Fishing the River Tweed

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

Under River Tweed Commission rules, every salmon caught on the Tweed between 1 February and 30 November goes back. The salmon season still runs for ten months, and visiting anglers can fish it on beat permits.

River Tweed fishing works on beats. The river runs nearly 100 miles through the Scottish Borders to the sea at Berwick-upon-Tweed, the Commission lists 60 salmon beats, and you fish by beat permit or written permission. You don’t need a rod licence.

So the planning matters more than the tackle. This guide covers the season, the catch-and-release rules, permits, Tweed beats and their listed prices, booking, tackle rules, trout and grayling, and the checks to make before you travel. For other rivers, see our UK river fishing guides.

The River Tweed at a Glance: Sections, Beats and Species

One table answers most of the planning basics for River Tweed fishing.


Length	Nearly 100 miles, from the Scottish Borders to the sea at Berwick-upon-Tweed
Sections	Upper, Middle and Lower river, plus tributaries
Listed salmon beats	60 in total: 20 Lower, 18 Middle, 15 Upper, 7 tributary
Main tributaries	Teviot, Ettrick, Yarrow, Till, Gala Water, Whiteadder
Species	Atlantic salmon, sea trout, brown trout, grayling
Salmon season	1 February to 30 November
Regulator	River Tweed Commission, under the Scotland Act 1998 (River Tweed) Order 2006

The Tweed crosses the border. It reaches the sea in England at Berwick, but the River Tweed Commission (RTC) manages it as one catchment, so one set of RTC rules applies wherever you fish. For wider trip planning, see our guides to fishing in Scotland and fishing in Northumberland.

The RTC treats spring salmon as separate, distinct stocks, and its rules protect them closely.

The beats comparison further down sets listed prices against individual beats.

River Tweed Salmon Season Dates, Sundays and Fly-Only Periods

Fish for salmon on a Sunday, or cast a spinner in late September, and you are breaking the law. The RTC Tweed Angling Code for salmon sets out the statutory calendar:

The salmon season runs from 1 February to 30 November.
There is no salmon fishing on Sundays. This is a legal requirement, not beat etiquette.
Artificial fly only before 15 February and after 14 September.
Between those dates, each beat decides whether spinning is allowed. Where fly and spinning anglers share water, the fly fisher gets first go.

Period	What is allowed
1 to 14 February	Fly only
15 February to 14 September	Fly, plus spinning where the beat permits it
15 September to 30 November	Fly only
Sundays, all season	No salmon fishing

Summer spinners should note one RTC warning. Old springers are more likely to take a spinner in low water after 1 July, so the Commission advises against spinning as a first choice in low, clear water.

Our UK fishing seasons guide covers close seasons on other waters. If you can only fish weekends, plan around Saturdays.

Can You Keep a Salmon From the Tweed? Catch and Release Explained

The law and the river’s own rules give different answers here, and the stricter one applies on the bank. There are three layers.

Layer 1: the law in spring

From 1 February to 31 March it is illegal to take a salmon, dead or alive. Any sea trout caught in the same period must also be released.

Layer 2: the Scottish Government grading

The Tweed (River Tweed SAC) is graded Good for 2026 in the final river gradings. The Scottish Government’s 2027 consultation text says the Tweed No.2 Order allows salmon to be retained in inland Tweed waters and prohibits retention in coastal waters. Check gov.scot for the current wording.

Layer 3: the RTC rules

The RTC code requires total catch and release from 1 February to 30 November throughout the catchment. Only a salmon that dies during resuscitation may be removed, and you must not kill a fish with a priest. Any removed fish falls under the Tweed Salmon Carcass Tagging Code, in force from 1 February 2025, with tags supplied by the on-duty RTC bailiff.

Some guides still say catch and release applies only until 30 June. Against the 2025 code, that is out of date.

For fish care, the RTC asks you to handle the fish as little as possible, kneel in the water, support it upright and allow up to 30 minutes for recovery. Use a knotless net.

Plan to return every salmon, and confirm the current rules with the RTC fishery office on 01896 848294 before your trip.

Do You Need a Rod Licence to Fish the Tweed?

You don’t need an Environment Agency rod licence for the Tweed. GOV.UK lists the River Tweed as excluded from the England and Wales rod licence requirement, and that covers the English stretch at Berwick too.

Scotland has no rod licence anywhere except the Border Esk region, according to the GOV.UK page on fishing in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

What you do need is permission. For salmon, that means a beat permit. For trout, the law requires you to carry written permission while fishing, and the RTC trout code gives salmon anglers priority.

Situation	Rod licence	Permission
Tweed salmon	None	Beat permit
Tweed trout and grayling	None	Permit from an association or owner
Most English rivers	EA rod licence	Fishery permission

If the same trip takes in other English rivers, read our rod licence guide first.

Tweed Beats Compared: Upper, Middle, Lower and Tributaries

Across seven RTC beat pages, listed prices run from £30 to £500, depending on the beat and the date. That spread is the reason to compare Tweed beats before you book.

The RTC salmon beats list splits the river into four groups:

Upper Tweed: 15 beats
Middle Tweed: 18 beats
Lower Tweed: 20 beats
Tributaries: 7 beats

Here are the listed price ranges from those seven beat pages.

Beat	Listed range (£)
Dawyck	35 to 50
Kailzie	30 to 100
Dryburgh Lower	30 to 210
Bemersyde	90 to 195
Drygrange	140 to 450
Sprouston	200 to 500
Upper Makerstoun	55 to 500

The RTC pages do not say whether these figures are per rod per day or cover another unit or period. Confirm exactly what the price covers with the beat before you book.

The cheapest beats in this sample start in the tens of pounds, while Drygrange, Sprouston and Upper Makerstoun reach several hundred on their dearest dates. One beat can move from £55 to £500 across a season.

The 7 tributary beats sit on rivers such as the Teviot, Ettrick and Till. Each has its own RTC page with prices and rules.

If you are weighing the Tweed against other big Scottish salmon rivers, compare it with the River Tay and the River Spey.

Best for: a first or budget trip on the lower-priced beats and tributaries. Skip if: cost matters most and only the top-priced dates are left.

Check with the fishery before you travel.

How to Book a Tweed Beat

Book months ahead, then watch the river flood the week before, and on most beats the loss is typically yours. Know the terms before you pay.

Pick a section and beat from the RTC beat list.
Open the beat’s RTC page. It shows the permit route and the listed price range.
Book through FishPal or direct with the estate or club. Each RTC beat page says which applies.
Confirm the details: rod numbers, methods allowed (spinning is set by the beat), fishing hours and cancellation terms.
Read the Tweed Angling Code before you go.

A few logistics catch people out. Beats typically fish from around 9 to 9.30am until 5pm, with a break for lunch. If floods make a beat unfishable, there is typically no refund, and the beat owner sets the cancellation terms, not a central body.

Ghillie arrangements vary, so ask whether one is included in the price rather than assuming it.

For a first visit, book a beat with a ghillie and ask exactly what the price covers.

Tweed Tackle Rules and What to Bring

Check six rules against your tackle box before you leave home. The RTC salmon code sets them:

No prawns or shrimps.
No worms.
Maximum treble size No. 6.
Maximum cast or leader 25 lb.
Stay 20m apart from other anglers.
Land fish with a knotless net only.

For kit, the typical Tweed salmon set-up is a 15ft double-handed rod, a salmon reel and a 10 to 20 lb nylon leader. That leader range sits under the 25 lb RTC maximum.

You will also need waders, and lifejackets are often required on beats. Tactics typically run slow and deep in cold spring water and faster in summer. As the season section explains, a spinning rod is legal only between 15 February and 14 September, and only where the beat allows it. If you’d rather not travel with a double-hander, ask the beat whether tackle hire can be arranged locally.

Match your kit to the season, and check each beat’s own rules on lifejackets and methods before you set up.

Trout and Grayling Fishing on the Tweed

The easiest way onto the Tweed is often not with a salmon rod at all. The river also holds brown trout and grayling, and the RTC points visiting anglers to local angling associations for permits.

Trout: the law requires you to carry written permission, and salmon anglers have priority. Season dates and permit prices vary, so check both with the association and the RTC.

Grayling: the RTC winter grayling code sets these rules:

Single-handed fly rod only.
No spinning baits.
The last 18in of leader no stronger than 4 lb.
A recommended size limit of 10in and a bag of 2.
No shuffling over spawning areas.

The code was reprinted in 2011, so check it is still current.

Sea trout: any sea trout caught from 1 February to 31 March must be released. For a sea trout river elsewhere in the UK, see our River Towy guide.

An association permit is usually a simpler route onto the water than a salmon beat.

Before You Travel: River Levels, Biosecurity and Who to Call

A long drive ends badly at a river too high or too warm to fish. The RTC fishing information pages publish river levels, water temperature, catches and fishing reports, and a June 2026 RTC item gave advice for fishing in warm temperatures. Read it before a summer trip.

The RTC code is strict on biosecurity. If your gear was used outside Britain and Ireland in the previous 7 days, it must be dried, heated, disinfected or frozen, and you need to complete a Gyrodactylus declaration.

River Tweed Commission fishery officers enforce the rules. Call them on 01896 848294.

Permit booked and terms confirmed
Tweed Angling Codes read
Gear treated if used abroad
River levels and temperature checked

Check with the fishery before you travel.

Frequently asked questions

When is the salmon season on the River Tweed?

The Tweed salmon season runs from 1 February to 30 November. There is no salmon fishing on Sundays, and only artificial fly is allowed before 15 February and after 14 September. The season section of this guide has the full calendar.

Can you keep salmon caught on the Tweed?

No. RTC rules require total catch and release from 1 February to 30 November, and the law bans taking salmon from 1 February to 31 March. Check the current rules with the River Tweed Commission before you fish.

How much does it cost to fish the Tweed?

Listed ranges on seven RTC beat pages run from £30 to £500, depending on the beat and date. The pages don't say whether that is per rod per day, so confirm what the price covers with the beat.

Do I need a licence to fish the River Tweed?

No. You don't need an Environment Agency rod licence, and Scotland has no rod licence outside the Border Esk. You do need a beat permit or written permission from the owner or club.