Do I need a rod licence to go fishing?

Two separate permissions are needed to go fishing legally in most of Britain, and confusing them is the most common mistake beginners make. One is the licence to use a rod at all, issued by government. The other is permission to fish that particular water, granted by whoever owns the fishing rights. You need both.

Safety

Step by step

1. England and Wales: get an Environment Agency rod fishing licence.It is required for fishing with a rod and line for salmon, sea trout, trout, freshwater fish, smelt or eel in England and Wales. It is bought online through GOV.UK, by phone, or at a Post Office, and it is issued immediately. Buying it is quick and cheap relative to the fine for not having one.
2. Get the right type and duration.There are separate licences for trout and coarse fishing and for salmon and sea trout, and the coarse licence comes in versions covering different numbers of rods. Durations are typically one day, eight days or twelve months, with the annual licence running for a year from purchase. Choose the class that covers what you intend to fish for; a coarse licence does not cover salmon.
3. Check the age rules.In England and Wales, children under 13 do not need a licence. Those aged 13 to 16 need a licence but it is issued free of charge. From 17, licences are paid for, with concessions for older anglers and for some disability benefits. Get the free junior licence even though it costs nothing — it is still legally required.
4. Understand that sea fishing is different.No rod licence is needed for sea fishing from the shore or a boat in England and Wales. It is still subject to fisheries rules — minimum sizes, bag limits and seasonal restrictions on species such as bass — which are set nationally and by local inshore fisheries authorities and do change, so check the current rules for the species you may catch.
5. Scotland: understand the different system.There is no rod licence for freshwater fishing in Scotland. Instead, the right to fish belongs to the owner of the fishing rights, and fishing without permission is an offence. Salmon and sea trout are separately protected and fishing for them without a right or written permission is a criminal offence. Fishing for salmon on a Sunday is prohibited, and brown trout have a statutory close season.
6. Northern Ireland: get the right licence for the area.Northern Ireland requires a rod licence, issued by DAERA for most of the province and by the Loughs Agency for the Foyle and Carlingford catchments, plus a permit for the water you intend to fish. The two systems are separate and cover different areas.
7. Then get permission to fish the actual water.A licence does not entitle you to fish anywhere. You need a day ticket, a season ticket, club membership, or the permission of the riparian owner. Commercial fisheries sell day tickets on the bank or online, clubs sell books, and some canal and river stretches are free to fish with a licence — the Canal and River Trust and the Environment Agency publish lists of free fishing.
8. Check the close season.In England and Wales there is a statutory coarse fish close season on rivers, streams and drains from 15 March to 15 June inclusive, when coarse fishing is prohibited. Most stillwaters and canals are exempt. Salmon and trout have their own close seasons which vary by region and by river. Scotland and Northern Ireland set their own. Check before you go.
9. Read the fishery's own rules.Individual fisheries and clubs impose their own conditions on top: barbless hooks, no keepnets, no boilies, unhooking mats compulsory for carp, no night fishing, no dogs, specified swims. These are conditions of your ticket and breaching them means you can be asked to leave.
10. Carry the licence and produce it on request.Environment Agency enforcement officers routinely check licences on the bank and have the power to require you to produce one. A digital copy on the phone is fine, and knowing the licence number is worth doing in case of no signal.
11. Follow the byelaws on fish handling and movement.National byelaws cover keepnet use, size limits, the number of fish that may be taken, and the removal of fish from a water. Moving live fish between waters without a permit is illegal and spreads disease and invasive species.
12. Clean your kit between waters.Check, Clean, Dry is the national biosecurity practice for anglers and paddlers: nets, boots, mats and waders carry invasive species and disease between waters. Some fisheries make it a condition of the ticket.

Tips

• Buy the annual licence if you expect to fish more than a handful of times — the break-even against day licences is quickly reached.
• The free 13 to 16 licence is often overlooked. Enforcement officers do check, and a young angler without one is still committing an offence.
• Licence money in England and Wales is ringfenced for fisheries work — restocking, habitat improvement and enforcement — so it goes back into the fishing.
• Take a photograph of the licence and store it offline. Bank swims frequently have no mobile signal.
• Fishery rules are usually posted at the entrance and on the website. Read them before you set up, not after you have been asked to leave.

Common mistakes

• Assuming a rod licence lets you fish anywhere — It only makes the act of rod fishing lawful. Permission from the owner of the fishing rights — a ticket, a club book, or consent — is a completely separate requirement.
• Fishing a river for coarse fish in April or May — The statutory close season on rivers, streams and drains in England and Wales runs from 15 March to 15 June inclusive. Stillwaters are the alternative during that period.
• Assuming Scottish and English rules are the same — Scotland has no rod licence at all but stricter rules on permission and on salmon. Turning up in Scotland with an EA licence and no permission is still fishing illegally.

Questions people ask