RESOURCES
PART TWO – PARTICIPANT ELIGIBILITY AND RESIDENCY
ARTICLE 1 – ELIGIBILITY AND PENALTIES
1.1 Eligibility
a) Players will be eligible to participate in Canadian Championships provided they:
i) Meet existing Softball Canada residency rules.
ii) Represent the province/territory in which they were registered by the official registration date.
iii) Are at least fifteen (15) years of age as of January 1 of the current year in order to be eligible to participate in a Men’s or Women’s Canadian Championship.
b) Players need not have participated in a provincial/territorial elimination tournament as long as they were eligible to do so.
c) Players will be eligible to participate in elimination tournaments leading to Canadian Championships only in the province/territory in which they are registered as of the official registration date.
d) Players will be allowed to participate in more than one fast pitch championship and more than one slo–pitch championship provided they are not held concurrently, with their province/territory’s approval.
e) Softball Canada and the Canadian Championship committee shall have the authority, with the release of the Province/Territory, to deem players eligible to participate in the Canadian Championships for the betterment of the event and National body. Each circumstance will be treated separately and a decision will be made based on the situation at hand. The outcome of this decision cannot be protested or appealed.
f) No import player will be allowed to play in two (2) separate Canadian Championships in the same year with two (2) different provinces and/or territories.
g) Players must have played in a minimum of 1 game in the Round Robin of the Championship in order to be eligible to play in the Championship Round.
1.2 Penalties
a) Use of an ineligible player shall result in the following penalties:
i) All games the ineligible player has participated in shall be forfeited.
ii) The team using the ineligible player shall be disqualified from the Canadian Championship.
b) Any forfeiture or default by a team shall lead to disqualification from the Canadian Championship.
Exception: Forfeiture of a game due to not enough eligible players because of substitutions, injuries, or ejections shall not result in the disqualification from a championship.
ARTICLE 2 – RESIDENCY
2.1 Resident Canadian Citizens
a) To be eligible to compete as a player, coach or manager in a Canadian Championship, a Canadian citizen must be a bona fide resident of the province/territory that they will represent by the official residency date of the year of competition.
b) The Softball Canada official residency date is May 1st.
c) Canadian citizens enrolled in full-time study at a post-secondary educational institution will be exempt from the official residency date requirement provided they establish residence (in the province/territory that they will represent) immediately following completion of commitments at that institution.
d) Canadian citizens participating in professional sport competitions (other than softball or baseball) will be exempt from the official residency date requirement provided they establish residence (in the province/territory which they will represent) immediately following the event.
2.2 Landed Immigrant Status
a) All residence requirements for Canadian citizens represent minimum requirements for Canadian landed immigrants.
b) In addition, landed immigrants must have obtained their landed immigrant status prior to the official residency of the year of participation.
2.3 Non–Resident Canadian Citizens
a) Canadian citizens who do not reside in Canada may play in the Canadian Championships, provided they have the official approval of the province/territory they will represent, subject to the following considerations:
i) The non-resident Canadian citizen shall play for their home province/territory. In the event that they play in a province/territory other than their home province/territory, the non-resident Canadian citizen shall have import status.
ii) The player shall make Softball Canada aware of the province/territory that they intend to play for by the official residency date of the year they will play. The player will indicate their intention by filling in a Non-Resident Canadian Eligibility Form and submitting a copy to Softball Canada and to the province/territory in which they intend to play.
iii) In the case that there shall be a dispute between two or more Provincial/Territorial Associations regarding the player’s province/territory of eligibility, Softball Canada shall make this determination by July 2nd of the year of competition.
2.4 Non–Canadian Citizens
Players, Coaches and Managers that are not Canadian citizens or landed immigrants may participate in a Canadian Championship provided that they have been continuous residents of Canada for one calendar year prior to the dates of the championship in which they wish to participate and meet all other residency requirements.
2.5 Bylaw Registration Requirements
All players must meet Softball Canada Bylaw registration requirements as per Article 1.3 c) ii).
2.6 Provincial Non-Residents (Fast Pitch only)
a) In U20 Men’s, U19 Women’s, U23 Men’s/Women’s Championships, all but six (6) players, and only two of these will be allowed to be pitchers, on any territorial representative team to a Canadian Championship must be a bona fide resident of that territory by the official residency date for the year of competition, with the release of the Province/Territory that the player is registered with.
b) In U23 Men’s, U23 Women’s, Men’s, Master Men’s and Women’s Canadian Championships, all but two (2) players, and only one of these will be allowed to be a pitcher, on any provincial/territorial representative team to a Canadian Championship must be a bona fide resident of that Province/Territory by the official residency date for the year of competition.
c) These exemptions will be granted to players who meet either of the following conditions:
i) Canadian citizens living outside of Canada who return to their home province after May 1 and register for softball participation purposes only; or
ii) Canadian citizens residing in Canada WHO DO NOT register with the provincial/territorial association where they resided prior to that provincial/territorial date but choose to register with a different association of their choice. This registration must be complete by the registration date and the individual must obtain consent from the province/territory they reside in even if not registered in their province/territory of residence; or
iii) Any player who has completed their playing commitments within their registered province/territory can be picked up by another provincial/territorial representative team with the consent of both provinces/territories. These players will be considered imports and treated as such under Article 2.6 a-b.
iv) Any player registered in Slo-Pitch in any province/territory is eligible to be used as an import in Senior Canadian Fast Pitch Championships.
NOTE: Players residing outside of Canada who declare their intent to play for their home province prior to May 1st as per the guidelines set out in Article 2.3 are not considered imports and there is no limit on the number of returning players.
2.7 Definition of Residency
a) Residency requirements exist to provide an orderly registration of participants in Softball Canada’s Canadian Championships. In simplest terms, the participant must be a legal resident of the province/territory that they will represent at the championship.
b) Legal residency for Softball Canada purposes shall require the participant to reside in their province of participation on the official residency In determining residency, Softball Canada must be satisfied that the participant has shown a substantial connection to the Province or Territory. Establishment of residential status may be demonstrated by, but is not limited to, the following factors:
i) Proof of employment in the Province/Territory;
ii) Proof of medical insurance coverage in the Province/Territory, issued by said Province/Territory, in the form of a health care card. An application for a health card will not suffice;
iii) Proof of a domicile, mailing address and telephone listing in the Province/Territory of the player or legal guardian;
iv) In the case of participants 16 years of age or over, proof of possession of a driver’s license from the Province/Territory;
v) In the case of participants 18 years of age or over, proof of registration as a voter in the Province/Territory; and/or
vi) Proof of other factors that convincingly demonstrate a strong social or economic connection to the Province/Territory as requested by Softball Canada.
vii) Proof of full time attendance at an elementary school, high school or related work/study program in the Province/Territory.
c) One of the major intents of Article 2.7 b) vii) is to ensure that Minor softball players play in the Province/Territory where they are bona-fide residents and attend elementary school, high school, a related work/study program or work full-time.
d) Softball Canada shall make the determination as to legal residency.
ARTICLE 3 – PROTESTS
a) Protests regarding eligibility for Championships except Men’s Fast Pitch will be acted upon by the Association representative provided they are lodged in writing and signed by the coach or manager before midnight of day one of the tournament. Eligibility protests made after that time will be dealt with after the championship.
b) Protests regarding eligibility for Men’s Fast Pitch Championships will be acted upon by the Association providing they are lodged in writing and signed by a Provincial/Territorial office official. Protests must be lodged by midnight of the seventh day preceding the first day of the championship. Eligibility protests received or made after that time will be dealt with after the championship.