Section 830.14  License Requirements

a)         All commercial fishermen shall have a commercial fishing license. [515 ILCS 5/15-5(b)] All helpers assisting a licensed commercial fisherman shall have a commercial fishing license unless these helpers are under the direct supervision of and aboard the same watercraft as the licensed commercial fisherman.

b)         All commercial fishermen shall obtain a sport fishing license in addition to their commercial fishing license, unless they are exempted from being required to obtain a sport fishing license under the Code.  All helpers assisting a licensed commercial fisherman shall first obtain a sport fishing license, unless they are exempted from being required to obtain a sport fishing license under the Code.

c)         All commercial fishermen shall procure a commercial roe harvest permit in addition to their commercial fishing and sport fishing license before taking roe‑bearing species with commercial fishing devices from the waters of the State legally open to commercial fishing. [515 ILCS 5/15-46(a)]

d)         Reciprocity with Neighboring States – All Illinois-licensed commercial fishermen shall conform to the regulations of the state in which they are fishing, unless the Illinois regulations are more restrictive than the other state.  When the Illinois regulation is more restrictive, the Illinois licensed commercial fisherman must conform to the Illinois regulation. All reciprocal agreement neighboring state licensed commercial fisherman shall conform with Illinois laws when fishing in Illinois.

1)         The State of Illinois will recognize and accept as valid the commercial fishing license issued by the State of Iowa when legally possessed and used on the Mississippi River proper.  This includes any backwater lakes and bayous contiguous with the flow of waters in the main channel, subject to the following conditions:

A)        No device or equipment is attached to the main bank of the Mississippi River under the jurisdiction of the State of Iowa; and

B)        No fishing is conducted in any Iowa tributaries.

2)         Pursuant to the reciprocal agreement for the Mississippi River between the States of Iowa and Illinois, the center of the navigation channel as surveyed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shall constitute the boundary between the States of Illinois and Iowa.

3)         The State of Illinois will recognize and accept as valid the commercial fishing license issued by the State of Missouri when legally possessed and used on the Mississippi River proper, subject to the following conditions:

A)        No device or equipment is attached to the main bank of the Mississippi River under the jurisdiction of the State of Missouri; and

B)        No fishing is conducted in any Missouri tributaries.

4)         Pursuant to the reciprocal agreement for the Mississippi River between the States of Missouri and Illinois, the center of the navigation channel as surveyed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shall constitute the boundary between the States of Illinois and Missouri, except in situations where it is clearly shown to be elsewhere.

5)         The State of Illinois will recognize and accept as valid the commercial fishing license issued by the State of Kentucky when legally possessed and used on the Ohio River, excluding embayments and tributaries, defined as a straight line between opposite points where the tributary or embayment connects with the main body of the Ohio River.

6)         Illinois commercial fishermen shall abide by Kentucky's restricted areas below the locks and dams in this shared section of the Ohio River.

7)         The State of Illinois will recognize and accept as valid the commercial fishing license issued by the State of Indiana when legally possessed and used on the Wabash River proper, subject to the following conditions:

A)        No fishing is conducted beyond the natural and ordinary river banks of the state in which the commercial fisherman is not licensed to fish;

B)        No fishing is conducted from land attached to or taxed by the state in which the commercial fisherman is not licensed to fish;

C)        No fishing is conducted in any tributaries, bayous or backwaters of the state in which the commercial fisherman is not licensed to fish;

D)        No device or equipment is attached to land under the jurisdiction of the state in which the commercial fisherman is not licensed to fish; and

E)        Commercial fishermen fishing beyond the center of the main channel in waters they are not licensed to fish must comply with all the laws, rules and regulations of the adjoining state.

8)         Pursuant to the reciprocal agreement for the Wabash River between the States of Indiana and Illinois, the center of the navigation channel as surveyed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shall constitute the boundary between the States of Illinois and Indiana.

9)         The reciprocal agreements entered into between Illinois and neighboring states are incorporated by reference, with no later editions or amendments, and available on the Department's website.

A)        RECIPROCAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE  STATES OF ILLINOIS AND IOWA, (MISSISSIPPI RIVER) (1984)

B)        RECIPROCAL AGREEMENT ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER BETWEEN THE STATES OF ILLINOIS AND MISSOURI (2000)

C)        RECIPROCAL FISHING LICENSE AGREEMENT BETWEEN KENTUCKY DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES and ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES (2025)

(Source:  Amended at 50 Ill. Reg. 8079, effective June 1, 2026)