Tennessee fishing laws require anyone 13 or older to carry a valid license from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), obey daily creel and size limits that vary by species and by water, use only approved gear and methods, and steer clear of protected species. Fees start at $10 for a resident county-of-residence license and $20 for a non-resident three-day permit.1Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. License Structure and Fees Penalties run from small fines for a missing license up to mandatory jail time for destructive methods.
Who Needs a License
Anyone who takes or attempts to take fish in Tennessee needs a valid license, and so does anyone assisting another angler.1Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. License Structure and Fees The requirement covers crayfish and salamanders too, which surprises anglers who assume the rules stop at fish.
A few groups are exempt. Children under 13 fish free regardless of residency. Resident landowners, their spouses, and their children need no license on their own farmland, and the same exemption reaches tenants and their immediate families on farmland they work. On Free Fishing Day, June 6, 2026, residents and visitors of any age can fish public waters without a license; youth 15 and under get an extended free week through June 12.
License Types and Fees
Tennessee’s system is layered. What you pay depends on where you live, where you fish, whether you want trout, and how long you plan to be on the water.1Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. License Structure and Fees
Resident Options
The cheapest resident license is the county-of-residence permit at $10, which covers everything except trout in your home county. To fish statewide or in trout waters, you need broader coverage. The Annual Sportsman license at $165 bundles fishing, hunting, and trapping statewide, including trout. If you only want to add trout to a basic license, the Annual Trout Supplemental costs $21. Resident veterans certified by the VA with at least a 30% service-connected disability, or 100% service-connected, qualify for a combined hunting and fishing license at $10. Residents 65 and older can buy a Lifetime Sportsman License for $329.
Non-Resident Options
Non-residents 16 and over pay $49 for an annual fishing license without trout, or $98 with all species included. A three-day permit without trout runs $20. Non-residents aged 13 to 15 buy a lower-cost junior license.
Special-Area Permits
A state license does not cover every water. Gatlinburg’s city streams need either a Gatlinburg One-Day Trout Permit on its own, or a state license paired with a Gatlinburg trout permit.2City of Gatlinburg. Fishing in Gatlinburg Tennessee residents holding a Sportsman’s or Lifetime Sportsman License need nothing extra for Gatlinburg.
Reelfoot Lake requires a separate Preservation Permit, though anglers under 16, residents 65 and older, and lifetime or sportsman license holders are exempt.3Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Reelfoot Lake in Tennessee Portions of Reelfoot are managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and close seasonally, so check current dates before you go.
Creel and Size Limits by Species
Statewide limits are the floor. Individual reservoirs and rivers routinely impose tighter rules, and what is legal on one lake can be illegal on the next. Always check the regulations for the specific water you plan to fish.
Black Bass
The statewide daily limit for black bass, including largemouth, smallmouth, spotted, Alabama, and Coosa, is five fish in any combination, with no statewide minimum length.4Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Regulations and Creel and Length Limits That leniency catches anglers because most reservoirs set their own minimums: 15 inches for largemouth on some, 18 inches for smallmouth on others, and slot limits on certain lakes to protect breeding-age fish.
Crappie
Statewide daily limit is 15 crappie in any combination, with a 10-inch minimum. The Mississippi River is a notable exception, allowing 50 crappie per day with no length requirement.5Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Fishing Regulation Exceptions
Catfish
No daily limit on catfish under 34 inches. You may keep one catfish over 34 inches per day.4Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Regulations and Creel and Length Limits
Striped and Hybrid Striped Bass
Two fish per day in any combination, 15-inch minimum. The Mississippi River allows six per day with no minimum length.5Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Fishing Regulation Exceptions
Legal Methods and Gear
Rod and reel, cane poles, and hand lines are the standard legal methods. Some waters cap how many rods you can run at once. Beyond those basics, Tennessee allows several alternative methods, each with its own rules.
Trotlines, Limb Lines, and Jugs
All three are legal, but every device must be tagged with your name and address or TWRA identification number, and each must be checked at least once every 24 hours.4Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Regulations and Creel and Length Limits None may be used within 1,000 yards below any TVA or Corps of Engineers dam.
Bowfishing and Spearfishing
Bowfishing is legal for non-game species like carp and gar, and prohibited for game fish. All bowfishing gear must have a retrieval line, and crossbows are not allowed for fishing.6Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Fishing Regulations Spearfishing is legal for non-game fish only, and only while fully submerged during daylight hours. Gigging and snagging are allowed on selected waters in designated seasons.
Bait
Live bait is regulated mainly to stop the spread of invasive species. Approved baitfish are fine, but transporting live bait across state lines is restricted. Cast nets and minnow seines are legal for collecting bait if they meet size rules. Silver carp and several other species are restricted under state law and the federal Lacey Act, which prohibits interstate shipment of designated injurious species including bighead carp and certain invasive mussels.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 42 – Importation or Shipment of Injurious Mammals, Birds, Fish, Amphibia, and Reptiles
Protected Species You Cannot Keep
Several species must be released immediately regardless of size or method. All three sturgeon species in Tennessee are protected.8Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Sturgeon in Tennessee Lake sturgeon are listed as threatened in the state; if you catch one incidentally, release it right away and report the time, location, and length to the TWRA. Pallid sturgeon are federally endangered. Shovelnose sturgeon are protected because they closely resemble pallids and are easily misidentified.
The snail darter is protected under both state and federal law. Many freshwater mussels, including the pink mucket and Tennessee clubshell, are also protected.
Special Waters and Seasonal Closures
Some waters carry gear restrictions or seasonal rules on top of the statewide limits. On the Caney Fork River and the upper end of Center Hill Reservoir, from January 1 through April 30, anglers are limited to a single hook with one barb, or a lure with one single-barb hook, and no more than three rods.5Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Statewide Fishing Regulation Exceptions This protects walleye during their spawning run.
Some trout streams, including sections of the Tellico River, close seasonally so stocked fish can acclimate. The Clinch River uses slot limits requiring release of fish within specific size ranges. Many special-regulation waters allow artificial lures only. These rules change based on annual biological surveys, so relying on last year’s regulations is one of the most common ways anglers accidentally break the law.
Penalties for Violations
Tennessee treats fishing violations as misdemeanors, with the class depending on the offense.
Fishing without a valid license is a Class C misdemeanor, carrying a fine of $10 to $25.9Justia. Tennessee Code 70-2-101 – License Revocation and Penalties Court costs push the real total higher. The bigger risk is what comes after: violating a court-imposed license revocation carries a mandatory 10-day minimum jail sentence, up to 11 months and 29 days, and the court cannot suspend that minimum.
Illegal taking or possession of fish, which includes exceeding creel limits, keeping undersized fish, or harvesting protected species, is a Class B misdemeanor. Each fish counts as a separate offense.10Justia. Tennessee Code 70-4-102 – Illegal Taking, Possession or Destruction of Fish and Wildlife Five bass over the limit means five charges.
Using dynamite, electrical devices, explosives, chemicals, or poison to kill or stun fish is also a Class B misdemeanor.11Justia. Tennessee Code 70-4-119 – Taking of Aquatic Animal Life The TWRA can also confiscate fish and seize the equipment used.
The Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact
Tennessee belongs to the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, so a suspension here follows you into other member states, and their suspensions follow you into Tennessee.12Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. TWRA Law Enforcement in Tennessee The compact also reaches failure-to-appear situations. If a non-resident gets a wildlife citation in Tennessee and does not show up in court, the TWRA notifies the home state, which suspends the angler’s resident license until the Tennessee case is resolved. Ignoring an out-of-state citation is one of the most avoidable and expensive mistakes on the water.