Landowners, tenets and members of their immediate family living with them are exempt from fishing license requirements for waters on land they own or lease for agricultural purposes. However, a license IS REQUIRED for all others fishing on private land if:

1. The private impoundment has a stream or river going into and/or out of it – whether the stream is continually flowing or not.
2. The private impoundment is owned or operated by more than one person or group. In this case, the owner(s) or operator(s) would be exempt from the fishing license requirement only while fishing on the portion of the impoundment that they own.
3. You are a guest of landowner or operator and fishing on streams or rivers on their land.
4. The impoundment is leased by the department from the pond owner, through the F.I.S.H. program.
5. The impoundment has been stocked by the state within the past 10 years.

The above rules apply to watershed ponds, any man-made impoundment, or any stream or river.