Michigan · Fishing license · Age
What age do you need a fishing license in Michigan?
From 17 on, with no upper limit.
The ages that matter
Under 17
No license needed
Children can fish without one. Everything else still applies though — limits, sizes and seasons do not change with age.
17 and up
License required
Carry it with you while fishing.
65 and up
Cheaper, not free
Michigan has no age exemption. Residents get a reduced rate instead: All-species, annual, 65 and up or legally blind at $11.
How DNR words it
Michigan DNR: "You must purchase a fishing license if you are 17 years of age or older to fish public waters in Michigan. If you are under 17, you may fish without a license, but you are required to observe all fishing rules and regulations. Any adult actively assisting a minor must have a fishing license." Note the threshold is 17 here, a year later than in most states. There is no upper age exemption — residents 65 and over get the discounted rate instead.
Quoted rather than paraphrased. With rules that carry a fine, the exact wording is the point.
Other ways to be exempt
Age is one route. DNR lists these as well.
- Michigan resident veterans rated permanently and totally disabled, or individually unemployable, by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, carrying their documentation
- Full-time active-duty U.S. military who have kept Michigan resident status; the waiver does not extend to non-residents
- During free fishing weekends nobody needs a license, and the Recreation Passport is waived for park and boat-ramp entry
