Georgia Department of Natural Resources CRD: Fishing Regulations Update

Saltwater Information Program - SIP 

  

If you fish in saltwater, you need a SIP permit.

It's FREE!  Now that we are six months into this new requirement, we want to remind you that anyone who has a Georgia Fishing License and will fish in saltwater, including Lifetime and Senior License holders, needs to get the FREE annual Saltwater Information Program permit, or SIP permit.

 

To Get Your SIP Permit:

Obtain it in person from any current license vendor

Find a License Agent in your area.

Obtain it over the phone

call 1-800-366-2661   (M - F from 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. and Sat - Sun from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.)

Download via the internet 

Online License System for Georgia DNR

Here you can obtain this free SIP permit, buy a license, or print a replacement license.

 

For Lifetime or Senior License Holders

If you have a lifetime or senior license, you will be able to print a paper version of the SIP permit and carry it when you saltwater fish in Georgia. 

 

What Will SIP Do? Why Do I Need This FREE Permit?

The SIP permit is part of a comprehensive effort by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to collect timely and accurate data from saltwater anglers for use in resource management. Other Saltwater Information Program activities include volunteer fish tagging, a fish carcass donation project, and ongoing creel surveys of anglers and fishing guides.  

“This new permit will help us identify individuals who saltwater fish in Georgia so they can be included in catch and effort surveys. We want these surveys to be cost-effective, and we want the results to be as accurate and trustworthy as possible since they are so important to the management process. Georgia’s saltwater anglers can help by complying with this new requirement and by participating in these surveys when contacted,” explained Spud Woodward, director of the Coastal Resources Division. 

The SIP permit is patterned after the successful free Hunter Information Program (HIP) permit, which is required of Georgia hunting license holders who hunt migratory birds.

Georgia saltwater anglers who have a valid fishing license with a SIP permit and who fish in the Atlantic Ocean beyond 3 miles offshore will be exempt from the federal requirement to have a Saltwater Angler Registry permit. 

Starting January 1, 2013, anyone who holds a Georgia fishing license and wants to fish in saltwater will need a FREE, annual SIP permit.

The first SIP permits will be valid from January 1, 2013 until February 28, 2014. After that the permits will be valid for a 12-month period starting March 1 and expiring on the last day of February of the following year

Still Have Questions? SIP Permit Frequently Asked Questions