Pennsylvania Spearfishing Rules Card

Legal status

Saltwater RestrictedFreshwater Permitted

Pennsylvania is an inland state with no ocean coast, so all spearfishing is freshwater and governed by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Spears and gigs are legal but may take ONLY four nongame species: snakehead, carp, suckers and catfish.

License

Required: Pennsylvania Fishing License (annual resident/nonresident, or short-term/tourist)

Resident: $27.97 annual resident (ages 16-64); senior annual $14.47; 1-day resident $14.47 (2026; verify current fees with PFBC)

Non-resident: $60.97 annual nonresident; tourist licenses $31.97 (1-day), $31.97 (3-day), $39.47 (7-day) (2026; verify with PFBC)

Gear rules

• Spearguns: Prohibited. Section 63.8 states spears or gigs 'may not be mechanically propelled,' and a speargun is a mechanically propelled spear, so.
• Pole spears: A hand-held/hand-thrust pole spear (not mechanically propelled) falls within the allowed 'spears or gigs' for taking snakehead, carp.
• On scuba: SCUBA is not the method of take for the four spear/gig species and diving is not specifically authorized for general spearing; however.
• Spears and gigs may not be mechanically propelled (bans spearguns and Hawaiian slings)
• Spears and gigs may not have more than five barbed points
• Spears and gigs may not be used in stocked trout waters; and bow-and-arrow, spears, and gigs are ALL prohibited in special-regulation trout.
• Only snakehead, carp, suckers and catfish may be taken by spear, gig, or bow-and-arrow

Do not spear

• All game fish may NOT be speared, gigged, or taken by bow-and-arrow; only snakehead, carp, suckers, and catfish are legal for these methods
• Bass
• Trout and salmon
• Walleye and sauger
• Muskellunge, northern pike, and pickerel
• Striped bass and hybrid striped bass
• Panfish

Area restrictions

• Spears and gigs may not be used in stocked trout waters; and bow-and-arrow, spears, and gigs are ALL prohibited in special-regulation trout waters
• Some waters carry special/site-specific regulations (Delayed Harvest, catch-and-release, Lake Erie tributary rules, etc.); confirm the specific.
• Fishing in state park and state forest waters must also comply with DCNR park rules layered on top of PFBC regulations; check the specific park

Before you dive

• Never dive alone: one up, one down.
• Check current seasons and sizes the morning of the dive.
• Confirm with Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC): https://www.pa.gov/agencies/fishandboat