Salmon Fishing in the UK: How to Get Started

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

On a lot of UK rivers, the salmon you catch has to go back. Every salmon in Wales is returned, every salmon caught in England before 16 June is released, and for 2026 Scotland graded 115 of its 173 salmon stocks as poor, which means catch and release only.

That shapes salmon fishing from the first step. Salmon stop feeding once they enter freshwater, so a fish takes the fly out of aggression or curiosity rather than hunger, and method and patience count for more than bait. England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each run a different system, so the nine steps below go in the order a newcomer needs them: rules, season, water, tuition, kit, flies, seasonal tactics, fishing a pool, then release.

Step 1: Get the Right Licence or Permission for Where You Fish

A trout and coarse licence does not cover salmon. In England and Wales, fish for salmon on one and you’re breaking the law from your first cast. By the end of this step you’ll know what to buy or arrange in each nation.

Nation	What you need	Cost (checked 23 October 2026)	Where to get it
England and Wales	Salmon and sea trout rod licence, required from age 13	£13.50 for 1 day, £30.50 for 8 days, £93.10 for 12 months, £62.00 for 12 months if 66+ or disabled, free for juniors aged 13 to 16	GOV.UK
Scotland	No rod licence, but permission or a permit from the rights holder	Set by the fishery	The beat or association (gov.scot)
Northern Ireland (DAERA waters)	Game rod licence, then a game permit	Licence £17.00 (ages 19 to 59) plus season game permit £77.00	nidirect

For comparison, the 12-month trout and coarse licence in England and Wales costs £36.80, and it does not cover salmon.

A licence is not permission. In England and Wales you still need a permit or day ticket from whoever owns the fishing.
Northern Ireland concessions: the game rod licence is £5.00 at 60+ or if you’re disabled, and £2.00 for juveniles. The season game permit is £17.50 at 60+ and £2.00 for juveniles, and a local season permit costs £59.00. You must hold the licence before you can buy a permit (nidirect permit prices).
Loughs Agency waters (Foyle and Carlingford) run their own licence, so check terms with the Loughs Agency.
Prices change. Check GOV.UK or nidirect on the day you buy.

Our fishing licence guide covers every licence type in detail.

If you fish in England or Wales, buy the salmon and sea trout licence, not the trout and coarse one.

Step 2: Check the Salmon Season and Whether You Can Keep a Fish

There is no single UK salmon fishing season. The Tay typically opens in mid-January and the Teifi not until 1 April. Find your river’s dates and its release rule before you book.

River or area	Season or close season	Release rule	Source status
Tweed	Open 1 February to 30 November, no Sunday fishing	Total catch and release	River Tweed Commission
Wye	Open 3 March to 17 October	All salmon released (byelaws run to 31 December 2029)	GOV.UK
Welsh Dee and Usk	Open 3 March to 17 October	All released, as on every Welsh river	NRW
Teifi, Tywi and Taf	Open 1 April to 17 October	All released	NRW
North West England	Close season 1 November to 31 January (Eden: 15 October to 14 January)	No kill all season on the Border Esk, Eden and Lune. Ribble: no more than 2 salmon killed from 16 June to 31 October	EA North West byelaws
Northumbria and Yorkshire byelaw areas	Close season 1 November to 31 January (Yorkshire: to 5 April)	Check your river	EA North East byelaws
Tay	Typically about 15 January to 15 October	Depends on status	Typical, check with the beat (Perth and Kinross Council)
Spey	Typically about 11 February to 30 September	Depends on status	Typical, check with the beat
Dee (Aberdeenshire)	Typically about 1 February to 15 October	Depends on status	Typical, check with the beat

The rules behind the table:

England: before 16 June you may fish for salmon only with artificial fly or lure, and every salmon must be returned (GOV.UK). Selling a rod-caught salmon is an offence in England and Wales, and English salmon licence holders must complete an annual catch return.
Scotland: you may kill a fish only on waters graded good or moderate, and poor-status waters are release only (2026: 32 good, 26 moderate, 115 poor). Grades are reviewed yearly and the 2027 proposals move more rivers to release only, so check the current list on gov.scot before every season.
Sundays: salmon fishing is banned on Sundays across Scotland.
Elsewhere: for other English rivers, check the EA regional byelaws. For Northern Ireland, check with DAERA or the Loughs Agency.

Our fishing seasons guide covers close seasons for every species. The quick comparison: in Wales everything goes back. In Scotland, it depends on the river’s grade.

Step 3: Find Salmon Water You Can Afford

The beat prices quoted online put a lot of newcomers off before they’ve cast a line. Famous beats are one of three ways in, and the dearest:

Private beats on big rivers. Costs vary a lot by river and month, some peak beats cost several hundred pounds a day, and the best weeks are booked well ahead.
Angling association, club and council water. This is the usual budget route. The Tay permits sold by Perth and Kinross Council are one example of public water on a major salmon river.
Guided days. Dearer per day, but the guide knows where the fish lie. Step 4 covers why that matters.

Timing matters more than price. Book water when it’s likely to hold fish: spring on the early rivers, the back end on the late ones. Use the seasons in Step 2 to choose. For run timing and biology, read our Atlantic salmon species guide.

Sea trout share much of the same water and season, so ask whether your ticket covers both. Our sea trout fishing guide covers that second target.

Association water suits beginners on a budget. Skip prime beats until you can cast a full line comfortably. Whichever you choose, check with the fishery before you travel.

Step 4: Book a Casting Lesson or Guided Day Before You Buy

Book one lesson before you buy anything. Casting is the main barrier for newcomers, and a lesson shows you which rod and line suit you before you’ve paid for the wrong ones.

Loop Tackle’s advice for newcomers is that a day with a guide or gillie is the most effective way to start, mainly because it stops bad habits forming.

On that first lesson:

Learn a Spey-type cast first, such as the roll cast or the switch cast. These need very little room behind you, which matters on tree-lined rivers.
Fix the common faults early: the rod tip dropping too far back, a low stop, and line stick from pausing too long.
Try several rods on the instructor’s kit before you buy your own.

The casts themselves are covered step by step in our guide on how to Spey cast.

Book the lesson first, then buy the rod that felt right on the day.

Step 5: Put Together a Starter Salmon Fly Kit

The line matters more than the rod. Loop Tackle ranks the line as the most important purchase, then the rod, then the reel. Build your shopping list by spec, not by brand, around one set-up for medium rivers.

Item	Starter spec	Why
Rod	13 to 14ft double-handed, for an 8 or 9 weight line	Covers most medium and large rivers and lets you Spey cast with little back space. A single-handed or switch rod suits small rivers and low water
Line	Scandi (short Spey) head	Easier to cast and suits smaller flies. A Skagit head turns over heavy tips and big flies but is less delicate
Tips and polyleaders	Floating, intermediate and fast sink	Match the fly’s depth to water height and temperature (see Step 7)
Tippet	8 to 24lb, depending on conditions	One Scottish guide uses 15lb (0.37mm) on big rivers and 10lb (0.30mm) on small spate rivers. The Tweed sets a 25lb maximum leader
Reel	Holds the line and backing, with a smooth drag	The least critical item of the three
Landing net	Knotless mesh	A legal requirement for salmon release in Wales, and the kindest option everywhere
Waders and wading staff	Chest waders, plus a buoyancy aid on big water	Salmon pools are often deep and fast, so a staff tests the bottom before you step

Don’t buy a tip for every condition on day one. Start with a floating and a fast sink tip and add an intermediate later. Move from Scandi to Skagit only if you end up fishing big flies in high, cold water.

If you fish medium rivers, start with a 13ft 8-weight and a Scandi head.

Step 6: Choose a Small Fly Box That Stays Legal

A fly that’s legal on one river can be illegal on the next. A handful of tube flies, shrimp patterns and small doubles covers most conditions: bigger and heavier in cold, high water, smaller in low, clear water. Then check your river’s hook rules:

Wales: barbless or de-barbed hooks. Flies unweighted and under 5g, trebles up to 7mm gape (about a size 8). No trebles on spinners or plugs, single hooks 13mm gape maximum. No worm, groundbait or fish roe (NRW).
Wye: bait fishing for salmon is banned and barbless hooks are mandatory.
Tweed: no prawn, shrimp or worm. Maximum treble size 6, no added weights or swivels. Fly only before 15 February and after 14 September.
England: fly or artificial lure only before 16 June. In the North East at night, fly only, with hooks that pass through a 10mm tube.

Spinning is legal on some rivers at some times, such as from 1 June on the Dee and Usk. For English hook sizes, check the EA regional byelaws, or see our salmon fishing rules page.

For a first season, the fly beats the spinner: it’s legal on more water, for more of the year.

Step 7: Match Your Tactics to Spring, Summer and Autumn

Why does the same pool fish in April and in August with completely different tackle? Water temperature and height. Get those right and the fly sits where a salmon will see it.

Season	Water	Line and tip	Flies	Notes
Spring	Cold, often high	Fast sink tip	Larger, heavier tubes	Tweed is fly only before 15 February. England is catch and release before 16 June
Summer	Low and warm	Full floater or intermediate tip, shorter leader	Small doubles and shrimps	Fish dawn and dusk. Avoid playing fish in extended hot weather
Autumn (back end)	Rising, often coloured	Sink tips again as the water cools	Medium to large	Late rivers run longer (Tweed to 30 November). The Tay typically closes about 15 October and the Spey about 30 September, so check. Welsh spinning limits apply

Freshness matters too. Salmon take less the longer they have been in freshwater, so fish just in from the sea are the best chance. Time your trips for when fresh fish are running.

In the North West of England there are extra lure rules after 31 August, so check the EA regional byelaws before you fish the back end there.

Buy the full set of tips if you fish more than one season. If you only fish one summer week, a floater and an intermediate will do.

Step 8: Fish Down a Pool With the Swung Fly

Learn to fish a pool a step at a time before you worry about which fly to tie on. Follow this routine to cover it from top to tail without missing a lie:

Read the pool. Salmon lie in steady water moving at about walking pace: behind boulders, in the neck and tail, and along creases where fast and slow water meet.
Approach quietly. Wade only as deep as you need to reach the water.
Cast across and slightly downstream, then mend so the fly swings steadily with no slack or drag. If you’re fishing a sinking line or tip, the River Tweed Commission advises casting downstream of square with a slow retrieve, which cuts the risk of foul hooking.
Let the fly swing to the dangle, directly below you, then step about 1 metre downstream before the next cast.
Keep to the etiquette. Start at the top of the pool, keep moving, and let anyone below you go first. On the Tweed, anglers keep 20m apart.

A fly fished well through every metre of a pool covers far more fish than the perfect pattern fished in one spot. If you book a gillie for a first day (Step 4), ask them to show you where the lies are.

Cover the water well before you change the fly.

Step 9: Hook, Play and Release Your Salmon Properly

Strike on the take, as a trout angler would, and you are likely to pull the fly away from a salmon. Resist it, then handle the fish to the standard the law expects on so many rivers.

The take. When you feel the pull, don’t strike. Let the fish take line and turn back towards its lie, then set the hook with side pressure. Many anglers hold a loop of line under a finger and let it go on the take, giving the fish time to turn. Then play it quickly and firmly, as NRW’s catch and release guidance advises.

The release:

Plan your landing spot before you start fishing the pool.
Use a knotless mesh net (legally required in Wales) or beach the fish in shallow water.
Keep the fish in the water and unhook it with forceps. If it’s deep or gill hooked, snip the line.
Measure the fish in the water to estimate its weight, and take any photo with the fish in or just above the water.
Hold it upright, facing into steady flow, until it swims off. The Tweed Commission notes this can take up to 30 minutes.
Avoid fishing during extended hot weather, when released fish struggle to recover.
In Wales, report a salmon that fails to recover to NRW on 0300 065 3000.

For context, the Environment Agency said in 2019 that it wanted more than 90% of rod-caught salmon released, and 100% where stocks are most threatened. Our catch and release guide covers handling in more depth.

Rules can differ between salmon and sea trout, so learn to tell them apart with our guide to sea trout vs salmon.

If you’re unsure whether you can keep it, put it back.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a licence to fish for salmon in Scotland?

No. Scotland has no rod licence for salmon, but you need permission or a permit from the owner of the fishing rights, usually the beat, association or estate. Salmon fishing is banned on Sundays across Scotland.

How much is a salmon fishing licence in England?

A salmon and sea trout rod licence costs £13.50 for a day, £30.50 for 8 days and £93.10 for 12 months, or £62.00 a year if you're 66+ or disabled. Juniors aged 13 to 16 get one free. These prices were checked on 23 October 2026, so confirm on GOV.UK before buying.

Can you keep salmon you catch in the UK?

Often not. In Wales every salmon must be returned. In England none can be kept before 16 June, and none at all on rivers such as the Wye, Eden and Lune. In Scotland you can keep a fish only on waters graded good or moderate, and the Tweed is total catch and release.

When does the salmon fishing season start?

It's set river by river. The Tay typically opens about 15 January, the Tweed on 1 February, the Wye and Welsh Dee on 3 March, and the Teifi on 1 April. Check the river board or byelaws for your river.

What is the best rod for salmon fishing for beginners?

A 13 to 14ft double-handed rod for an 8 or 9 weight line, paired with a Scandi head, suits most medium rivers. A single-handed or switch rod works better on small rivers and in low water. Book a casting lesson first and try a few rods before you buy.