
A person who owns or lawfully controls a private fish pond may obtain a license from FWP to stock the pond with fish. Only lawfully purchased fish may be planted. Contact your local FWP office for more information. Some additional sources of information are listed below:
420 KB)-The purpose of this handbook is to provide the prospective pond builder with an
overview of the process of planning, permitting, constructing, and managing a successful private
fish pond. For those considering building a pond, several sources of information are listed in the
references at the end of this guide.No fishing license is required to fish on licensed, privately stocked fish ponds. Fishing license requirements apply to all other ponds and/or waters on private land.
The license application fee for a private or non-commercial fish pond is $10.





Regulations are intended to allow the stocking of private fish ponds while ensuring that public resources are not adversely affected by unwanted fish or fish diseases, that nuisance aquatic species are not planted into ponds where they can escape or be introduced into state waters, and that habitat of wild fish is not harmed.