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United States · WA
Washington
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW)
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
- • Licences are sold as freshwater, saltwater or a combination; salmon, steelhead, sturgeon and halibut each need a catch record card, and several fisheries need additional endorsements (such as the Columbia River salmon/steelhead endorsement).
- • Catch record cards must be marked immediately when you keep a listed species, and returned or reported at season's end.
How the rules are organized
- • Saltwater rules are set by numbered Marine Areas; freshwater rules are listed water by water in one of the country's longest rulebooks.
- • Puget Sound salmon seasons are set annually through the North of Falcon process, and emergency in-season changes are routine.
Good to know — common mistakes
- • Barbless hooks are required for salmon in most marine waters and many rivers.
- • A two-pole endorsement exists but does not apply everywhere — it is water-specific.
- • Selective-gear and selective-fishery rules (single barbless hooks, no bait) apply on many trout and steelhead waters.
- • Emergency rule changes are common mid-season — check before every trip, not every season.
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.