Fishing licenses are available now for Iowa residents and non-Iowa residents for the 2022 fishing season. An annual license for people over 16 cost residents $22 and a non-resident $48. If you are fishing in the state of Iowa and over the age of 16, you must have a fishing license, which licenses can be purchased locally at Mount Vernon Ace Hardware or at PnP.
An additional $14.50 for residents is charged those fishing for trout, and $17.50 charged for non-residents.
Most fishing in Iowa is done on privately held land. If you are seeking to fish along private land, you should seek the permission from the property owner.
Endangered species in Iowa include lake sturgeon, pallid sturgeon, pugnose shiner, weed shiner, pearl dace, freckled madtom, bluntnose darter, least darter, American black lamprey, chestnut lamprey, grass pickerel, blacknose shiner, western sand darter, black redhorse, burbot, orangethroat darter, Topeka shiner, the crawfish frog, yellow mud turtle, wood turtle, ornate box turtle, common musk turtle, blanding’s turtle, spectacle case mussels, slippershell mussels, buckhorn, Ozark pigtoe, bullhead, Ohio River pigtoe, slough sandshell, yellow sandshell, cylinder, strange floater, creek heelsplitter, purple pimpleback, butterfly, ellipse, Higgin’s eye pearly mussel, blue spotted salamander, central newt and the mudpuppy. No fish on an endangered species list can be captured as part of a daily limit, and anglers should work to set the fish back into waters safely.
There are daily limits for the number of fish that can be caught in Iowa. Visit IowaDNR.gov for more information on those restrictions, and the types of bait and fishing allowed in Iowa’s waterways.
According to the Iowa DNR, as an angler, you should clean up any litter you bring with you and pick up trash you spot, even if it isn’t yours. Recycle used fishing line and bait containers. Do not spread invasive plants or animals on any of Iowa’s waterways.
Obey all fishing regulations and report any violations of regulations you encounter. Be courteous and respectful to all anglers and boaters you encounter.