Virginia Fishing Regulations: State and Federal Waters

Virginia fishing regulations change at the 3-mile line, and offshore Virginia water runs from the Bay mouth and the Eastern Shore out to the canyons. Inside 3 miles you follow state rules. Beyond it you follow federal rules, and the two sets differ on striped bass, scup, cobia and both mackerels. What follows is who sets each rule, then size, bag, season and gear rules species by species, with the agency page linked for each.

Virginia Fishing Official Government Organizations

State waters run from shore to 3 miles, including the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) writes those rules. Federal waters, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), run from 3 to 200 miles. NOAA Fisheries enforces the rules there, and the regional councils develop them. Two councils split the federal water off Virginia at the Virginia-North Carolina line (36°33’01.0" N), so rules change at every state line and at the council line too.

VMRC also decides who needs a saltwater license and who registers with the no-cost Fisherman Identification Program (FIP) instead, so read the VMRC saltwater license rules before you launch.

The bodies that matter:

Virginia Marine Resources Commission – Sets saltwater rules for Virginia state waters in the Virginia Administrative Code, 4VAC20.
NOAA Fisheries – Enforces federal rules from 3 to 200 miles under 50 CFR parts 622, 648 and 697, manages the highly migratory species (HMS) of tunas, billfish, swordfish and sharks, and applies the federal council boundary rule at the Virginia-North Carolina line.
Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council – Manages summer flounder, scup, black sea bass, bluefish and tilefish in federal waters north of the Virginia-North Carolina line, the Mid-Atlantic species that anglers off Virginia target most.
South Atlantic Fishery Management Council – Manages dolphin, wahoo, and king and Spanish mackerel, and its snapper-grouper rules apply only in the South Atlantic EEZ south of that line, as set out in the South Atlantic Council regulations.
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission – Works with NOAA Fisheries on interstate plans for Atlantic cobia and striped bass that VMRC carries out in state waters.
Potomac River Fisheries Commission – Sets summer flounder and striped bass rules for the Potomac River tributaries, which VMRC defers to.

Check the agency page before every trip, since in-season changes post there first.

Virginia Offshore Fishing Regulations by Species

Virginia fishing regulations run species by species, and a few rules apply to all of them. Size limits are total length unless a bullet says fork length. Total length is a straight line from the front of the snout to the tip of the longer tail lobe, with the tail compressed. A slot limit sets both a minimum and a maximum size. A bag limit is the number of fish one angler may keep. When the catch goes in a common hold, the vessel limit is the number of eligible anglers aboard times the per-person limit, and the captain or operator is responsible. Cobia is capped at 2 per vessel, and groupers are excluded from this rule. For summer flounder and black sea bass, the federal minimum size is waived, so the state where you land sets the rule. Snagging is illegal for any fish other than Atlantic menhaden and mullet species, and sale or barter of recreational catch is prohibited. Snapper-grouper rules for red snapper, vermilion snapper, gag, red grouper and gray triggerfish apply only south of the Virginia-North Carolina line.

striped bass (rockfish)

Striped bass has the widest gap between state and federal rules: an open coastal slot inside 3 miles, a separate Bay slot, and zero in the EEZ. The rules come from VMRC (4VAC20-252) and NOAA Fisheries (50 CFR 697.7). The coastal area is Virginia’s territorial sea plus the creeks, bays and inlets on the seaside of Accomack and Northampton counties, and the Atlantic side of Virginia Beach east and south of Cape Henry.

LengthCoastal area: 28 to 31 inches total length. Chesapeake Bay and its Virginia tributaries: 19 to 24 inches total length. Federal waters: no striped bass may be kept.
Bag limitState waters: 1 per person per day in either area. Federal waters: zero. It is unlawful to fish for, harvest, possess or retain striped bass in the EEZ.
SeasonCoastal: January 1 through March 31 and May 16 through December 31. Bay: May 16 through June 15 and October 4 through December 31. Federal waters: closed all year.
Gear and permitsHook and line, rod and reel, hand line or spearing only. With bait, live or chunk, use non-offset, corrodible, non-stainless steel circle hooks. Gaffing is unlawful. Possession limits cannot be combined when more than one area or season is open. Potomac River tributaries follow the Potomac River Fisheries Commission.

Check the VMRC rules page before you fish.

summer flounder

The federal minimum is waived, so vessels in federal waters follow the state where they land. The rules come from VMRC (4VAC20-620) and the Mid-Atlantic Council (50 CFR 648.107).

Length16 inches total length January 1 through May 31. 17.5 inches total length June 1 through December 31. Federal waters: the same when landing in Virginia.
Bag limit4 per person in state waters, and when landing in Virginia from federal waters.
SeasonOpen year-round when landing in Virginia. If you land in another state, that state’s measures apply.
Gear and permitsThe rule covers hook and line, rod and reel, spear and gig. Federally permitted party and charter vessels follow state-of-landing measures. Potomac River tributaries follow the Potomac River Fisheries Commission.