Missouri · Fishing permit · Age
What age do you need a fishing permit in Missouri?
From 16 until you turn 65, if you live in Missouri.
The ages that matter
Under 16
No permit needed
Children can fish without one. Everything else still applies though — limits, sizes and seasons do not change with age.
16 to 64
Permit required
Carry it with you while fishing.
65 and up
Exempt, residents only
Visitors 65 and over still need one — the exemption is for Missouri residents.
How MDC words it
MDC: "Anyone age 15 and younger (resident or nonresident) may fish and hunt (except deer and turkey) without permit." And: "Missouri residents ages 65 or older may fish (except trout permit or daily tags in areas where required) ... without permit." The senior exemption covers residents only, and it does not waive the trout permit or the trout park daily tag.
Quoted rather than paraphrased. With rules that carry a fine, the exact wording is the point.
Optional permits for children
- Lifetime permit, bought for ages 0 to 15 — $320. Residents only. Carries the same privileges as the resident fishing permit and the trout permit. Ordered on paper, not sold online.
Other ways to be exempt
Age is one route. MDC lists these as well.
- Resident landowners with five acres or more, and their households, fishing land they own
- Honourably discharged veterans or active personnel with a service-related disability of 60 percent or more, former prisoners of war, and patients assigned to a Warrior Transition Brigade, Unit or military medical centre
- People with corrected vision of 20/200 or less, a visual field of 20 degrees or less, a permanent need for a wheelchair, or cerebral palsy or a mental disability preventing fishing alone — with a statement from a physician, ophthalmologist or optometrist
