When can you fish a river? Close seasons across the UK
In England and Wales, coarse fishing on rivers stops from 15 March to 15 June. Scotland has no coarse close time but bans salmon rods on Sundays. Game seasons change from one river to the next.
By the editorsPublished Sources checked 8 November 2026
On rivers in England and Wales you cannot fish for coarse fish from 15 March to 15 June, both dates included. Most stillwaters and canals stay open, subject to the fishery owner. Salmon and trout run on separate dates set by local byelaws, and in Scotland and Northern Ireland the pattern is different again. The chart below shows how the better known periods sit across a year.
Closed periods at a glance (shaded = no fishing for that group)
A simplified summary. Exceptions exist within every row, so treat the byelaw or fishery rules for your own water as the final word.
Why the rivers shut in spring
The close season exists because fish are spawning. The Environment Agency explains that stressed fish may stop spawning if they are disturbed, and can lose their chance for the whole year. Eggs laid in weed, gravel or tree roots can be damaged, and young fry are sensitive to silt, low oxygen and trampling.
The timing suits several species at once. Pike are among the first to spawn, in shallow, weedy water at about 9°C. Perch, dace and grayling also go early. Barbel and bream follow later in the period as the water warms. Separate legislation also makes it an offence to disturb spawning fish or the places they use, so wading through a spawning shallow can be a problem even without a rod.
England: what stays open from March to June
GOV.UK's rule covers rivers, streams, drains and waterways, not canals. Reservoirs, lakes, ponds and most canals can be fished for coarse fish all year, subject to local byelaws. The Environment Agency adds that a few canals and stillwaters do come under the close season, so it is worth checking the byelaws for your area rather than assuming. Private waters can set their own dates.
Eels on rivers follow the same dates as coarse fish, though eel fishing is allowed in some areas. Game fishing carries on during the coarse close season, with limits on what you can use:
- Midlands, Yorkshire, and north-east and north-west England: natural or artificial fly, minnow, worm, shrimp, prawn, sand eel or artificial lures.
- South-east England: artificial fly only. In the Thames area you can apply to the Environment Agency to also use minnow caught in a minnow trap.
- South-west England: see the local byelaws.
Salmon have a national rule of their own: before 16 June, only artificial lure and artificial fly may be used, and any salmon caught must be returned unharmed. Season dates for salmon, brown trout and rainbow trout on rivers are not given nationally, so you need the byelaws for your region.
Wales: same coarse dates, its own game table
Natural Resources Wales gives the open season for coarse fish on rivers as 16 June to 14 March, which is the same gap as England. Stillwaters and canals have no close season, except for certain SSSIs. Eels have more exceptions: all rivers in the Dee and Clwyd, Gwynedd and Wye fisheries districts have no close season, and in the Upper Severn Area any hook used for eels during the close period must have a gape of at least 12.7mm.
Brown trout on most river reaches run from 3 March to 30 September, but rivers in the West Wales Fisheries District open on 1 April, selected lower reaches on 31 May, and the Upper Severn Area runs from 18 March to 7 October. Rainbow trout in stillwaters have no close season.
For salmon, NRW lists dates river by river, most commonly 20 March to 17 October for fly, with spinning restricted on some rivers. On all rivers, all salmon must be returned with minimum injury and delay.
Scotland: Sundays and district dates
There are no weekly or annual close times for coarse fish in Scotland, though a permit's conditions still apply. Brown trout have no weekly close time, and their annual close time runs from 7 October to 14 March throughout the country. Rod fishing for salmon is prohibited on Sundays, and annual close times for salmon vary across the country, so ask the local fishery board or the permit seller. The government notes that most anglers practise catch and release anyway.
Northern Ireland: dates by water
On DAERA's Public Angling Estate, the open season for salmon, sea trout, brown trout and rainbow trout depends on where you are:
- Lough Melvin and tributaries: 1 February to 30 September
- Lough Erne system and tributaries: 1 March to 30 September
- River Bush and tributaries: 1 March to 20 October
- All other loughs and lakes: 1 March to 31 October
Any salmon or sea trout caught in the DAERA rod licensing area must be returned unharmed. Outside the estate, seasons vary: the Foyle catchment runs from 1 April to 20 October for salmon, and Carlingford from 1 April to 31 October. Coarse species such as pike, bream, roach and perch generally have no close season, but game open seasons still have to be followed when coarse fishing on game waters.
Before you set off
A season date tells you when the law allows fishing. The paperwork is a separate matter, covered in our licence guide. If you want to know how your river is rated, read how river health is measured. Anglers fishing in close season can face what the Environment Agency calls a substantial fine, and it asks people to report suspected illegal fishing on its 24-hour hotline, 0800 80 70 60.