Keeping your catch
IF YOU CHOOSE TO KEEP YOUR CATCHES, THERE ARE A FEW RULES TO FOLLOW.
1. You must have an Atlantic salmon fishing licence that allows you to keep your catch.
2. You must keep a maximum of 4 salmon per year: 1 large salmon 63cm and over and 3 grilse 63cm and under.
Caution! Although your fishing licence allows you to retain four salmon a year, the rules for each river vary and may require you to release large salmon, or even all salmon caught, large or small. Where salmon retention is authorized, there is also a daily catch quota (e.g. two small salmon retained per day). It is the angler's responsibility to make sure they know and respect the regulations in force on the river they are fishing. Be sure to check with the river manager.
3. You must tag your salmon.
Once the salmon is out of the water, it must be labelled.
Tags are attached to the fishing license. With an annual permit, each tag attached to the permit is used in order (the tags are numbered). The bottom three tags are to be used to store grilses. As the title indicates, it is the top tag that can be used to retain a large salmon when river regulations allows. This tag can also be used to retain a grilse.
The tag attached to the salmon must also come from the licence of the angler who hooked it. We suggest you apply the tag in one of the ways illustrated below. Read your licence! It explains exactly how to proceed.
4. You must register your catches with the manager of the river.
You must register your salmon with the river management organization.
This regulatory measure enables us to know precisely the number of salmon taken from each river, which is essential information for proper management of the resource. The salmon recorded will also be weighed, measured, sexed and scales will be taken. These data provide invaluable information on salmon populations and their evolution over time, and are used to manage the resource.
You have 48 hours after leaving the fishing grounds to register your catch. A wildlife protection officer may also require you to do so immediately. In a structured wildlife area, simply present your permit and tagged salmon to the manager or a staff member. The tag will be punched, and the fish weighed and measured. In open territory, registration must be done by telephone with the Minister.
When fishing in zones 23 and 24, which are located in Northern Quebec, you must carry a logbook and register your catches with an outfitter operating in the territory. Generally speaking, fishing in remote areas is governed by specific rules, and it is essential to find out here how to comply with them.
