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United States · AZ
Arizona
Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD)
Rules change by area and can change mid-season. We explain what the rules mean and always link you to the official source — we never copy a limit table and call it current.
Licences — what you need
- • One general fishing licence covers statewide waters; a community fishing licence covers stocked urban waters at a lower tier, and a Colorado River stamp structure applies on the river shared with Nevada and California.
- • Licences run 365 days from purchase rather than a fixed season — a detail that works in visitors' favour.
How the rules are organized
- • Rules are organized by water in the regulations booklet — desert reservoirs, urban waters and mountain trout streams each have individual entries and special-regulation flags.
- • Native trout (Apache and Gila trout) recovery waters carry special catch-and-release or artificial-only rules.
Good to know — common mistakes
- • Live baitfish rules differ sharply between the Colorado River system and inland waters.
- • Urban community waters have their own daily framework and stocking calendar — separate from general waters even when they sit inside city parks.
- • Night fishing is broadly allowed but some waters and species close at night — check the individual water.
- • Border waters (Lake Mead, Colorado River) follow interstate special-use rules rather than the inland defaults.
Official links
Fishing locations covered in this guide
This page is a plain-language summary, not the law. Regulations change — including in-season by official notice — and if anything here disagrees with the official source, the official source governs.
AnglerPlan is an information service, not a regulator. If anything here disagrees with an official source, the official source wins — and please tell us so we can fix it.