Is there any countries that u dont need spearfishing licence

[kaossoak]

Denmark

Denmark does not aqquire any specific spearing license but you need a general fishing certificate. Which can be bought for 1 year period is approx 14 euros, you can get week and day cards as well, they can be bought on some campsites and on tourist offices through out the contry, dont know the prices though. I have been spearfishing (3 times a week) for around 8 years now and i have never seen a guy actually controlling the cards, but if you intend participate in any competitions it is recommend that you obtain a certificate as the control here should be more likely...

 

[fleshy]

Come to the US! If you take a holiday to the beautiful island of Hawaii, you will need no fishing license to spear or use rod and reel! :friday

 

[octopus]

If I was not mislead, I think I did not need licence in the Azores. Just needed to respect 5kg bag limit.

 

[Paul Maxwell]

Hi Octopus
I have been to Azores a few times and needed a licence every time. It sticks in my mind as every time I had to loose a mornings diving to go to the Port Police.

Never had a licence in:
Cape Verde
Angola
UK
New Caledonia
Queensland Australia ( NSW I had to get one, remember as had to with till 8:30am for it while the sea was perfect)
St Martins , Carrabean
Peru
Solomon Islands
Mozambique
Do not recollect buying one in NZ even though sizes and limits are strict.

The only place anyone has ever asked to see a licence has been in SA

 

[octopus]

Sorry about that. I guess I was doing it illegally. I naively believed source of the wrong info.

 

[Paul Maxwell]

Hi, I am not a great believer in licenses anyway. They are just a source of income for goverment, correct me if I am wrong! Local regulations control limits etc. In SA you used to run the chance of not getting a renewal if you do not fill in a catch return for the year which in theory is a good thing if everyone does it as it gives fisheries something to produce stats / monitor.

 

[Mr. X]

No license needed in UK.

In the sea. Freshwater is a different matter, see Spaniard's earlier thread for details: http://forums.deeperblue.net/uk-ireland/73342-attention-uk-spearos-salmon-sea-trout.html
I believe this is the relevant legislation:

Salmon and freshwater Fisheries Act 1975:

"No person, for the purpose of taking or killing salmon, trout or freshwater fish, may use a firearm, an otter lath or jack, wire or snare, a crossline or setline, a spear, gaff, stroke-haul, snatch, or other like instrument"

Probably intended to stop poaching. Several decades ago I saw an article in one of the British Sunday papers on Salmon poaching. They showed the equipment used and one set of equipment was a primitive spearing set: a cheap seaside store mask & snorkel c.1970s, a metal catapult (the sort with square-section elastic, no the fancy new tubular ones) and a spear made from a bamboo cane with a flatten, shaped and sharped teaspoon (nice British touch) as the the arrow head. Quite enterprising I thought.

 

[ZEST]

Bulgaria no need license for sea. Lakes and rivers spearfishing is forbidden.

 

[Lobo Marino]

you need a licence in France too (it s free but you have to ask it to the bureau des affaires maritimes) ,it s also included in the cmas-ffesm licence.
but spearing on scuba is strictly forbidden.
by the way does someone knows if spearing on scuba is allowed in some european countries or is it only an american thing ?


(given the fact that there is hardly any fish left in the med shallower than 15m ,it s a good thing that spearing with scuba is banned..at least fishes can have a sanctuary if they go deeper..)

 

[irtrogdor]

I don't think you need one for mexico, but nobody seems to really know. The islands in the sea of cortez are supposedly protected, but nobody really knows about that either.

Like my friend Milton says, "Assume that whatever you are doing is illegal, and try not to get caught."

 

[Old Man Dave]

by the way does someone knows if spearing on scuba is allowed in some european countries or is it only an american thing ?

All of the UK and the Channel Islands permits spearing on scuba but it is not practised much. Scuba divers do catch scallops, crabs etc by hand, plus flatfish, which are mainly taken with handspears or knives. Very rare to see a scubie with a gun, but it is legal.

Dave

 

[Coral Sniper]

Absolutely no license needed in Tonga!

You can spear just about anywhere there is fish.

 

[phuketfreediver]

no license in THAILAND. Just stay out of the marine conservation areas

 

[QUETZAL]

Puerto rico?

 

[bluewaterkiller]

no need in French Polynesia

 

[cmburch]

Hawaii does not require a marine fishing license.

Fishing off a public pier in the ocean and some bays does not require a fishing license in California. Spearfishing does require a license if over 16 years old in California.

 

[octopus]

Indonesia???

 

[azapa]

you are supposed to need one here (CHILE), but I guarantee there is 1 in 1000 that actually has it. no enforcement = worthless laws.

 

[nigelr]

In NSW, Australia, you need to hold a current Recreational Fishing Licence, and are bound by the regulations within it, ie bag limits.
Cost is A$30/year or $75/3 years.
Cheers.

 

[Paua]

New Zealand. Certain size and limits apply but no licence is required to fish or spearfish in salt water. Inland fresh water fishing a licence is required for introduced fish such as trout and salmon. Not for eels though.
SCUBA is allowed for spearfishing. Only Paua (abalone) cannot be taken with SCUBA. Everything else is OK.
I frequently spearfish with an O2 rebreather. Great fun, purists may say "Not sporting" but I don't do it for "sport" only for food!

Cheers,

MH aka PAUA