Charter fishing
Management changes: East coast Spanish mackerel
From 1 July 2023:
- The extended charter trip limit for Spanish mackerel has been removed.
- Seasonal closures apply to recreational fishers on licensed charter fishing trips.
Fisheries Queensland recognises charter fishing as a distinct fishing activity with social and economic benefits. Charter fishing is a tourism-based sector operating throughout the state, promoted as one of Queensland's 'things to do'.
Charter fishing operators take paying passengers on fishing trips, including:
- spear fishing
- game fishing
- tag-and-release fishing
- demersal (bottom) reef fishing
- pelagic fishing
- guided fishing.
Licences and approvals
A charter fishing licence is required when taking paying passengers on fishing trips in offshore waters (more than 2 metres deep).
Reporting
You must record details of your charter fishing activities in daily logbooks.
Trip limits
Some trip limits are increased for extended charter fishing trips.
For a continuous charter fishing trip of at least 72 hours but less than 168 hours:
- twice the regulated maximum number of a particular species or a group of species of regulated coral reef fin fish
- but no more than a total of 40 regulated coral reef fin fish of all species or groups of species.
For a continuous charter fishing trip of at least 168 hours:
- twice the regulated maximum number of a particular species or a group of species of regulated coral reef fin fish
- but no more than a total of 60 regulated coral reef fin fish of all species or groups of species.
Form requirements
Regulated coral reef fin fish
The recreational fisher may only possess a regulated coral reef fin fish taken in filleted form if on an extended charter fishing trip or at least 72 hours:
- all the skin on the fillet remains attached to the fillet
- and
- the fillets of each species of fish taken are packaged separately
- and
- each package is labelled with the common name of the species of fish in the package.
Other fish
For fish other than regulated coral reef fin fish, a recreational fisher on a boat during a licensed charter fishing trip that is conducted for a continuous period of at least 48 hours may posses the fish on the boat in a form with skin removed if a square area of skin with sides of at least 3cm each is left on the fish.