Recreational fishing on the Costa de la Luz and the Guadalquivir: licence, minimum sizes and no-fishing areas (2026)

Updated: 10 November 2026

Fishing from a beach in Cádiz or Huelva, from a boat in the Strait or on the banks of the Guadalquivir requires a licence, and the rules change with the species and the place. This guide brings together what we could check on 10 November 2026 in official sources: the BOJA (Andalusia's official gazette), the BOE (Spain's official gazette), the Junta de Andalucía and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA). Each fact carries the year of its source. Anything we did not read in an official source is marked "not confirmed". This is not legal advice: if in doubt, ask the Junta (012 or +34 955 012 012) before fishing.

The recreational sea-fishing licence

What we checked:

At sea you need a licence to fish from the shore, from a boat or spearfishing. It is issued by the Junta de Andalucía, also for offshore waters, which are regulated by the Spanish State (Real Decreto 347/2011, consolidated text of 2026).
The Andalusian rule in force is Decreto 205/2023 of 29 August (BOJA of 4-9-2023), for inshore waters. The licence can be requested from age 14; under-14s may fish from the surface with a licensed adult and written permission from their parents (arts. 4 and 5).
How to get it online: the Junta points to its LIPE application (ws128.juntadeandalucia.es/agriculturaypesca/lipe/) (Junta page read in 2026). Information: 012 or +34 955 012 012.
Fee: not confirmed. We did not find the amount in an official source. Decreto 205/2023 says it is free for people over 65 and for recipients of Spain's minimum living income or Andalusia's minimum income (art. 5.4).
Validity: the decree provides for licences of 1 day, 3 days, 1 month and 1, 2 or 3 years (art. 6.1), but that article takes effect once the implementing order is approved; the draft order went to public consultation in 2024 and 2025 (BOJA). Its final approval is not confirmed.
Foreign visitors: the decree has no specific rules for them. Licences issued by another Spanish administration or another EU member state are valid in Andalusian inshore waters, with free validation (first additional provision, 2023). Whether a non-EU tourist can get one online with a passport: not confirmed.

Daily limits, hooks and banned species

In Andalusian inshore waters (Decreto 205/2023):

Limit: 5 kg per licence per day (4 kg gutted); if you only catch fish, you may keep one piece that takes you over that weight. Squid and cuttlefish: 6 pieces at most. On a boat with more than five licences, 25 kg in total (art. 9).
Up to six hooks per licence (art. 17). Catches are marked by cutting the lower lobe of the tail (one fin on squid and cuttlefish) (art. 13).
You may not take crustaceans, molluscs other than squid and cuttlefish, octopus, sea urchins or bivalves (art. 11), nor the species in annex I (for example swordfish, sturgeons and seahorses).
Selling or giving away catches, lights to attract fish (except a hand torch when spearfishing), drones and electric reels (except for a recognised disability) are banned (art. 12).
Spearfishing: only from sunrise to sunset, with a red or orange buoy and Alpha flag, and 250 m from bathers, ports and professional gear (arts. 20 and 22).
Offshore waters: Real Decreto 347/2011 refers to the limits of a 1999 Order until new rules are adopted; the figure is not confirmed.

Minimum sizes

What Real Decreto 560/1995 says (BOE consolidated text, read in 2026):

Annex I (Gulf of Cádiz): gilthead bream 19 cm, sea bass 36 cm, sole 24 cm, striped red mullet 15 cm, red porgy 15 cm, blackspot seabream (Pagellus bogaraveo) 25 cm, mackerel 20 cm, horse mackerel 15 cm, anchovy 10 cm in division IXa.
Annex II (Mediterranean): gilthead bream 20 cm, sea bass 23 cm, white seabream 15 cm. Whether the Strait falls under annex I or II: not confirmed.
Decreto 205/2023 also refers to EU Regulation 2019/1241 (art. 8.1). We did not check its sizes or the size for meagre (corvina): not confirmed.
If in doubt, release the fish alive.

Sea bass and species that need authorisation

New in 2026 (Real Decreto 214/2026, BOE of 19-3-2026):

Sea bass, cod, pollack, sole and dolphinfish become species with "differentiated protection", like bluefin tuna, albacore, swordfish, marlins, hake and blackspot seabream already were.
To catch them or keep them on board you need a specific authorisation from the Ministry, valid for three years, requested by the boat owner through the MAPA mobile app and requiring a regional licence (Real Decreto 347/2011, arts. 3 bis and 10). Whether it also applies to shore fishing: not confirmed.
Reporting: within 24 hours, in the app, both what you keep and what you release. It is compulsory for these species in any waters and for all species in offshore waters (art. 3 bis, 2026).

Bluefin tuna in 2026

What MAPA publishes:

Recreational bluefin tuna fishing is only allowed as catch and release, from 16 June to 14 October or until the quota runs out; outside that period not even catch and release is allowed (BOE-A-2026-12503, 9-6-2026).
From a boat you need an authorisation from the Directorate-General for Fisheries Management and Aquaculture, requested in the PescaREC app and carried on board with the regional licence.
If a tuna dies during catch and release: one per boat per day and two per season at most, landed whole, with advance notice of arrival and a report within 24 hours in PescaREC. Foreign-flagged boats may not keep any. Selling it is banned.
Real Decreto 362/2026 (BOE of 1-5-2026) set aside 4.13 tonnes in 2026 for those dead fish.
MAPA definitively closed the 2026 recreational bluefin tuna fishery from 23:59 on 24-6-2026, as the quota was used up (resolution of 23-6-2026). 2027 dates: not confirmed.

No-fishing areas and protected sites

What we were able to read:

Guadalquivir river-mouth fishing reserve (Order of 16-6-2004): in zone A, the river channel down to Bajo de Guía (Sanlúcar), no fishing is allowed except shellfish gathering on foot. In zone B, out to the Chipiona lighthouse and Torre Zalabar, fish only, 5 kg per licence per day, six hooks and a closed season for meagre (corvina) from 1 April to 30 June. The Order was amended in 2010 and a further change was proposed in 2023: the text in force is not confirmed.
Strait of Gibraltar Natural Park (Tarifa-Algeciras): its management plan (BOJA of 27-11-2007) bans fishing and shellfish gathering in and from the A1 Reserve Zones, and diving in A zones needs authorisation. The exact map of those zones: not confirmed; follow the signs.
La Breña y Marismas del Barbate and Doñana: the Junta refers to each site's plans (for Doñana, Decreto 48/2004, 2018 Junta page). Their specific fishing rules: not confirmed.
In general, ports and bathing areas are off limits; from a boat you must stay 150 m from bathing areas and 200 m from professional boats and gear (2018 Junta page).
The licence does not replace the permits of a protected area.

Fishing in the Guadalquivir river

It is a different licence: inland fishing.

To fish in the river you need the inland-fishing licence, separate from the sea licence. Requirements: registering in the Andalusian Hunting and Inland Fishing Register, third-party liability insurance and paying the fee (Junta de Andalucía, 2026).
2026 fees: basic licence €8.14 per year (for 1, 3 or 5 years); temporary €15.61 (up to 15 days); inter-regional €25 (1 year, valid in the regions that signed the agreement); trout surcharge €4.08 per year. Over-65s are exempt; 50% off the basic licence for under-16s.
It is requested online with a digital certificate on the Junta website. Whether a foreigner without an NIE (foreigner identity number) can get one: not confirmed (the Junta only clarifies this for hunting).
Where in the estuary the sea licence gives way to the inland licence: not confirmed. The fishing reserve also applies at the river mouth.

If you cross into Portugal

One line:

In Portugal recreational fishing needs its own licence, issued by the DGRM (also online for foreigners, according to the DGRM): dgrm.pt/en/pesca-pl-licenciamento.

If you run a property on the Costa de la Luz

What travellers often ask AI assistants:

Whether they need a licence to fish from the beach and how to get it, which is worth explaining with the Junta's official link.
Whether they can keep a sea bass or a tuna, where fishing is banned and whether the river needs another licence.
Having this clear on your website and listings, with official sources and without recommending companies you do not know, avoids wrong answers.

How iQuota helps

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Frequently asked questions

Do I need a licence to fish from the beach in Cádiz or Huelva?

Yes. Recreational sea fishing from the shore requires a Junta de Andalucía licence (Decreto 205/2023), applied for in its LIPE application. The fee is not confirmed; it is free for people over 65.

How much fish can I keep?

In Andalusian inshore waters, 5 kg per licence per day (4 kg gutted), plus one piece over that weight if you only catch fish, and 6 squid or cuttlefish (Decreto 205/2023, art. 9). Octopus is banned for recreational fishing.

Can I keep a sea bass?

Since 2026 sea bass is a species with differentiated protection (Real Decreto 214/2026): you need a specific authorisation from the Ministry and must report the catch within 24 hours in the MAPA app. Minimum size in the Gulf of Cádiz: 36 cm (RD 560/1995).

Can I fish for bluefin tuna?

Only catch and release, with a PescaREC authorisation when fishing from a boat, from 16 June to 14 October or until the quota runs out. In 2026 the recreational fishery closed on 24 June because the quota was used up.

Where is fishing banned?

Among other places, in the Guadalquivir channel down to Bajo de Guía (fishing reserve, zone A), in the A1 Reserve Zones of the Strait of Gibraltar Natural Park, in ports and in bathing areas. For the river you also need the inland-fishing licence.

Sources

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