In short: Guatemala’s Ley General de Pesca y Acuicultura (Decreto 80-2002) writes the sport-fishing licence per vessel or per unit of effort (Art. 60), and the instruments we read set no separate licence for an angler on a licensed boat. MAGA grants it after registration with the naval authority (Art. 26), for ten years (Art. 62), with an annual access fee of Q800, Q2,400 or Q8,000 by boat length (Art. 75). Foreign-flagged sport boats need a fixed-term permit (Art. 73), at Q2,000 per tournament. The sailfish is reserved for sport fishing and may only be caught and released alive (Arts. 28 and 80 j); billfish may be fished only with circle hooks (Reglamento Art. 60). Lake Atitlán has its own gear list (Reglamento Art. 50 e). General information, not legal advice.
All of this comes from the law and its reglamento as MAGA’s fisheries directorate (DIPESCA) publishes them in one compilation. This page does not rate or recommend any charter operator.
Who needs the licence: written per vessel or unit of effort
| Question | What the text says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| What sport fishing is | Fishing “con propósito de esparcimiento y recreación, con o sin embarcaciones, siempre que las especies capturadas no sean objeto de comercialización” | Ley Art. 8, glossary (numeral 35) |
| Who may do it | Individuals or legal persons, national or foreign | Ley Art. 27 |
| How it is authorised | By licence, after registration with the naval authority | Ley Art. 26 |
| What a licence covers | One per vessel or per unit of effort and fishery | Ley Art. 60 |
| How long it lasts | Ten years | Ley Art. 62 c) |
| Foreign-flagged sport boats | A fixed-term permit instead of a licence | Ley Art. 73; Reglamento Arts. 55 to 57 |
So the licence and the fee sit with the boat. The instruments we read do not set a separate personal licence for an angler fishing from a licensed boat, and they do not expressly address fishing from the shore, although the definition says sport fishing may be done “con o sin embarcaciones”. If you book a charter, the question to ask is whether the boat holds its MAGA sport-fishing licence.
What the licence costs
Ley Art. 75 sets the annual access fee for sport fishing:
| Boat | Annual fee |
|---|---|
| Guatemalan flag, up to 8 m length | Q800 |
| Guatemalan flag, 8.01 to 12 m | Q2,400 |
| Guatemalan flag, 12.01 m and over | Q8,000 |
| Foreign flag | Q2,000 per boat per tournament |
The article’s text:
“Para la pesca deportiva utilizando embarcaciones de bandera guatemalteca el monto a pagar anual será: de hasta ocho (8) metros de eslora ochocientos quetzales (Q.800.00)”
The application itself is listed in the government procedures catalogue as service 2891, “Licencia o prórroga de Pesca Deportiva”, at Q0, with a response time of 300 days, requiring the application form, the boat’s registration certificate, proof of ownership or lease of the boat, the fishing-club membership document if any, ID and company documents where they apply. The Reglamento (Art. 53) says that, once the requirements are met and UNIPESCA’s technical opinion is favourable, MAGA podrá (may) issue the ministerial resolution “en un plazo no mayor de sesenta (60) días contados a partir de recibida la solicitud”, that is, within 60 days of receiving the application, followed by an administrative contract approved by Acuerdo Ministerial and published in the Diario Oficial at the applicant’s cost. The catalogue’s 300 days and the Reglamento’s 60 days are both published; we are reporting both.
Sailfish and other billfish: catch and release
“Queda establecido que el pez vela (Istiophorus platypterus), queda reservado para la pesca deportiva. Queda prohibida la captura de esta especie en la actividad pesquera comercial.” — Decreto 80-2002, Art. 28
The prohibitions article then sets the release rule. Art. 80 literal j) prohibits fishing and internationally trading sailfish, with two exceptions: sport fishing, “cuyos practicantes podrán capturarlos y devolverlos vivos al mar”, and sailfish caught incidentally in authorised commercial fishing, which “deberán ser liberados y devueltos al mar”.
The Reglamento adds the method:
| Rule | Text | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Target species | All large pelagic species, plus the relevant continental species | Reglamento Art. 58 |
| Where | Guatemalan waters on both coasts, and public-domain continental waters | Reglamento Art. 59 |
| Hooks for billfish | For billfish (family Istiophoridae) only circle hooks; multiple teaser devices of the sercha type prohibited | Reglamento Art. 60 |
| Method | For large pelagics, trolling (curricán) and catch-and-release, “consistente en liberar vivos los ejemplares de peces capturados” | Reglamento Art. 61 |
| Tournaments | Organisers coordinate the dates with UNIPESCA | Reglamento Art. 62 |
The Reglamento’s text says catch-and-release applies to large pelagic fish generally, not only sailfish. Ley Art. 28 also lets the authority reserve other species for sport fishing; the compilation we read names only the sailfish.
Lake Atitlán and other lakes
Inland waters are handled differently. The Reglamento’s continental-fishing chapter says:
“La Pesca Continental se reserva exclusivamente para la Pesca de Subsistencia, Pesca Artesanal y Pesca de Pequeña Escala.” — Reglamento, Art. 47
The same Reglamento’s sport-fishing chapter lists continental species (Art. 58) and public-domain continental waters (Art. 59) as sport-fishing scope. The text contains both provisions and does not reconcile them; we are reporting both.
For Lake Atitlán, Art. 50 literal e) lists the permitted gear:
| Gear | Rule for Lake Atitlán |
|---|---|
| Single lines with a hook | Hook no smaller than 0.40 inches (1 cm) |
| Gillnet | 200 m maximum per boat, drop of no more than 12 m, mesh no smaller than 2.35 inches (6 cm); may not be worked to form a ring; several nets may not together exceed 200 m |
| Trap | Opening no smaller than 2.35 inches (6 cm); up to ten traps per boat |
| Harpoon | Rods powered only by rubber, no explosive or contaminant; with scuba equipment from 5:00 to 18:00; free-diving at any hour |
| In the tul (reed beds) | Gillnets and the apaleo technique prohibited |
Subsistence fishing is its own category: without a boat or with a boat of up to 0.45 net register tonnes, not for profit, for the fisher’s and family’s own consumption (Ley Art. 8, numeral 36). Ley Art. 34 says it may be done only by Guatemalans, with no access fee.
For conditions on the lake itself, see Lake Atitlán water level.
Penalties
Ley Art. 81 sets the sanctions for the prohibitions in Art. 80:
| Breach | First offence | Repeat |
|---|---|---|
| Fishing without a licence or permit, or with an expired one (Art. 80 a), and the other literals a) to h) | Q8,000 to Q80,000 fine to the boat owner or company, plus seizure of the catch and illegal gear | Fine +100% and suspension of fishing 6 to 12 months; third offence cancels the right to operate |
| Sailfish rule (Art. 80 j) and gear-protection rule (i) | Q4,000 to Q8,000 to the vessel | +100%; third offence suspends fishing 3 to 6 months |
| Pollution, abandoning waste, gear that endangers navigation (k to q) | Q4,000 to Q16,000 | — |
| Foreign vessels fishing illegally in territorial sea or EEZ | Q800,000 in addition to other sanctions, with auction of the catch | Seizure of the vessel |
Where sport fishing happens
On the Pacific coast of Escuintla, our Iztapa and Puerto San José pages have the town basics. The rules above apply on both coasts and inland.
Sources
- Ley General de Pesca y Acuicultura, Decreto 80-2002, and its Reglamento, Acuerdo Gubernativo 223-2005 (with reform notes), compilation published by MAGA’s Dirección de Normatividad de la Pesca y Acuicultura —
https://www.maga.gob.gt/wp-content/uploads/pdf/dipesca/nacional/ley_general_de_pesca_y_acuicultura.pdf. Articles cited: Ley 8 (numerals 35, 36), 26 to 29, 34, 60, 62, 73, 75, 80, 81; Reglamento 47, 50, 53, 55 to 62. Retrieved 2026-09-25. - Catálogo de Trámites, service 2891, “227. Licencia o prórroga de Pesca Deportiva” (MAGA) —
https://www.tramites.gob.gt/servicio/2891/, retrieved 2026-09-25.
General information about published Guatemalan fisheries rules, read on 2026-09-25. Not legal advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a fishing licence to go sport fishing in Guatemala?
The licence in Guatemala’s fisheries law is written around the boat. Ley General de Pesca y Acuicultura (Decreto 80-2002) Art. 26 says sport fishing is authorised by licence after registration with the naval authority, and Art. 60 says a licence is one per vessel or per unit of effort and fishery. The access fee in Art. 75 is set per boat by length. The instruments we read do not set a separate personal licence for an angler fishing from a licensed boat; on a charter, the licence and fee sit with the boat. Foreign-flagged sport-fishing boats need a fixed-term permit instead (Art. 73).
Can you keep a sailfish in Guatemala?
No. Decreto 80-2002 Art. 28 reserves the sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) for sport fishing and prohibits catching it in commercial fishing. Art. 80 literal j) prohibits fishing and internationally trading sailfish, except that sport fishers ‘podrán capturarlos y devolverlos vivos al mar’, and sailfish caught incidentally by commercial boats must be released. The Reglamento (Acuerdo Gubernativo 223-2005) Art. 61 authorises trolling with catch-and-release, ‘consistente en liberar vivos los ejemplares de peces capturados’, for large pelagic fish.
What hooks are allowed for billfish in Guatemala?
Only circle hooks. Reglamento Art. 60: for sport fishing of billfish (family Istiophoridae) only circle hooks are authorised, and multiple fish-teaser devices of the ‘sercha’ type are prohibited.
How much is a sport-fishing licence in Guatemala?
The fee in Decreto 80-2002 Art. 75 is an annual access fee per Guatemalan-flagged boat: Q800 up to 8 m length, Q2,400 from 8.01 to 12 m, and Q8,000 from 12.01 m; a foreign-flagged boat pays Q2,000 per tournament. The government procedures catalogue lists the licence application itself (service 2891, MAGA) at Q0 with a 300-day response time. Art. 62 sets sport-fishing licences at ten years.
Can you fish in Lake Atitlán?
The Reglamento reserves continental fishing for subsistence, artisanal and small-scale fishing (Art. 47), while also listing continental waters as a sport-fishing zone (Art. 59). For Lake Atitlán specifically, Art. 50 literal e) sets the permitted gear: single lines with hooks no smaller than 0.40 inches (1 cm), gillnets of no more than 200 m per boat, up to ten traps per boat, and harpoons powered only by rubber, with scuba harpoon fishing from 5:00 to 18:00; it prohibits gillnets and the ‘apaleo’ technique in the tul reeds. Subsistence fishing may be done only by Guatemalans (Ley Art. 34).
What is the fine for fishing without a licence?
Decreto 80-2002 Art. 81 fines fishing without a permit or licence, or with an expired one (Art. 80 literal a), with Q8,000 to Q80,000 on the first offence plus seizure of the catch and illegal gear, applied to the boat owner or company. Breaking the sailfish rule (literal j) is fined Q4,000 to Q8,000 per vessel the first time, doubled on a repeat, and a third offence suspends the vessel’s fishing for three to six months.
