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United States · MA
Massachusetts
MassWildlife & Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries
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
- • Two agencies again: freshwater fishing needs a MassWildlife licence; saltwater needs the recreational saltwater fishing permit (with reciprocity for neighbouring states' permits in some cases).
- • Licences are calendar-year; the saltwater permit registration feeds the federal angler registry.
How the rules are organized
- • Freshwater rules are largely statewide by species with named special waters (Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs have their own access/season systems entirely).
- • Marine rules are species-based, with striped bass and groundfish following the interstate/federal frameworks.
Good to know — common mistakes
- • Quabbin Reservoir fishing requires its own season pass/boat system and follows reservoir rules that replace general freshwater expectations.
- • Striped bass circle-hook rules for bait fishing apply in state waters — part of the coastwide framework.
- • River herring runs are closed to harvest statewide — a rule dating back years that still catches people out.
- • Trout stocked waters and the Deerfield/Swift River special sections carry gear-specific rules.
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.