Know what you can keep, how you can fish, and where the rule changes
Tennessee fishing laws are more than a license requirement. TWRA controls statewide creel limits, minimum lengths, hooks, bait, trotlines, jug fishing, protected fish, trout waters and reservoir-specific restrictions. A method or fish that is legal on one lake may be restricted on the next.
The six rules most anglers should know first
License age
Children under 13 are normally exempt from fishing-license purchase. Anglers ages 13–15 need the appropriate junior license, while age 16+ generally requires adult coverage.
Possession limit
TWRA’s general possession limit is twice the daily creel limit. But while afield you may not carry more than the daily creel.
Hooks per rod
Statewide, a rod, pole or hand-held line may generally have up to three hooks, unless a special rule applies.
Number of rods
The statewide default does not impose a numerical rod limit, but individual waters or proclamations may restrict it.
Catfish threshold
Generally, only one catfish over 34 inches may be harvested per day. Catfish at or below 34 inches have no statewide creel cap.
Check the water
Statewide limits apply only when the named lake, stream, refuge or management area does not have a specific exception.
Tennessee fishing creel and minimum length limits
These are TWRA’s general statewide values. Apply a water-specific regulation instead wherever TWRA publishes an exception. “Combined” means different species within the named group count toward one shared limit.
| Fish or group | Daily creel | Length rule | Important exception |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black bass — largemouth, smallmouth, spotted, Alabama and Coosa | 5 combined | No statewide minimum | Many reservoirs impose specific minimums, slots or catch-and-release rules. |
| Crappie — all species | 15 combined | 10-inch minimum | Region 1 default: 30 daily with no minimum unless a named water says otherwise. |
| Striped and hybrid striped bass | 2 combined | 15-inch minimum | Seasonal and protected-length rules on specific reservoirs. |
| White bass | 15 | None statewide | Boundary waters may use different limits. |
| Rock, redeye and shadow bass | 20 | None statewide | Check local water entries. |
| Walleye | 5 | 16-inch minimum | Some reservoirs use higher minimums. |
| Sauger and sauger/walleye hybrids | 10 | 15-inch minimum | Check reservoir and border agreements. |
| Muskellunge | 1 | 36-inch minimum | Some waters protect fish until 50 inches. |
| Trout — combined species | 7 | None statewide | Only two lake trout within seven; trout streams and tailwaters have many exceptions. |
| Redear sunfish | 20 | None statewide | Community fishing waters differ. |
| Skipjack herring | 100 | None statewide | Check applicable boundary agreements. |
| Catfish | No statewide limit at 34 inches or less | Only one fish over 34 inches per day | Community fishing waters and other named locations may have special limits. |
| Paddlefish | 2 during open season | No statewide minimum | April 24–May 31; special reservoir exceptions; no culling. |
| Alligator gar / shovelnose sturgeon | No harvest | Release immediately | Protected statewide. |
On the official pages, first identify your target fish, then search the named water under exceptions. Confirm length and creel limits together, rather than looking at the daily number alone.
What does the fishing regulation actually mean?
Minimum length: a fish must reach the stated legal length before it may be retained. Measure with the mouth closed and tail squeezed as TWRA directs.
How TWRA measures a legally harvestable fish
Lay the fish against a ruler, close its mouth and squeeze the tail fin to measure total length. You cannot manipulate the fish’s mouth to create additional length.
Minimum-size example
A 15-inch minimum permits a 15-inch fish to be kept. A 14.9-inch fish must be released. Check whether the species and water actually use that minimum.
Protected-range example
If a specific water protects fish from 14 through 18 inches, fish in that protected range must be released. Fish outside the range may be kept only if the other regulations permit them.
Which fishing methods are legal in Tennessee?
Rod-and-reel fishing is the most familiar method, but Tennessee also regulates hand lines, trotlines, limblines, jugs, slat baskets, snagging, gigging, grabbling and bow or speargun fishing. Each method has its own boundaries.
Rod, reel and hand-held line
Ordinarily legal with the appropriate license. A maximum of three hooks per rod or hand-held line applies statewide unless otherwise restricted. Single, double and treble hooks each count as one hook. TWRA exempts sabiki rigs used to take shad or herring from this general hook rule.
Trotlines
Sport anglers may use one or more trotlines with no more than 100 hooks in total. Drop lines must be at least 24 inches apart. Identification is required, and lines must be run at least once every 24 hours. Additional placement prohibitions apply near dams and creek mouths.
Limblines and yo-yos
Up to 25 limblines, each with one hook. Each must be labeled above water level with the owner’s name/address or TWRA identification number. They must be checked at least once per 24 hours.
Jug or block fishing
Up to 50 jugs or blocks per sport angler, one hook on each, subject to identification, checking and water-specific restrictions. TWRA State Lakes and Lake Halford are examples where additional limits or prohibitions apply.
Slat baskets
A sportfishing license holder may use one approved slat basket with a TWRA-issued annual metal tag costing $10. The tag year runs July 1–June 30. Slat baskets are for nongame fish and catfish and must be checked at least every 72 hours.
Snagging, gigging, grabbling and archery
These methods may be lawful under the applicable proclamation, but restrictions apply by method, species, season and location. Game fish generally cannot be taken by these alternative methods; catfish, paddlefish, skipjack and nongame fish have distinct conditions. Sturgeon and alligator gar are protected.
Trotline and jug fishing: the numbers to check before setting gear
Maximum total trotline hooks across one or more sportfishing trotlines.
Maximum limblines per sport angler, one hook per line.
Maximum jugs or blocks per sport angler, one hook per jug.
Maximum interval between checks for trotlines, limblines and jugs.
- Tag trotlines with the owner name/address or TWRA ID at the required location on the line.
- Do not place trotlines within 100 yards of the mouth of a river, creek or slough.
- A trotline cannot extend more than three-quarters of the width of a stream, river, chute or embayment.
- Check whether the specific lake restricts or prohibits trotlines, limblines or jugs before deployment.
Tennessee bait laws: catching bait is not permission to transport or release it anywhere
TWRA distinguishes legal baitfish classes, capture devices, harvesting for personal use, bait-dealer rules and transport restrictions. The most consequential rule: never intentionally release or stock live fish, crayfish or salamanders into waters other than the waters from which they were harvested.
Game fish used as bait
A properly licensed angler may harvest qualifying game fish, including sunfish and rainbow trout, for bait using lawful angling methods. The source-water and destination-water rules, daily creel, length and season restrictions still apply.
Trout from specified tailwaters
Trout harvested from South Fork Holston below South Holston Dam, Watauga River below Watauga Dam, Doe River and North River must only be used as bait in the water from which they were harvested.
Cast net specifications
TWRA’s legal bait-harvest cast net has a maximum radius of 10 feet and square mesh from ¼ inch through 1 inch. Legal target species and local restrictions still govern.
Minnow seine specifications
A minnow seine may be no longer than 10 feet with square mesh no larger than ⅜ inch. It must be constantly attended and cannot be fished as a stationary net.
Traps
Minnow and crayfish traps must display identifying owner information or the TWRA identification number. Additional species and equipment provisions apply.
Never transport prohibited live species
TWRA prohibits live possession/transport of listed species including silver, bighead and black carp, blueback herring, zebra mussels, round goby, snakeheads and others. Dispose of unwanted bait responsibly; never dump it into another water.
On the official bait page, find your intended bait species, identify its TWRA class, check legal harvest gear, then read the possession and transport conditions before taking it to a second lake.
Tennessee lakes and rivers where ordinary statewide rules change
The following examples show why a species-wide number cannot be applied blindly. Each location has rules that materially change what an angler can keep or how the angler may fish.
| Water | Important rule | Practical consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Nickajack Reservoir | Largemouth bass 15-inch minimum; smallmouth, spotted, Alabama bass and hybrids have a special over-16-inch provision. | Identify bass species before measuring and retaining. |
| Watts Bar Reservoir | Black bass 15-inch minimum; striped bass have seasonal minimum lengths, including 36 inches in the Nov. 1–March 31 period. | Check the date as well as fish length before keeping stripers. |
| Melton Hill Reservoir | Muskellunge: one daily, 50-inch minimum; no culling. | Release muskies below 50 inches promptly and carefully. |
| Caney Fork River below Center Hill Dam | Total trout creel 5; brown trout one daily at 24-inch minimum; other trout have protected length ranges. | Do not use the statewide seven-trout rule here. |
| Community Fishing Program waters | Black bass one daily; crappie 30; catfish group five; trout five; special gear restrictions. | Community ponds are not governed by the ordinary statewide creel table alone. |
| Travis McNatt Lake, Big Hill Pond State Park | Black bass catch-and-release only under 2026–27 changes. | Release black bass; do not count on statewide harvest allowance. |
| Woodhaven Lake, Montgomery Bell State Park | Black bass catch-and-release only under 2026–27 changes. | Do not retain black bass. |
Fishing regulations that changed in the current TWRA guide
West Tennessee
Herb Parsons Lake became associated with the Herb Parsons Refuge and Bill Dance Lake State Fishing Area. Travis McNatt Lake at Big Hill Pond State Park now requires catch-and-release for black bass.
Middle Tennessee
Woodhaven Lake at Montgomery Bell State Park has a black bass catch-and-release-only regulation.
Cumberland Plateau
Piney River’s delayed-harvest regulations were removed. Big Soddy Creek’s delayed-harvest season now starts November 1 rather than October 1.
Catoosa WMA
Streams and ponds are open to fishing except during deer hunts and wild hog control seasons. Check active WMA hunt/closure dates before entering.
Trout law in Tennessee: seven statewide does not mean seven on every stream
Under the statewide default, seven trout per day may be harvested across trout species, with no more than two lake trout. However, designated tailwaters and delayed-harvest streams have different seasons, size protections, creel limits and methods.
Caney Fork River
From Center Hill Dam downstream to the Cumberland River, including tributaries, the combined trout limit is five. Brown trout are limited to one per day at a 24-inch minimum. Rainbow, brook and cutthroat trout have 14–20-inch protected ranges, with specific oversized-fish allowances.
Elk River below Tims Ford Dam
From Tims Ford Dam to the I-65 bridge, including tributaries, brown trout require a 20-inch minimum and are limited to one per day. Total combined trout creel is seven unless another applicable rule controls.
Open the TWRA trout page, search the river or creek name, locate the reach boundaries, then read species-specific limits and the applicable date range.
Border-water fishing laws: one license may work only inside the defined agreement area
Tennessee has reciprocal agreements with surrounding states, but they do not cover every connected creek, embayment, shoreline or adjacent lake. Rules about which state’s creel limit applies can also vary.
Pickwick Lake: Tennessee / Alabama / Mississippi
The agreement covers specified impounded waters from Pickwick Dam upstream to Tennessee River Mile 224.8 at the mouth of Bear Creek, excluding Bear Creek and the part of Yellow Creek above Highway 25 Bridge. Follow the regulations of the state whose waters you fish.
Kentucky Lake and Dale Hollow
The Kentucky/Tennessee reciprocal areas have precisely described boundaries. Bank anglers follow the rules of the state where they stand; boat anglers must apply the agreement’s licensing and rule provisions.
Mississippi River: Arkansas / Missouri
Reciprocity applies to defined Mississippi River waters and connected areas. Certain tributaries, WMAs and oxbows are excluded or have special common limits. Do not assume the license works on an unrelated tributary.
South Holston Reservoir: Tennessee / Virginia
Special South Holston licenses exist for qualifying Tennessee and Virginia residents. Nonresidents of both states generally cannot rely on that resident reciprocal product and must check licenses needed on each side of the state line.
Big South Fork
The reciprocal stretch extends between Leatherwood Ford Bridge (TN 297) and the KY 92 bridge at Yamacraw. Bank-fishing regulations follow the state of the bank.
Calderwood Reservoir
Tennessee and North Carolina recognize fishing licenses from either state when fishing by boat in the entire reservoir, with a separate boundary-water provision for Slickrock Creek.
Who needs a Tennessee fishing license, and what extra permission might be needed?
| Angler / situation | General law | Extra check |
|---|---|---|
| Resident or visitor under 13 | Generally exempt from the ordinary fishing license. | Some special-location permits may apply even to younger anglers. |
| Youth ages 13–15 | Appropriate junior license required. | Check special-location permit and youth exceptions. |
| Age 16+ resident | Appropriate TWRA resident fishing privilege required unless exempt. | Trout supplemental, special-area permit and type of license. |
| Age 16+ nonresident | Appropriate nonresident fishing product required unless exempt. | No-trout versus all-species; short-term or annual. |
| Resident age 65+ | Resident senior license options exist. | Age/residency proof and any remaining permit obligations. |
| Qualifying farmland owner | Specific TWRA farmland-owner exemptions may apply. | Property ownership, family relationship, residency and conditions. |
| Licensed charter passenger / special water | Do not assume the boat operator’s or another person’s license covers you. | Check the actual state license, access and special permit requirements. |
A Tennessee license does not automatically provide private-property access. Even when you are exempt from licensing, creel, size, bait, method and protected-species laws still apply.
Fish you cannot keep, illegal stocking, and prohibited equipment
Protected fish
Alligator gar and shovelnose sturgeon are no-harvest species under statewide sportfishing regulations. Release immediately if accidentally caught.
No unauthorized restocking
Do not release live fish, crayfish or salamanders into a different water. This includes well-intended moving of bass or bait between lakes.
Explosives and electrical methods
Explosives, poisons, chemicals and electrical shocking devices are prohibited for taking fish. Shooting fish or turtles with firearms or air guns is also prohibited.
Commercial sale
A recreational fishing license does not authorize selling harvested fish or turtles. Commercial activities require the appropriate separate authority.
Use this process before fishing a named Tennessee lake or river
- Identify the exact public water. Record the reservoir, river reach, TWRA lake, WMA or state park name.
- Start with the statewide TWRA table. Find the target species’ usual creel and minimum length.
- Open the exceptions page. Search the waterbody name and match the species in its local rule.
- Check trout separately. Trout tailwaters and delayed-harvest reaches often have special requirements.
- Check the method. Rods, bait, jugs, trotlines, snagging and bowfishing do not have identical permissions.
- Check the license and permit. A special fishing area may require a second permit even with a valid base license.
- Check current closures. WMA hunting closures, dam restrictions, fishery proclamations and emergency actions may override normal access.
- Save the applicable rule. Keep the correct regulation page and license proof available while fishing.
Dam tailwaters: fishing law and sudden water releases are both important
At Center Hill, South Holston, Norris, Cherokee, Pickwick and other controlled tailwaters, water levels and current can change quickly after generation begins. A fishing license does not authorize crossing a restricted dam area.
- Check the dam operator’s current generation schedule or release notice before entering a tailwater.
- Respect marked hazardous areas and restricted distances below dams.
- Wear the required Coast Guard-approved life jacket in marked hazardous areas below dams and locks.
- Do not set prohibited trotlines, jugs or limblines in the restricted dam zone.
- Leave immediately if sirens sound or water rises.
How to obtain or verify a Tennessee fishing license
- Open Go Outdoors Tennessee, the official TWRA licensing platform.
- Find your existing customer record or create a new customer profile.
- Confirm residency, age and license eligibility.
- Select fishing privileges for your actual target species and trip duration.
- Add trout or special-water permits when needed.
- Review validity dates, fees and customer details.
- Pay through the official portal, then save or reprint the electronic license.
For a full comparison of resident and nonresident prices, see the published Tennessee fishing license cost breakdown. If you fish throughout the year, the Tennessee annual fishing license and renewal guide explains license duration and renewal.
Tennessee fishing laws FAQ
How many bass can you keep in Tennessee?
The statewide limit is five black bass combined per day, with no general statewide minimum length. Named waters may impose 15-inch minimums, slot rules or catch-and-release requirements.
What is the Tennessee statewide crappie limit?
Generally 15 crappie combined per day, with a 10-inch minimum. The Region 1 default exception generally allows 30 daily with no minimum unless a specific water states otherwise.
How many fishing rods can you use in Tennessee?
The statewide default sets no limit on the number of poles actively fished at once, unless a water-specific regulation or proclamation limits them. The general three-hook-per-rod restriction still applies.
Are treble hooks legal in Tennessee?
Yes, subject to the current statewide and water-specific rules. A treble hook counts as one hook for the general maximum of three hooks on a rod, pole or hand-held line.
Is jug fishing legal in Tennessee?
It is generally allowed under sportfishing rules, with identification, checking and quantity requirements. The usual limit is 50 jugs or blocks per angler with one hook each, but TWRA Lakes, Lake Halford and other named waters have special restrictions.
Can you use a trotline in Tennessee?
Yes, where permitted. Sportfishing trotlines may have no more than 100 hooks in combination, require identification and regular checking, and have restrictions near dams, creek mouths and certain lakes.
What is the daily trout limit in Tennessee?
The statewide default is seven trout combined, with no more than two lake trout. Special trout waters have their own creel, length, seasonal or delayed-harvest rules.
Can you keep catfish over 34 inches in Tennessee?
Generally, only one catfish over 34 inches may be harvested per day. Catfish 34 inches or less have no statewide daily cap, subject to local exceptions.
Do children need a Tennessee fishing license?
Children under age 13 are generally exempt from the ordinary fishing license. Ages 13–15 generally need the appropriate junior license, and anglers age 16 or older require adult coverage unless exempt. Certain location-specific permits may still apply.
Does a Tennessee fishing license work in other states?
Only where a specific reciprocal agreement permits it. Examples include defined portions of Pickwick Lake, Kentucky Lake, Dale Hollow, the Mississippi River and other border waters. The agreement boundaries and applicable creel rules must be checked for each location.
Six actions that prevent the most common fishing-law violations
- Match your fishing license to your age, residency and target species.
- Find the named water in TWRA’s exceptions before applying statewide limits.
- Measure fish with the mouth closed and tail squeezed.
- Check any gear-specific restrictions before setting jugs, trotlines or limblines.
- Never transfer live bait or fish to another waterbody without lawful authorization.
- Save current rules and check dam releases or access closures before the trip.