A GREAT DEAL. This is not up-to-date, it is an archived record.
One of the best recreational values you can find in the Sunshine State is the amazingly low cost of our fishing licenses. For a base fee of $12 a year, just a dollar a month, residents can fish in Florida's 3 million acres of freshwater lakes and reservoirs or 12 thousand miles of rivers in streams. Or, for $12 a year, a resident can fish from a boat in saltwater (residents don't need a license to fish from shore).

Non-residents also get a great deal with some of the least expensive non-resident licenses in the nation-$30 annually for freshwater or saltwater ($60 combined). A variety of short term licenses are also available.

FOR A GREAT CAUSE...
The entire base fee (see processing fees below) goes to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and is used to manage Florida's fish and wildlife resources for their long-term well-being and the benefit of people. Moreover, every new license holder helps the state recover some (typically about $4 per license holder) of the excise taxes paid on fishing tackle, import duties on boats, and motor boat fuel taxes from the Federal government. This is accomplished via the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Program, a "user pays-user benefits" approach to sustaining recreational fisheries. Sportfish Restoration Projects in Florida typically include enhancing boating access, habitat restoration, urban fisheries development and many other efforts that directly benefit Florida anglers. But to put your tax dollars to work in Florida, we have to show the Federal government how many anglers we have buying licenses.

AND NOW IT'S EASIER THAN EVER...
It used to be that you had to go to a Tax Collector's office or one of their subagents (for example, sporting retail outlets, bait-and-tackle stores, or marinas) to buy a license. These facilities charge up to $2.00 for processing the licenses. If you want, you can still do that and pick up some great local advice on what's biting and where, while you load up on tackle. However, now you have other options. For instance, you can call 1-888-FISH-FLOrida (1-888-347-4356) and, using a credit card, get an instant fishing license, for an additional $3.95 convenience fee. Or, the FWC just authorized the sale of fishing licenses via the Internet. Visit our site for links to all of the available on-line vendors (www.state.fl.us/fwc/fishing/license.html).

PLUS YOU GET ACCESS TO FREE STUFF AND CHANCES... The North American Fishing Group has a toll-free number on the Florida license identification card. After you receive your license, you call the number to receive a special bonus offer for supporting fish and wildlife conservation. The bonus includes a 4-inch lock-back knife with the agency logo emblazoned on the blade, plus a three-month trial membership in the North American Fishing Club that includes copies of the North American Fisherman Magazine, all for just $1. You'll need a major credit card to complete the transaction.

WANT AN EVEN BETTER DEAL??? You can also purchase a five-year license via your tax collector's office, the toll-free number or online sites. These licenses give you five years of continual recreational enjoyment. For $60 you can choose freshwater or saltwater fishing or for $120 you get both. By buying the five-year license you only pay the processing and convenience fees once, saving you up to $23.80, and the trouble of having to renew each year. Besides that you get an attractive plastic license that is easier to keep up with than the paper licenses, which shorter-term license buyers receive.

THE BOTTOM LINE.
Whatever type of license you buy, and wherever you buy it, you are opening the door to a fantastic opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors. Florida is known as the Sunshine State and invites you out to the water to relax and have fun with your family and friends. There is almost no other place that you can go these days that provides a better opportunity to spend real quality time together talking, laughing and making memories. Get your license today, take advantage of some of the extra offers our sponsors are providing to you and go fishing-you owe it to yourself and your family to have some fun and relax.