Don’t ruin live music with $425.00 charge per international artist per performance in Canada.
New fees for international touring musicians threaten smaller clubs and live venues across Canada. Musicians and fans are being encouraged to support the campaign against the new $425 fees that the Canadian Minister of Employment, Social Development & Multiculturalism, Jason Kenney, is imposing on international touring artists – fees that could significantly limit live music in Canada.
Campaigners are calling for an amendment to the regulation that unfairly punishes international musicians and small Canadian venues, and for a new exemption that would allow performing artists to perform in bars, restaurants and coffee shops, without forcing the venue to obtain a Labour Market Opinion and pay for each performer and crew member.
The new rules, which came into effect on 31 July, will double, triple or even quadruple the cost of bringing in international artists to perform in grass roots venues. The regulations require that any venue with a primary business other than music, but which also books bands or performers, must now pay an application fee of $275 per musician and those travelling with the band (tour manager, sound person, guitar tech, etc.) when it applies for a Labour Market Opinion, or LMO, to allow those outside workers to perform and work in their establishment. That is in addition to an extra $150 for each approved musician and crew member’s work permit.
Prior to the changes, the fee was simply $150 per band member, subject to a maximum of $450, and that was a one-time fee for them to simply enter the country, which allowed venue owners across Canada to share the nominal cost or book them separately at no extra charge. This means that many small and medium size venues in Canada will no longer be able to afford to book international bands resulting in less live music in Canada. This increase in cost hurts small artists and businesses because it has exemptions for big festivals and artists who undertake longer tours, but not the average up-and-coming artist just trying to build a fan base.