Guest fishing in Republika Srpska: permits, prices and rules

A guest who wants to fish on the Trebišnjica, Lake Bileća or other waters in East Herzegovina needs a fishing permit (ribolovna dozvola) for that water. The host does not issue it, but should know where it is sold, what it costs and which rules the guest must follow.

In short

• Recreational (sports) fishing permits are regulated by the Zakon o ribarstvu (Law on Fisheries). They are issued by the Ministarstvo poljoprivrede, šumarstva i vodoprivrede (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management), distributed by the Sportsko-ribolovni savez Republike Srpske (Sports Fishing Union), and sold to the guest by the holder of the fishing zone, usually the local sports fishing society. Daily, weekly and monthly permits are also sold by the zone's fish warden (ribočuvar).
• A guest from BiH or abroad can buy a daily, weekly, monthly or seasonal permit. A seasonal permit is valid for 180 days from the day of issue. Each of these permits is valid only in the zone of the holder that sold it.
• No fishing exam is needed for a daily, weekly or monthly permit. A seasonal permit requires a passed fishing exam.
• Prices since 1 January 2025: daily 15 to 60 KM, weekly 60 to 100 KM, monthly 90 to 100 KM, seasonal 170 KM.
• The permit must be carried while fishing. The catch may not be sold, and fish caught in the closed season or below the minimum size must be returned to the water at once.

Who it applies to

Anyone fishing in the fresh waters of Republika Srpska, including guests staying at a rural household. Children under 14 may fish without a permit only together with an adult who holds one.

What to do

1. Before the guest arrives, ask the society that manages the water (Trebišnjica, Lake Bileća, Sušica) whether it sells permits to guests and where. Permits are sold by the zone holder; daily, weekly and monthly permits are also sold by its fish warden (Law on Fisheries, Articles 35 and 59).
2. The guest buys a permit for the water where they will fish. The permit shows the angler's name, identity card or passport number and citizenship, so the guest should bring an identity document. Ask whether it is cyprinid or salmonid water and whether it is a designated fishing reserve (revir), because the price depends on it.
3. The guest must carry the permit while fishing. A fish warden may ask to see it and an identity document.
4. The Law (Article 38) requires every angler to keep a catch record. For short permits, ask the society how the record is handed in.

Rules the guest must know

• Gear: at most three rods with one hook each. Trout, huchen and grayling may be fished only with one rod and at most three artificial lures. The Tyrolean rig (lajner) is banned. In waters where trout, huchen or grayling live permanently, natural bait (fish, worms, insects) is banned.
• Boats: fishing is done from the bank. A boat is allowed only on waters where the Program razvoja ribarstva i akvakulture (Fisheries and Aquaculture Development Programme) says so (the 2020 Rulebook still calls it Ribarska osnova Republike Srpske). The Law bans fishing for trout, grayling and huchen from a boat and at night.
• Night: under the July 2023 amendment of the Rulebook, fishing for all species is banned all year from 22.00 to 04.00 during summer time and from 19.00 to 06.00 during winter time. In April 2025 a further supplementing Rulebook was adopted (Službeni glasnik RS no. 32/25). The Ministry's draft for it dealt with exactly this night ban: it proposed limiting the ban to trout, grayling and huchen and letting the user of a fishing reserve set different rules in its annual plan. So before night fishing, check with the society that manages the water or with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management what applies on that water.
• Closed seasons (examples): brown trout 1 October to 1 March, Neretva softmouth trout 1 October to 31 March, huchen 1 February to 31 August, grayling 1 March to 31 May, pike 1 February to 31 March, zander 1 April to 31 May, carp 15 April to 31 May, barbel 1 May to 31 July, catfish 1 May to 15 June. The full list is in the Rulebook.
• Protected species (all year): tench, crucian carp, marble trout (glavatica), European eel, sturgeons, river crayfish and others listed in Article 7 of the Rulebook. If caught, they go back into the water.
• Minimum sizes: brown trout 25 cm, Neretva softmouth trout and grayling 30 cm, carp 35 cm, pike and zander 40 cm, catfish 60 cm, huchen 80 cm.
• Daily catch: huchen is catch and release only; carp and catfish two fish in total; brown trout, Neretva softmouth trout, grayling, zander and Volga zander (smuđ kamenjar) three fish in total; burbot (manić), asp (bolen) and strugač five fish in total; roach, ide, nase, barbel, Balkan barbel, chub and bream ten fish in total. No more than four kilograms of native species a day. If a single fish weighs more than four kilograms, the daily catch is complete. Non-native species (for example rainbow trout, Prussian carp, silver carp, grass carp) may be caught with no limit.
• Banned: fishing from a bridge, under ice, within 100 metres of the fence of a hydropower structure, and with a harpoon, net, electricity or explosives.
• Fish caught in recreational fishing may not be put on the market. The guest may not sell it and a restaurant may not buy it.

Deadlines and amounts

Fees for a guest (BiH citizen or foreigner), in force since 1 January 2025:

• Daily: 15 KM (cyprinid water), 30 KM (salmonid water), 45 KM (cyprinid reserve), 60 KM (salmonid reserve).
• Weekly (seven days): 60, 70, 90 and 100 KM, in the same order.
• Monthly (30 days): 90 KM (cyprinid water) and 100 KM (salmonid water).
• Seasonal (180 days): 170 KM.
• Additional permit (talon) for an annual permit holder fishing in another holder's zone: 5 KM.

The annual permit for society members costs 130 KM for adults aged 18 to 65 and is valid only with the Union membership stamp. It is sold to people resident in the municipality where the zone lies, so it is not meant for guests. These prices apply from 1 January 2025, so before buying, ask the society whether a new decision has been issued. For fines for fishing without a permit, see the Law or ask the society.

Where to go

Fishing zone holders in East Herzegovina, according to the Union's list of December 2023:

• Sportsko ribolovno društvo "Trebinje" (Trebinje Sports Fishing Society), Kosovska 2, Trebinje.
• Sportsko ribolovno društvo "Bileća", Kralja Aleksandra bb, Bileća.
• ULR "Vranjača", Solunskih dobrovoljaca 10, Gacko.
• Sportsko ribolovno društvo "Alagovac", Obrena Ivkovića bb, Nevesinje.
• The Sportsko-ribolovni savez Republike Srpske keeps the list of zone holders. The list does not show zone boundaries, so ask the society which waters it manages and where permits are sold.

Laws and sources

• Zakon o ribarstvu (Law on Fisheries), Službeni glasnik RS no. 72/12, Articles 32, 35 to 38, 59, 66 and 67. The linked text is the 2012 base text.
• Zakon o izmjenama i dopunama Zakona o ribarstvu (Law amending the Law on Fisheries), Službeni glasnik RS no. 112/21: Article 13 adds the seasonal permit and the purchase of daily, weekly and monthly permits from the fish warden (Article 35 of the Law); Article 14 replaces Article 36 (annual permit and talon).
• Pravilnik o načinu obavljanja ribolova, lovostaju, alatima, opremi i sredstvima za ribolov (Rulebook on the manner of fishing, closed seasons, gear and equipment), Službeni glasnik RS no. 62/20, in force from 1 January 2021
• Pravilnik o izmjenama Pravilnika o načinu obavljanja ribolova, lovostaju, alatima, opremi i sredstvima za ribolov (amending Rulebook), Službeni glasnik RS no. 61/23: night ban, minimum sizes and daily catch. The link shows the contents of that gazette issue.
• Pravilnik o dopunama Pravilnika o načinu obavljanja ribolova, lovostaju, alatima, opremi i sredstvima za ribolov (supplementing Rulebook), Službeni glasnik RS no. 32/25: supplement of April 2025. The link shows the contents of that gazette issue.
• Pravilnik o obliku, sadržaju i obrascu dozvole za ribolov (Rulebook on the fishing permit form), Službeni glasnik RS no. 74/22: validity of permits.
• Odluka o visini naknade za korišćenje ribolovne zone i visini naknada za dozvole za ribolov (Decision on fees for fishing zones and fishing permits), Službeni glasnik RS no. 113/24, 26 December 2024: applies from 1 January 2025 and replaced the decisions in Službeni glasnik RS no. 111/19 and 54/22.