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Panama · PA
Panama
ARAP — Aquatic Resources Authority of Panama
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
- • Sport fishing requires an ARAP licence; the lodges at Piñas Bay, Pedasí and Bocas del Toro arrange them for visiting anglers as part of a trip.
- • Billfish are protected in Panamanian waters — marlin and sailfish must be released, and the famous Piñas Bay black marlin fishery is entirely catch-and-release.
How the rules are organized
- • ARAP covers both oceans and inland waters; Gatún Lake sits inside the Panama Canal watershed, where Canal Authority (ACP) rules on boats and access apply alongside fishing rules.
- • Island and reef areas inside national parks (Coiba, the Pearl Islands reserves) add park permits and zones.
Good to know — common mistakes
- • Gatún Lake peacock bass are an introduced species with no protective limits — the control-the-invader logic is the opposite of the native-species rules elsewhere.
- • Two oceans, one licence: the same ARAP paperwork covers a Pacific black marlin trip and a Caribbean reef trip.
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.