Thanks Fisherman, I stand corrected. I should have said that my Vessel Licence was issued in 1996. I contacted Transport Canada again by email regarding the need for me to renew my 1996 Vessel Licence and this is what they said:
A vessel license that was issued in 1996 will not have an expiry date and does not have to be renewed unless:
- You have made any changes to the vessel or
- Your name or address has changed or
- You have lost the license document
If any of these three points above apply to you, you will have to apply to renew your license. Once you do that, it will only be valid for 10 years.
So it appears that anyone in a similar position as me does not need to renew their Vessel Licence.