{"id":28682,"date":"2021-06-18T11:54:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-18T09:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/?p=28682"},"modified":"2026-04-07T08:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T08:57:13","slug":"massachusetts-fishing-license","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 4<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><p>The Bay State is famous for its amazing summers, local seafood, and rich history, and the whole world knows that it&rsquo;s home to MIT and Harvard. Without a doubt, Massachusetts has a lot to offer, but what can beat a fishing adventure there?<\/p><p>With over 1,500 miles of coastline, beautiful freshwater lakes, reservoirs, ponds, streams, and rivers, there are lots of fishing opportunities for any type of angler. All you need is a Massachusetts fishing license!<\/p><script src=\"https:\/\/fast.wistia.com\/player.js\" async><\/script><script src=\"https:\/\/fast.wistia.com\/embed\/s0q9sx9jw3.js\" async type=\"module\"><\/script><style>wistia-player[media-id='s0q9sx9jw3']:not(:defined) { background: center \/ contain no-repeat url('https:\/\/fast.wistia.com\/embed\/medias\/s0q9sx9jw3\/swatch'); display: block; filter: blur(5px); padding-top:56.25%; }<\/style><wistia-player media-id=\"s0q9sx9jw3\" aspect=\"1.7777777777777777\"><div class=\"wistia_preload_transcript_outer_wrapper\" style=\"width: 100%; height: 100%; display:flex; justify-content:center; align-items: center; margin-top:-56.25%;\"><div class=\"wistia_preload_transcript_inner_wrapper\" style=\" overflow: auto;\"><p class=\"wistia_preload_transcript_text\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\" style=\"text-align: justify; font-size: 5px !important;\">The Bay State is famous for its beautiful summers,&nbsp; prestigious universities, and of course, fantastic&nbsp;&nbsp; fishing. With over 192 miles of coastline and&nbsp; more freshwater fisheries than you can count,&nbsp;&nbsp; Massachusetts holds a lot of promise for every&nbsp; passionate angler. When the state&rsquo;s nickname is&nbsp;&nbsp; the &quot;Codfish State,&quot; you know the fishing&nbsp; will be one for the books. But before you&nbsp;&nbsp; start exploring all of its potential, you&#039;ll&nbsp; need to get a Massachusetts fishing license.\r\n\r\nStay with us and we&#039;ll walk you through everything&nbsp; there is to know about getting your license.\r\n\r\nWe&#039;ll&nbsp;&nbsp; cover the types of licenses there are, which&nbsp; one to pick, where to get them, and more. Let&#039;s dive straight in.\r\n\r\nEvery angler who&nbsp; is 15 and older, resident or non-resident,&nbsp;&nbsp; needs a valid license to fish in Massachusetts.&nbsp;\r\n\r\nThe price of the license depends on whether&nbsp;&nbsp; you&#039;re a state resident or not, the type&nbsp; of the license, as well as your age.\r\n\r\nThere are also some groups who are exempt&nbsp;&nbsp; to the rules and who can fish&nbsp; free of charge.\r\n\r\nThey include: Young adults under the age of 16 in saltwater&nbsp; and under the age of 15 in freshwater&nbsp; Anglers aged 70 and older Disabled individuals&nbsp; Individuals holding an Atlantic Highly&nbsp; Migratory Species Permit (the &ldquo;HMS Permit&rdquo;)&nbsp; [And]\r\n\r\nAnglers fishing on a charter boat Speaking of which, if you are planning on&nbsp; going out with a charter, why not go to&nbsp;&nbsp; FishingBooker.com and choose the best guide for&nbsp; you? &nbsp; Ok, so now you know whether your&nbsp; fishing license is free or not,&nbsp;&nbsp; but you still need to know which one to get. Keep&nbsp; in mind that you should have your fishing license&nbsp;&nbsp; with you at all times, regardless of whether&nbsp; you&rsquo;re fishing in freshwater or saltwater.\r\n\r\nThere are different types of&nbsp; permits you can choose from,&nbsp;&nbsp; and the categories are the same for&nbsp; residents and non-residents. The&nbsp;&nbsp; main difference is that freshwater&nbsp; licenses are cheaper for residents.&nbsp; In order to qualify as a resident, you must have: Permanent legal residence in the state&nbsp; Spent more than 183 days in Massachusetts and&nbsp; maintained a permanent place of residence there&nbsp; [Or]\r\n\r\nBeen a part-year resident who moved&nbsp; into or out of the state during the tax year The freshwater licenses available to&nbsp; residents include annual and 3-day,&nbsp;&nbsp; as well special licenses for&nbsp; seniors between the ages of 65&ndash;69. Non-residents can also enjoy&nbsp; the excellent fishing action&nbsp;&nbsp; Massachusetts has to offer. They get&nbsp; the same license options as residents,&nbsp;&nbsp; but at a higher price point. Freshwater anglers&nbsp; under the age of 15 can fish without a license.&nbsp;&nbsp;\r\n\r\nIf you&#039;re under 16 and you&#039;re fishing in&nbsp; saltwater, you don&#039;t need a license either. Speaking of saltwater licenses, these&nbsp; come in at the same price point for&nbsp;&nbsp; residents and non-residents, and they cost&nbsp; around $10 for anglers between the ages of&nbsp;&nbsp; 16&ndash;59. People who are 60 and older can&nbsp; get their saltwater license for free.\r\n\r\nIf you want to shake things up and&nbsp; catch some Green Crabs on your trip,&nbsp;&nbsp; you&#039;ll need to get special&nbsp; authorization from the Division of&nbsp;&nbsp; Marine Fisheries (DMF).\r\n\r\nRecreational&nbsp; lobstering also requires a permit,&nbsp;&nbsp; as does shellfishing, which you can also get&nbsp; at the local Division of Marine Fisheries. Finally, please remember that while there are&nbsp; groups who can get their license for free,&nbsp;&nbsp; they still need to have it on them while fishing.&nbsp;\r\n\r\nSo now that you know which type&nbsp; of license you need, the next step&nbsp;&nbsp; is figuring out how to get one, which is&nbsp; luckily the easiest part. You can buy it: Online through the MassFishHunt website, Via phone,&nbsp; Or in person at license agent&nbsp; locations and in some retail stores.\r\n\r\nOnce you have your license, make sure&nbsp; to bring it with you while fishing.&nbsp;&nbsp; A clear photograph of the permit on&nbsp; your smartphone is also acceptable.\r\n\r\nIf you lose your license, there&rsquo;s no need&nbsp; to worry! If you bought your license online,&nbsp;&nbsp; you can easily find a digital copy on&nbsp; your smartphone, which you can reprint.&nbsp;&nbsp;\r\n\r\nYou can also call or visit one of the&nbsp; MassFishHunt offices and have it sorted.&nbsp; Massachusetts gets along well with its neighbors,&nbsp; so there are several reciprocity agreements from&nbsp;&nbsp; which you can benefit. Along\r\n\r\nwith your&nbsp; Massachusetts saltwater fishing license,&nbsp;&nbsp; you can also fish in New Hampshire,&nbsp; Rhode Island, and Connecticut. In the same way, if you hold a saltwater&nbsp; fishing license issued in any of these states,&nbsp;&nbsp; you don&rsquo;t have to get a Massachusetts one.\r\n\r\nWith&nbsp; a Massachusetts saltwater fishing permit, you can&nbsp;&nbsp; also fish in Maine&rsquo;s waters, but not vice versa. And that about covers it.\r\n\r\nToday we learned that: Everyone who is 15 and older,&nbsp; resident and non-resident,&nbsp;&nbsp; needs a Massachusetts fishing license You need different licenses for freshwater and&nbsp;&nbsp; saltwater fishing, and the same license options&nbsp; are available both for residents and non-residents&nbsp; You can buy your license online or in person [And]\r\n\r\nWith a Massachusetts permit, you can&nbsp;&nbsp; fish in the waters of New Hampshire,&nbsp; Maine, Rhode Island, and Connecticut As you can see, getting a Massachusetts fishing&nbsp; license is pretty easy! Now that you&#039;ve got&nbsp;&nbsp; a general idea of how things work, you&#039;re&nbsp; ready for your fishing trip. And that&#039;s it,&nbsp;&nbsp; your angling adventures in the&nbsp; Codfish State can officially begin!<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/wistia-player><p>So, you&rsquo;ve decided to cast a line but have no idea what permit or license you need to make sure you are fishing within the law. Don&rsquo;t worry, we&rsquo;ve got you covered! Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about all the necessary fishing licenses of the &ldquo;Cod State.&rdquo;<\/p><p>Check out our full list of licensing guides <a href=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/category\/licenses-regulations\/\">here<\/a> if you are looking for info on the US.<\/p><h2 id=\"who-needs-a-fishing-license-in-massachusetts\">Who needs a fishing license in Massachusetts?<\/h2><p>In short, if you are aged 15 or older, resident or non-resident, you will need a license to fish in Massachusetts. However, there are some exceptions where residents of the state can fish without a license or get one for free. More on this in the next section.<\/p><p>Fees vary depending on the length and type of the license, as well as your age. When you purchase a fishing license, that money will be used to support various marine recreational fishing projects and programs, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/info-details\/masswildlife-funding#how-do-license-fees-provide-programs-and-services-for-hunters,-anglers,-and-trappers?-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MassWildlife<\/a>.<\/p><h3 id=\"information-for-residents\"><strong>Information for Residents<\/strong><\/h3><p>If you are a Massachusetts resident, there are various types of fishing licenses you can choose from. There&rsquo;s an option for any angler, whether you are looking to spend a couple of days exploring the local rivers and lakes or just planning a short fishing trip to the Atlantic Ocean.<\/p><p>Your Massachusetts fishing license allows you to fish in the marine waters (including those that flow up to 3 nautical miles from the coastline between the first upstream bridge over streams or rivers and the ocean) and up to 200 from the coast.<\/p><p>Note that you will have to buy separate permits for your saltwater and freshwater fishing adventures. A combination type of license is not available.<\/p><h3 id=\"whos-considered-a-massachusetts-resident\"><strong>Who&rsquo;s considered a Massachusetts resident?<\/strong><\/h3><p>You qualify as a legal resident if you:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Are domiciled* in the state for the entire tax year;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Spend more than 183 days in Massachusetts and maintain a permanent place of residence (not counting the days spent in the state while on active duty in the armed forces);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Are a part-year resident who moved into or out of the state during the tax year.<\/li>\n<\/ul><p><em>*your domicile is your permanent legal residence\/home<\/em><\/p><h3 id=\"costs-for-residents\"><strong>Costs for Residents<\/strong><\/h3><p>Note that although licenses are free for Massachusetts residents aged 15&ndash;17 or 70 and over, along with anglers with disabilities, they still need to get a permit. The only residents who don&rsquo;t need a license are anglers under 16.<\/p><p>Please note that there&#8217;s a $5.00 Wildlands Conservation Stamp that will be added to the first resident license.<\/p><table class=\"table table-bordered table-hover\">\n\n<thead>\n\n<tr>\n\n<th>Resident License Type<\/th>\n<th>Cost<\/th>\n<\/tr><\/thead>\n\n<tbody>\n\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>Year-long<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$36.50<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>3-Day<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$17.50<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>Ages 65-69<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$18.25<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>Ages 15-17 or 70+, as well as paraplegic, blind, intellectually disabled<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n\n<\/table><h3 id=\"information-for-non-residents\"><strong>Information for Non-Residents<\/strong><\/h3><p>If you are not a resident of Massachusetts and just want to book a fishing trip there, you have a lot of options. However, you will still need to purchase a non-resident permit in order to fish in the state &ndash; unless you are under the age of 15.<\/p><h3 id=\"costs-for-non-residents\"><strong>Costs for Non-Residents<\/strong><\/h3><p>Please note that there&#8217;s a $5.00 Wildlands Conservation Stamp that will be added to the non-resident licenses.<\/p><table class=\"table table-bordered table-hover\">\n\n<thead>\n\n<tr>\n\n<th>Non-Resident License Type<\/th>\n<th>Cost<\/th>\n<\/tr><\/thead>\n\n<tbody>\n\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>Year-long<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$46.50<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>3-Day<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$28.10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>Ages 15-17<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$7.70<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n\n<\/tbody>\n\n<\/table><h3 id=\"what-about-saltwater\"><strong>What about saltwater?<\/strong><\/h3><p>A Massachusetts recreational saltwater fishing license is available for anglers aged 16&ndash;59. Just like the freshwater one, this license is free of charge for people over the age of 60.<\/p><p>Massachusetts has reciprocity agreements with various other states, including New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. That means that if you hold a saltwater fishing license issued in any of these states, you don&rsquo;t have to get a Massachusetts one.<\/p><p>With a Massachusetts saltwater fishing permit you can also go to the waters of Maine, but not vice versa.&nbsp;<\/p><table class=\"table table-bordered table-hover\">\n\n<thead>\n\n<tr>\n\n<th>Age<\/th>\n<th>Cost<\/th>\n<\/tr><\/thead>\n\n<tbody>\n\n<tr>\n\n<td><strong>&lt; 60 (Residents &amp; Non-residents)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>$10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n\n<td><b>60+ (Residents &amp; Non-residents)<\/b><\/td>\n<td>$0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n\n<\/table><h2 id=\"who-can-fish-without-a-license\"><strong>Who can fish without a license?<\/strong><\/h2><p>As we mentioned before, licenses might be free for some anglers, but still, need to be purchased. It&rsquo;s only fair to wonder, can anyone fish without a license at all? The answer is &ndash; yes.<\/p><p>So, you don&rsquo;t need a Massachusetts fishing license if you:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Are a minor under the age of 16 (or 15 for freshwater);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Meet the state&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/malegislature.gov\/Laws\/GeneralLaws\/PartI\/TitleII\/Chapter19C\/Section1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">definition<\/a> of a disabled person;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Are planning on <a href=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/charters\/search\/us\/MA?utm_source=fishingbooker&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=post_content_link&amp;utm_term=28682\">booking a fishing charter<\/a> with a licensed captain. The boat&rsquo;s license will cover you.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hold the <strong>Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Permit<\/strong> (the &ldquo;HMS Permit&rdquo;) &ndash; a government-issued permit that allows anglers to fin-fish (and not land any fish) exclusively in federal waters.<\/li>\n<\/ul><h2 id=\"additional-requirements\"><strong>Additional Requirements<\/strong><\/h2><p>If you&rsquo;re planning to spice up your fishing adventure and harvest green crabs recreationally, you will need to be authorized by the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF). Recreational lobstering also requires a permit, along with shellfishing (you can get it at the local <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/how-to\/buy-a-recreational-lobster-permit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Division of Marine Fisheries<\/a>).<\/p><h2 id=\"where-to-buy-your-massachusetts-fishing-license\"><strong>Where to Buy Your Massachusetts Fishing License<\/strong><\/h2><div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143150\/Massachusetts-license.jpg\" alt=\"Everything you need to know about getting a Massachusetts fishing license\" class=\"wp-image-28685\" srcset=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143150\/Massachusetts-license.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143150\/Massachusetts-license-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143150\/Massachusetts-license-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><p>There are different ways of getting your Massachusetts fishing license for both residents and non-residents. Once you have it, make sure to bring it with you while fishing. A true and legible image of your permit on your smartphone is also acceptable.<\/p><p>Here&rsquo;s how you can get your license:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Online<\/strong>: on <a href=\"https:\/\/massfishhunt.mass.gov\/licenses\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MassFishHunt<\/a>. Note that there will be a small service fee.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>In-person<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/service-details\/massfishhunt-license-agent-map\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">at license agent locations<\/a>, including MassWildlife offices and some retail stores.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>By calling<\/strong> 1-866-703-1925.<\/li>\n<\/ul>    <h2 id=\"massachusetts-fishing-license-faqs\">Massachusetts Fishing License FAQs<\/h2>\n<div id=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde\" class=\"fbgb-faq-block aligncenter fbgb-faq-style-accordion\">\n    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-container\">\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-item \" data-faq-item=\"0\">\n                <div class=\"fbgb-faq-question\" \n                     role=\"button\" \n                     tabindex=\"0\" \n                     aria-expanded=\"false\"\n                     aria-controls=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-0\">\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-question-text\">What happens if I lose my license?<\/span>\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-icon\">\n                        <svg viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"32\" height=\"32\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M6.5 12.4L12 8l5.5 4.4-.9 1.2L12 10l-4.5 3.6-1-1.2z\"><\/path><\/svg>\n                    <\/span>\n                <\/div>\n                <div id=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-0\" \n                     class=\"fbgb-faq-answer \"\n                     aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-answer-content\">\n                        <p>If you lose your license \u2013 no problem! You can print a duplicate copy by calling\/visiting one of the MassFishHunt offices or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ma.wildlifelicense.com\/Internetsales\/IS\/Customer\/InternetCustomerSearch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">online<\/a>. If you bought your license online, you can find a digital copy on your smartphone.<\/p>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-item \" data-faq-item=\"1\">\n                <div class=\"fbgb-faq-question\" \n                     role=\"button\" \n                     tabindex=\"0\" \n                     aria-expanded=\"false\"\n                     aria-controls=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-1\">\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-question-text\">Do I have to renew my license?<\/span>\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-icon\">\n                        <svg viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"32\" height=\"32\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M6.5 12.4L12 8l5.5 4.4-.9 1.2L12 10l-4.5 3.6-1-1.2z\"><\/path><\/svg>\n                    <\/span>\n                <\/div>\n                <div id=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-1\" \n                     class=\"fbgb-faq-answer \"\n                     aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-answer-content\">\n                        <p>Massachusetts fishing licenses expire each year on December 31. You can easily renew it online.<\/p>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-item \" data-faq-item=\"2\">\n                <div class=\"fbgb-faq-question\" \n                     role=\"button\" \n                     tabindex=\"0\" \n                     aria-expanded=\"false\"\n                     aria-controls=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-2\">\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-question-text\">How do anglers with disabilities get their free license?<\/span>\n                    <span class=\"fbgb-faq-icon\">\n                        <svg viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"32\" height=\"32\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M6.5 12.4L12 8l5.5 4.4-.9 1.2L12 10l-4.5 3.6-1-1.2z\"><\/path><\/svg>\n                    <\/span>\n                <\/div>\n                <div id=\"fbgb-faq-69fd0cc6e1fde-item-2\" \n                     class=\"fbgb-faq-answer \"\n                     aria-hidden=\"true\">\n                    <div class=\"fbgb-faq-answer-content\">\n                        <p>Anglers should fill out an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/files\/documents\/2018\/07\/18\/license-free-blind-para-etc.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">application for the free license<\/a> and submit a form certifying the intellectual disability or paraplegia (or a Certificate of Blindness issued by the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/orgs\/massachusetts-commission-for-the-blind\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Massachusetts Commission for the Blind<\/a>.) The documents should be mailed to the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (ATTN: Licensing, 251 Causeway St., Suite 400, Boston, MA 02114.) Once the license is ready, it will be mailed to you.<\/p>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n    \n    <\/div>\n\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What happens if I lose my license?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"If you lose your license &ndash; no problem! You can print a duplicate copy by calling\/visiting one of the MassFishHunt offices or online. If you bought your license online, you can find a digital copy on your smartphone.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Do I have to renew my license?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Massachusetts fishing licenses expire each year on December 31. You can easily renew it online.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How do anglers with disabilities get their free license?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Anglers should fill out an application for the free license and submit a form certifying the intellectual disability or paraplegia (or a Certificate of Blindness issued by the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind.) The documents should be mailed to the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (ATTN: Licensing, 251 Causeway St., Suite 400, Boston, MA 02114.) Once the license is ready, it will be mailed to you.\"}}]}<\/script><p><br><em>That&rsquo;s all! We&rsquo;ve tried to cover all the information you&rsquo;ll need to legally fish in Massachusetts. However, if you still have questions, get in touch with your local MassFishHunt office. Also, feel free to leave us a comment below. Get your license, <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/fishing-near-me?utm_source=fishingbooker&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=post_content_link&amp;utm_term=28682\"><em>find a guide near you<\/em><\/a><em>, and get ready to cast a line!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Bay State is famous for its amazing summers, local seafood, and rich history, and the whole world knows that it&rsquo;s home to MIT and Harvard. Without a doubt, Massachusetts has a lot to offer, but what can beat a fishing adventure there? With over 1,500 miles of coastline, beautiful freshwater lakes, reservoirs, ponds, streams, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":28683,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1474],"tags":[358,419,458],"class_list":["post-28682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-licenses-regulations","tag-beginners-advice","tag-fishing-licenses","tag-massachusetts"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026 - FishingBooker Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about all the necessary fishing licenses of the \u201cCod State.\u201d\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"FishingBooker Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FishingBooker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-06-18T09:54:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-07T08:57:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143151\/MA-flag.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lisa\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lisa\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026 - FishingBooker Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026","og_description":"Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about all the necessary fishing licenses of the \u201cCod State.\u201d","og_url":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/","og_site_name":"FishingBooker Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FishingBooker","article_published_time":"2021-06-18T09:54:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-07T08:57:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143151\/MA-flag.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Lisa","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Lisa","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/"},"author":{"name":"Lisa","@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/31924bb56f50912df0ce3b07fcef6673"},"headline":"Massachusetts Fishing License: The Complete Guide for 2026","datePublished":"2021-06-18T09:54:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-07T08:57:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/"},"wordCount":1034,"commentCount":9,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fishingbooker.com\/blog\/massachusetts-fishing-license\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fishingbooker-prod-blog-backup.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/media\/2021\/06\/14143151\/MA-flag.jpg","keywords":["Beginners' Advice","Fishing Licenses","Massachusetts"],"articleSection":["Licenses &amp; 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