Magnet fishing is highly famous in the USA and UK due to many lakes and rivers. Plus, magnet fishing is highly beneficial in these areas as well. Though it seems a harmless activity still there is something you need to know. Like hunting, magnet fishing also has some strict laws that you don’t want to break. Understanding them is a must so that you won’t end up with any trouble.
I have explained the USA and UK laws below for magnet fishing. Ensure you read the rules and regulations carefully and obey each of them before the next magnet fishing trip.
Magnet Fishing Laws in the US
Until now (2021), no local and federal law bans magnet fishing in the US. The US allows magnet fishing, but there are few states where magnet fishing is forbidden.
Magnet fishing in the US will barely make you trouble since there isn’t any strict law yet. But you cannot do whatever you want.
Though there isn’t any stick magnet fishing law in the US, there are laws for metal detections, salvage, weapon ownership. So through magnet fishing, if you get your hands on some items like grenades, guns, or other weapons, or anything else that the govt needs to know, you have to report to the concerned department.
Like the US, magnet fishing is prevalent in the United Kingdom as well. But there is a strict law in the UK, and there is a bunch of regulations you need to maintain when you are thinking forward to magnet fishing.
Check it out in the later section!
I have tried to cover up significant rules and regulations for all 50 US states in alphabetic order in the below table. Would you mind searching for your state and recognizing it before proceeding with magnet fishing?
- Is Magnet Fishing Legal?
- Is Permission Required for Private Property?
- Is cultural and natural resources need to be preserved by state-own property?
| US State | US State(Short Name) | Is Magnet Fishing Legal? (Y/N) | Is Permission Required for Private Property (Y/N) | Is cultural and natural resources need to be preserved by state-own property?(Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | AL | Y | Y | Y |
| Alaska | AK | Y | Y | Y |
| Arizona | AZ | Y | Y | Y |
| Arkansas | AR | Y | Y | Y |
| California | CA | Y | Y | Y |
| Colorado | CO | Y | Y | Y |
| Connecticut | CT | Y | Y | Y |
| Delaware | DE | Y | Y | Y |
| Florida | FL | Y | Y | Y |
| Georgia | GA | Y | Y | Y |
| Hawaii | HI | Y | Y | Y |
| Idaho | ID | Y | Y | Y |
| Illinois | IL | Y | Y | Y |
| Indiana | IN | Y | Y | Y |
| Iowa | IA | Y | Y | Y |
| Kansas | KS | Y | Y | Y |
| Kentucky | KY | Y | Y | Y |
| Louisiana | LA | Y | Y | Y |
| Maine | ME | Y | Y | Y |
| Maryland | MD | Y | Y | Y |
| Massachusetts | MA | Y | Y | Y |
| Michigan | MI | Y | Y | Y |
| Minnesota | MN | Y | Y | Y |
| Mississippi | MS | Y | Y | Y |
| Missouri | MO | Y | Y | Y |
| Montana | MT | Y | Y | Y |
| Nebraska | NE | Y | Y | Y |
| Nevada | NV | Y | Y | Y |
| New Hampshire | NH | Y | Y | Y |
| New Jersey | NJ | Y | Y | Y |
| New Mexico | NM | Y | Y | Y |
| New York | NY | Y | Y | Y |
| North Carolina | NC | Y | Y | Y |
| North Dakota | ND | Y | Y | Y |
| Ohio | OH | Y | Y | Y |
| Oklahoma | OK | Y | Y | Y |
| Oregon | OR | Y | Y | Y |
| Pennsylvania | PA | Y | Y | Y |
| Rhode Island | RI | Y | Y | Y |
| South Carolina | SC | N | Y | Y |
| South Dakota | SD | Y | Y | Y |
| Tennessee | TN | Y | Y | Y |
| Texas | TX | Y | Y | Y |
| Utah | UT | Y | Y | Y |
| Vermont | VT | Y | Y | Y |
| Virginia | VA | Y | Y | Y |
| Washington | WA | Y | Y | Y |
| West Virginia | WV | Y | Y | Y |
| Wisconsin | WI | Y | Y | Y |
| Wyoming | WY | Y | Y | Y |
Magnet Fishing Laws in the UK
So as said earlier, for magnet fishing in the UK, you need to think about a bunch of stuff. The complication of magnet fishing in the UK is due to the General Canal Byelaws of 1965, which the former British waterways imposed.
There is a group called Canal and River Trust; they are for keeping the canal and rivers and their assets well maintained. According to them, magnet fishing could be hazardous. And that is why they don’t allow magnet fishing in public waterways.
In the law, not strictly magnet fishing, they directly didn’t mention magnet fishing, but they said dredging on rivers, canals, and waterways. And since magnet fishing is a dredging method, the law is the same for it.
In public property, it is entirely illegal. You can only do magnet fishing in the UK if you are doing it on your private property. But still, even for that, you have to take authorization from the Canal and River trust.
On top of that, getting the authorization is a little challenging as well. But people who can show all the needed documents get permission.
What to do if you don’t have private property? You can magnet fish on someone’s property that has Canal & River Trust authorization in that case. And then you have to sign a deal with the property owner as well.
The deal could be anything depends on the property owner. But the best deal is to share a percentage of what you fish from the property.
Why is Magnet Fishing illegal? or Why Magnet Fishing is dangerous? Please watch this short video
Conclusion
I hope this guide helps you with your magnet fishing trip. When going for magnet fishing, make sure you choose the right gears and high-quality magnet fishing rope with the best fishing magnet. Otherwise, you can end up with a lousy magnet fishing experience.
Read More: How To Do Magnet Fishing? | Beginners Magnet Fishing Guide