Alaska Dip Net Fishing Regulations: Permits, Proxy, and Reporting

Alaska dip net fishing regulations restrict the activity to Alaska residents harvesting salmon for personal household use, and every trip requires a current sport fishing license, a household personal use permit for most fisheries, legal gear, immediate marking and recording of each fish, and attention to Emergency Orders that can open or close the fishery on short notice. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) sets and enforces the rules, and the details differ by location.

Who Can Dip Net in Alaska

Only Alaska residents may participate in personal use dip net fisheries. Residents 18 and older need a valid Alaska Sport Fishing License, which costs $20 per year.1Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Sport Fishing Licenses, King Salmon Stamps, IDs and Harvest Record Cards Residents under 18 do not need a license. Residents 60 or older and disabled veterans who maintain Alaska residency can fish without buying a license, but they have to apply for and carry an ADF&G Permanent Identification Card or Disabled Veteran card, both issued free of charge.2Alaska Department of Fish and Game. General License Information

Most major dip net fisheries also require a separate Personal Use Fishing Permit, issued per household. The permit holder has to be physically present while anyone fishes on the permit. Upper Cook Inlet permits, which cover the Kenai River, Kasilof River, and Fish Creek, are free. The Chitina Subdistrict permit costs $15 and funds road maintenance and sanitation at the fishery.3Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Chitina Personal Use Salmon Fishery Everyone on the water must carry their license or ID card and the household permit while fishing and while transporting fish.

What Counts as a Legal Dip Net

Alaska law defines a dip net as a bag-shaped net supported on all sides by a rigid frame, attached to a single rigid handle and operated entirely by hand. You cannot anchor it or hold it stationary with any mechanical device. The net has to meet three size limits:4Legal Information Institute. Alaska Administrative Code 5 AAC 39.105 – Types of Legal Gear

  • The maximum straight-line distance between any two points on the frame, measured through the net opening, cannot exceed five feet.
  • The bag must be at least half as deep as the greatest straight-line distance across the opening.
  • No part of the bag may use webbing with a stretched measurement greater than 4.5 inches.

A net that’s too large or has oversized mesh is illegal gear, and using it can bring a citation even if you are otherwise following every other rule.

Marking and Recording Every Fish

In any permit-required personal use fishery, every salmon has to be marked immediately by clipping both tips of the tail fin. Scissors or shears work best. “Immediately” means before the fish goes into a cooler, a bag, or anything else that hides it from view, and before you move it away from the water where you caught it. Failing to mark your fish is a citable violation.5Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Kenai River Salmon Fishery Permits and Regulations

You also have to record each salmon in ink on your Personal Use Permit, which doubles as your harvest card, at the same time you mark the fish. The same “before concealing or transporting” deadline applies. This is the single most common mistake new dipnetters make: tossing fish into a tote and planning to write everything down later. That’s a violation, and enforcement officers at busy fisheries watch for it.

Where and When You Can Fish

Chitina Subdistrict (Copper River)

Salmon may be taken in the Chitina Subdistrict from June 7 through September 30, but only during specific periods opened by Emergency Order. ADF&G sets those periods based on sockeye escapement counts from the Miles Lake sonar, so the fishery can open and close multiple times through the summer.6Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Chitina Personal Use Salmon Fishery Schedule Showing up without checking the current order first is a gamble you’ll lose.

The annual household limit is 25 salmon for the permit holder and 10 additional salmon for each dependent listed on the permit. Only one king salmon may be kept per household, and it counts toward the overall salmon limit.7Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Copper River Personal Use Dip Net Salmon Fishing Schedule A dip net is the only legal gear.

Upper Cook Inlet: Kenai, Kasilof, and Fish Creek

The three Upper Cook Inlet fisheries share a single combined yearly household limit: 25 salmon for the permit holder and 10 salmon for each additional household member listed. King salmon may not be kept in any of these fisheries, and any king caught has to be returned to the water immediately without being removed from it.5Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Kenai River Salmon Fishery Permits and Regulations Because the limit is shared, salmon caught at any of the three locations count against the same household total.

The Kenai River dip net season runs from July 10 through July 31. Fishing hours are normally 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., but when sockeye returns are strong, ADF&G can issue an Emergency Order extending fishing to 24 hours a day.8Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Kenai River Salmon Fishery

The Kasilof River fishery runs from June 25 through August 7 and is typically open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.9Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Kasilof River Personal Use Salmon Fishery Permits and Regulations You can fish from the bank or from a boat.

Fish Creek opens only by Emergency Order, and only when ADF&G projects sockeye escapement will exceed 35,000 fish. If it opens, the season runs from July 15 through July 31, with fishing allowed from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. from a boat or shore.10Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Fish Creek Personal Use Salmon Fishery Overview In practice, Fish Creek does not open every year.

Fishing for Someone Else (Proxy Rules)

Alaska residents can dip net on behalf of other residents who cannot fish for themselves. The beneficiary has to be 65 or older, legally blind, at least 70 percent physically disabled, or developmentally disabled.11Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Proxy Fishing: Personal Use

The paperwork requires a Proxy Fishing Form signed by both parties, valid fishing licenses for both the proxy and the beneficiary, and the beneficiary’s personal use permit. ADF&G has to validate the form before you fish. In the field, you must carry original documents; photocopies are not valid. You can only proxy for one beneficiary at a time, and you record all harvested fish on the Proxy Fishing Form in ink. No payment is allowed in either direction, including reimbursement for gas, food, or lodging. You must personally deliver all edible parts of the fish to the beneficiary within 30 days of harvest.11Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Proxy Fishing: Personal Use

Post-Season Reporting

After the season ends, you have to report your harvest to ADF&G online, even if you never used the permit or caught nothing. Missing the deadline triggers automatic denial of a permit for that fishery the following year.

For Chitina permits, failure to report may also result in a $200 fine on top of losing the following year’s permit.12Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Chitina Personal Use Salmon Fishery Permits and Regulations The Upper Cook Inlet penalty is limited to permit denial for the following season.

Check Emergency Orders Before Every Trip

Emergency Orders carry the same legal force as permanent regulations, and ADF&G can issue them at any time during the season to open, close, or modify a fishery. Current orders are posted on the ADF&G website, organized by region on an interactive map.13Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Emergency Orders and Press Releases – Sport Fish Check that page before every trip. Conditions can change between the weekend you planned your trip and the day you show up with your gear, and “I didn’t know it was closed” is not a defense.