current. Confirm with Island Health and your municipality before you apply, build or sell.

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