Log Exports

Logs, which are legally referred to as unmanufactured timber, play a key role in B.C.'s coastal forest economy.

Log exports support jobs in logging and transportation sectors. Exporting residuals enables balancing sawmill outputs of chips and sawdust with the intake of domestic pulp mills.

Legislation

The Forest Act, Part 10 requires that Crown and private timber harvested in the province, and residuals from the timber, are used or manufactured in the province into products, as outlined in the Manufactured Forest Products Regulation.

Getting permission to export timber/logs is a two-or-three step process. The first step is obtaining an exemption from the requirement to use or manufacture timber harvested in B.C. The next step is to apply for a provincial permit allowing removal of the timber/logs from the province. The third step, obtaining a federal permit, is necessary when you intend to export the timber/logs outside of Canada.

Throughout the process, the ownership of the timber/logs must be consistent as the exemption and both provincial and federal permits are non-transferable.

If the timber/logs are sold during the process and the new owner wishes to remove them from B.C., the original request will be withdrawn and the new owner must start at the beginning of the process. If the owner has an agent applying on their behalf, that relationship must also remain in place from beginning to end.

Permit Report

The following annual report compares log export permit volumes to harvest volumes for the province for the last 5 years. It summarizes by administrative jurisdiction, region, species and market (destination country).

B.C. Log Export Permit Report 2019-2023 (PDF, 204 KB)

Export Fees Questions & Answers

Do you have questions about the new coast area Fee in Lieu policy? Look here for more information:

Coast FIL Q&A Jan 5, 2022 (PDF, 205KB)