Subchapter V — General Provisions
NR 22.15 Taking of fish by and for the department.
NR 22.16 Conflicting rules.
Ch. NR 22 Note
Note: Chapter NR 22 as it existed on March 31, 1982, was repealed and a new chapter NR 22 was created effective April 1, 1982.
NR 22.01(1)(1)
This chapter, along with other applicable rules and statutes, regulates fishing in the Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters.
NR 22.01(2)
(2) The rules contained in this chapter are not intended, nor do they authorize introducing into interstate commerce for purposes of human consumption or use, fish taken from the Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters which fail to meet or comply with food and drug administration (FDA) standards.
NR 22.01 History
History: Cr.
Register, March, 1982, No. 315, eff. 4-1-82.
NR 22.015(1)(1)
On the first Saturday and consecutive Sunday in June and the third Saturday and consecutive Sunday of January each year, no fishing license is required to fish the Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters.
NR 22.015(2)
(2) The license waiver of sub.
(1) does not apply to commercial fishing license requirements.
NR 22.015 History
History: Cr.
Register, April, 1987, No. 376, eff. 5-1-87; am. (1),
Register,April, 1989, No. 400, eff. 5-1-89; am. (1),
Register, May, 1995, No. 473, eff. 6-1-95;
CR 13-001: am. (1)
Register August 2013 No. 692, eff. 9-1-13.
NR 22.02
NR 22.02
Definitions. Except as otherwise specifically defined in the statutes, the following terms, for the purpose of this chapter, are defined as follows:
NR 22.02(1)
(1) “Bait net" means a hoop net that uses bait and does not include a lead or leads.
NR 22.02(3)
(3) “Buffalo net" means a baited or unbaited hoop net and does not include a lead or leads. The net may have one or more internal funnel-shaped throats whose tapered ends are directed inward from the mouth leading to a closed end of net that allows for accumulation of fish in the far end of the net. The closed end is tied off creating a holding place for fish.
NR 22.02(4)
(4) “Closed season" means that period of the year not included in the open season for each species of fish as provided in this chapter.
NR 22.02(5)
(5) “Commercial fish" means species of rough and detrimental fish as defined in this chapter, shovelnose (hackleback) sturgeon 27 inches and over but less than 34 inches in fork length, catfish 15 inches or over in length or 12 inches or over dressed and bullheads of any length when taken with commercial fishing gear under a commercial fishing license.
NR 22.02(6)
(6) “Commercial fishing gear" or “commercial gear" means that equipment specifically authorized for use in commercial fishing by this chapter.
NR 22.02(8)
(8) “Daily bag limit" has the meaning given in s.
NR 20.03 (8) except as used in s.
NR 22.13, where it means the maximum number of a turtle species or group of turtle species which may be reduced to a person's possession in a single day.
NR 22.02(10)
(10) “Dressed fish" means fish with the head and viscera removed but the tail on.
NR 22.02(13)
(13) “Fisher" means any person engaged in fishing.
NR 22.02(14)
(14) “Fork length" means that distance measured in a straight line from the tip of the snout to the tip of the median caudal fin rays of a fish.
NR 22.02(15)
(15) “Frame net" or “fyke net" means a unbaited modified hoop net with no more than two leads of netting attached to the first hoop. The wings are staked out from the net providing a barrier that funnels fish into the hoop portion of the net. Internal funnels within the frame net are designed to lead fish to the fish holding area of the net. Any mesh size is allowed with a front not to exceed four feet by eight feet if rectangular or eight feet in diameter if round.
NR 22.02(17)
(17) “Hooking", as used in s.
NR 22.13, means any activity which utilizes a dull-pointed, metal, barbless hook attached to a staff to remove a turtle from a body of water.
NR 22.02(18)
(18) “Hoop net" means a
net constructed out of multiple round, rectangular or oval hoops covered with a nylon or other stretchable fabric mesh that is not wire. The hoops are made of wood, fiberglass, or steel. Maximum hoop diameter is eight feet for round hoops and four feet by eight feet for rectangular hoops. The netting is constructed with a funnel entrance at one or both ends which are tied off to the sides or the opposite ends. The opening in the funnel may be round, rectangular or oval in shape. “Hoop net" includes bait nets and buffalo nets.
NR 22.02(19)
(19) “Lead" means a length of net strung outward from a fish net or trap that is used to obstruct the path of a fish and cause the fish to follow the lead net toward the fish trap. Leads may have a maximum length of 300 feet and a maximum mesh size of two inches.
NR 22.02(20)
(20) “Length" for the purposes of measuring a fish, unless otherwise specified, means the distance measured in a straight line from the tip of the snout to the outermost end of the tail or caudal fin fully extended.
NR 22.02(21)
(21) “Minnows" mean all species defined as such in s.
29.001 (54), Stats., and bullheads not exceeding 4 inches in length.
NR 22.02(22)
(22) “Mississippi River" means all waters lying between the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific railroad tracks on the Iowa side of the river, and the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe railroad tracks lying on the Wisconsin side of the river.
NR 22.02(23)
(23) “Possession limit" has the meaning given in s.
NR 20.03 (31), except in s.
NR 22.13 where “possession limit" means the maximum number of a turtle species or group of turtle species set in s.
NR 22.13 which may be possessed by a person at any time.
NR 22.02(24)
(24) “Rough fish" means all species defined as such in s.
29.001 (74), Stats., and detrimental fish including grass carp which is also known as amurcarp (Ctenopharyngodon idella).
NR 22.02(26)
(26) “Seine haul" means a single setting, retrieval and emptying of a seine, including placement of the net, driving fish in the direction of the net, drawing or lifting the net, or both, to entrap fish by retrieving one or both ends of the net, bagging the fish in the net, sorting and removal of the game fish in the net and removal of all fish from the net.
NR 22.02 Note
Note: A single seine haul may take more than one day to complete from the time the net is set until all fish have been removed from the net.
NR 22.02(28)
(28) “Slat net" or “basket trap" means a fish trap made of wood slats. The slat net may not be more than 6 feet in length and not more than 72 inches in circumference. A slat net will have square or round ends with a funnel made of wood slats on one end, one or more wood slat funnels inside the trap leading to a fish accumulation area and cotton or nylon webbing at the closed end of the net to hold the fish in the net.
NR 22.02(29)
(29) “Sport fishing" or “angling" means any fishing, including the methods commonly known as hook and line fishing or angling conducted without a commercial fishing license and with other than commercial fishing gear.
NR 22.02(30)
(30) “Stretch measure" means the extension measure of net mesh size whenever the size of mesh of a net is specified and is the distance between the extreme angles of any single mesh with the mesh fully stretched. Such measurements shall apply to all nets except basket traps or slat nets.
NR 22.02(31)
(31) “Supervisor" means any department employee assigned or designated to oversee fishing activities conducted under this chapter.
NR 22.02(33)
(33) “Turtle", as used in this chapter, means a reptile having horny, toothless jaws and a body enclosed in a bony or leathery shell into which the head, limbs and tail may be partially or fully withdrawn, and includes parts of turtles and turtle eggs.
NR 22.02(34)
(34) “Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters" for sport fishing purposes, means all waters of the Mississippi River as defined under this section. For the purpose of taking turtles or commercial fishing, “Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters" means all waters from the Burlington Northern and Sante Fe railroad tracks on the east side of the Mississippi River in Wisconsin extending west to the state line between Wisconsin and Iowa.
NR 22.02 History
History: Cr.
Register, March, 1982, No. 315, eff. 4-1-82;am. (2),
Register, April, 1983, No. 328, eff. 5-1-83; am. (2),
Register,December, 1993, No. 456, eff. 1-1-94; cr. (4m), (6m) and (13m), am. (9),
Register, February, 1997, No. 494, eff. 3-1-97; am. (14),
Register, October, 1998, No. 514, eff. 11-1-98; corrections in (4), (8), and (10) were made under s. 13.93 (2m) (b) 7., Stats.,
Register November 2001 No. 551;
CR 04-024: am. (4m) and (9)
Register December 2004 No. 588, eff. 1-1-05;
CR 06-105: am. (2), cr. (6g),
Register August 2007 No. 620, eff. 9-1-07;
CR 10-053: r. and recr.
Register December 2010 No. 660, eff. 1-1-11; correction in (27) made under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats.,
Register December 2010 No. 660.
NR 22.03
NR 22.03
Reciprocity: sport fishing or spearing and dip netting. All residents of Wisconsin and Iowa holding a resident fishing license from their respective states or residents other than Wisconsin and Iowa holding an angling license or sport fishing license issued by either state may fish in waters of the Mississippi river lying between the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific railroad tracks on the Iowa side of the river, and the Burlington Northern and Sante Fe railroad tracks lying on the Wisconsin side of the river, including all sloughs and backwaters, bays and newly extended water areas connected with the main channel of the Mississippi river by a channel which is navigable when the waters are approximately equal to the normal pool elevation as created by the U.S. army corps of engineers. This reciprocity applies only to hook and line fishing, spearing, dipnetting, and the taking of minnows and crayfish for such fishing. Spearing and dip netting are prohibited within 200 feet of any U.S. army corps of engineers locks and dams. Residents of either Wisconsin or Iowa may not fish in these boundary waters when the angler's state of residency license has been revoked.
NR 22.04
NR 22.04
Sport fishing: seasons and limits. All regulations applicable to sport fishing are as follows unless expressly provided elsewhere in this chapter.
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See PDF for table 
NR 22.04(14)
(14) A person may possess or control only the daily bag limit while fishing on the ice or waters of the Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters.
NR 22.04(15)
(15) A person may possess or control the possession limit when not on the waters or ice during the open season for each species.
NR 22.04 History
History: Cr.
Register, March, 1982, No. 315, eff. 4-1-82; am. (1) and (2),
Register, December, 1989, No. 408, eff. 1-1-90; am. (2),
Register, December, 1991, No. 432, eff. 1-1-92; r. and recr. (4), r. (5),
Register, September, 2000, No. 537, eff. 4-1-2001;
CR 03-014: r. and recr. (2)
Register November 2003 No. 575, eff. 4-1-04;
CR 19-016: am. (2) (a)
Register March 2020 No. 771, eff. 4-1-20.
NR 22.05(1)(1)
Only rough fish legally taken during the open season by hook and line, spear, bow and arrow or crossbow or by hand may be sold, purchased, bartered, offered for sale, or under the control or possession of any person for the purpose of sale or barter.
NR 22.05(2)
(2) A wholesale fish dealer's license is required if the fish are sold to any person other than the final consumer.
NR 22.06(1)(1)
Except as otherwise expressly provided, only the following methods or manners of fishing shall be lawful. Any person may:
NR 22.06(1)(a)
(a) Fish for fish with no more than 3 hooks, baits or lures.
NR 22.06(1)(b)
(b) Use landing nets and a gaff only for the purpose of landing a fish that is legally hooked. However, landing nets may be used to remove distressed fish in winterkill waters in those areas and at those times designated by the department by posting, and to net fish as authorized with the use of dip nets under this chapter or ch.
NR 20.
NR 22.06(1)(c)
(c) Take, catch, kill or fish for fish by means of trolling from a motor-driven boat, sailboat or other boats.
NR 22.06(1)(d)
(d) Take rough fish by means of a spear, bow and arrow or crossbow, by hand, or by landing net or dip nets not to exceed 24 inches in diameter or square from sunrise to sunset only, and bow and arrow or crossbow may be possessed and used for spearing rough fish from sunset to sunrise during the open season for spearing rough fish.
NR 22.06(1)(e)
(e) Fish with a line or lines only while they are attended.
NR 22.06(1)(f)
(f) Take, catch, kill or fish for flathead or channel catfish or bullheads with a bow and arrow or crossbow during the open season for spearing rough fish, or by hand, in accordance with the seasons, size limits and bag limits in s.
NR 20.20 (73), in boundary waters within Wisconsin.
NR 22.06(2)
(2) Any fish taken by snagging or foul hooking shall be immediately returned to the water.
NR 22.06(3)
(3) Any fish taken and retained in possession that is not released freely into the water immediately after capture shall be considered part of the angler's daily bag limit.
NR 22.06(4)
(4) No spear, spring gaff or bow and arrow may be possessed in an ice fishing shelter during the ice fishing season.
NR 22.06 History
History: Cr.
Register, March, 1982, No. 315, eff. 4-1-82; am. (1) (a),
Register, December, 1985, No. 360, eff. 1-1-86; am. (3),
Register, May, 1996, No. 485, eff. 6-1-96;
CR 08-010: am. (1) (b) and (d)
Register November 2008 No. 635, eff. 4-1-09;
CR 09-051: am. (1) (d)
Register June 2010 No. 654, eff. 7-1-10;
CR 13-001: am. (1) (d)
Register August 2013 No. 692, eff. 9-1-13;
CR 19-009: am. (1) (d), cr. (1) (f)
Register February 2020 No. 770, eff. 3-1-20; correction in (1) (d) made under s.
35.17, Stats.,
Register February 2020 No. 770;
CR 21-058: am. (1) (f) Register March 2022 No. 795, eff. 4-1-22. NR 22.065
NR 22.065 Fishing near dams. Except as otherwise provided by ss.
NR 22.11 and
22.15, no person may fish within 200 feet of any fishway, lock or dam by any means other than hook and line.
NR 22.065 History
History: CR 10-053: cr.
Register December 2010 No. 660, eff. 1-1-11.
NR 22.066
NR 22.066 Bank poles. Bank poles may be used year round by persons holding a license issued under s.
29.531, Stats., for sport fishing purposes only and only for the taking rough fish, catfish and turtles in accordance with bag limits, size limits and seasons established under ss.
NR 22.04 and
22.13 and in accordance with the rules regulating the use of bank poles under s.
NR 20.12.
NR 22.066 History
History: CR 10-053: cr.
Register December 2010 No. 660, eff. 1-1-11.
NR 22.07
NR 22.07
Ice fishing shelters. Buildings, vehicles, tents, fish shanties or similar enclosures may be used on the ice for fishing purposes on the Mississippi river from the time the ice forms; provided, however, that all such enclosures or shelters shall be removed from the ice on or before February 20 of each year unless otherwise extended by the department. The door of any enclosure or shelter shall be equipped with a latch which will permit the door to be readily opened from the outside at all times while the enclosure or shelter is occupied. Fishing shelters that are not occupied or otherwise in use shall have the name and residential address of the person owning such enclosure or shelter painted or permanently affixed in the English language on the outside of the structure with lettering a minimum of one inch square. Residents of Wisconsin or Iowa angling from a fish shelter shall comply with the law of their respective states relative to licensing and identification of fish shelters. Residents of states other than Wisconsin or Iowa who hold a nonresident fishing license from either state must comply with the law of the issuing state relative to the licensing and identification of fish shelters.
NR 22.08
NR 22.08
Minnow nets and traps. Only those minnow seines, minnow dip nets, cast nets, minnow traps or crayfish scoops described below and operated in the manner specified may be used for taking of minnows.
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See PDF for table NR 22.08 History
History: Cr.
Register, March, 1982, No. 315, eff. 4-1-82.
NR 22.09
NR 22.09
Carp as bait. Live carp taken and possessed for the purpose of bait shall only be transported live by boat or other floating conveyance while in possession on Wisconsin-Iowa boundary waters.
NR 22.10
NR 22.10
Boundary water, commercial fishing restriction. For the purpose of fishing under a commercial fishing license or the taking of turtles, licensed commercial fishers and agents of the licensees are restricted to the state boundaries of the state they are licensed under. No person may operate any commercial fishing gear or turtle traps beyond the state line boundaries of the state in which the person's license was issued.
