Fishing permits

Common fishing rights

Under common fishing rights, everyone has the right to go angling or ice fishing free of charge (using only one rod).
Those who have paid the fisheries management fee as well as those under 18 years of age or over 65 years of age have the right to lure fish.

Common fishing rights do not apply to restriction areas where fishing is prohibited by decision of the ELY Centre.

City fishing permit

The fishing permits granted by the City of Kuopio can be purchased online.

Permits – kalakortti.com (in Finnish)

Common fishing rights do not apply to the following types of fishing, as they are subject to a permission from the owner of the water area (in the waters of the City of Kuopio) in addition to the payment of the State’s fisheries management fee:

fishing with more than one rod
fishing with passive gear
spear fishing, harpooning, underwater fishing
scoop net fishing
bottom rig fishing with multiple hooks

Fishing permit prices:

Net tag EUR 5 per tag, 30 m net
General tag EUR 3 per tag, fish traps and other passive gear that are not nets
Angling permit EUR 8 per rod (year), EUR 5 per rod (month)
Light-fishing/harpooning permit EUR 5 per year

A delivery fee is added to the above prices: EUR 5 for deliveries of 1–5 tags and EUR 7 for deliveries of 6 tags or more. For permits that you are required to have with you, the delivery fee is EUR 2 for amounts totalling under EUR 19 and EUR 3.50 for amounts totalling over EUR 19.

If you do not have access to Internet, you can contact the customer services of the Service Area of Urban Environment located in the main lobby of the City Council building at Suokatu 42, tel. +358 800 918 511 (toll-free).

For more information on the fisheries management fee, please see eraluvat.fi.

Map of the water areas of the City of Kuopio

Open map window/mobile version

The map displays e.g. the waters and boat ramps of the City of Kuopio. From Map layers, you can choose to display e.g. chart folios (depth information) or recreational destinations and services. The map also works on mobile with GPS, and the map opens based on your location. However, please note that the service is not intended for navigational use.

Net mesh size regulations

The fishing areas are covered by the following regulations:

There are no net mesh restrictions for vendace.
In southern Kallavesi (the Kallavesi fishing area), net fishing on waters more than 10 m deep is only allowed if the net mesh size is under 55 mm. There are no mesh size restrictions in effect between 15 June and 31 July.
In northern Kallavesi (the Northern Kallavesi fishing area), fishing with nets with mesh sizes between 28 and 49 mm is prohibited. In winter fishing, net fishing on waters more than 10 m deep is only allowed with nets with mesh size under 55 mm.

Protected species and populations

According to the decree, the species protected in the Vuoksi water system are:

trout with adipose fin
landlocked salmon with adipose fin
char between 1 September and 30 November
grayling between 1 April and 31 May

Minimum catch sizes

zander (pikeperch) 42 cm
grayling 35 cm
trout without adipose fin 50 cm
landlocked salmon without adipose fin 60 cm
char 60 cm

Catch below the minimum size must be immediately released into the water, dead or alive. The fish are measured from the tip of the jaw to the tip of the squeezed-together fin.

Fishing supervision

The fishing permit must be presented to the authorised fishing inspector. The fishing inspector has the right to inspect the fishing gear in the water, on the boat, on the shore, or in a shelter to make sure they comply with regulations. The fishing inspector also has the right to check that the person inspected has the required fishing permits. The inspector must attach their name and contact information to the inspected trap or gear.

The city waters manager may prohibit fishing for two years at a time for any violations of the Fishing Act or the fishing regulations issued by the City. The permit fee will not be refunded.

The City’s shares of the waters of the bodies of joint owners

Fishing rights issued by the City of Kuopio apply to the water areas owned by the City. The City also holds shares in other water areas of bodies of joint owners. The City may transfer its fishing rights by notification, and the notification can then be used to purchase fishing permits also for the water areas of the body of joint owners.

The City has agreed on the amount of fishing gear and the utilisation of shares with the following bodies of joint owners:

Hirvilahti southern body of joint owners
Hauranki-Melaniemi body of joint owners
Säyneensalo body of joint owners

Use and prices of trap permit tags

Trap permit tags are fishing party or boating party-specific. Handing over trap permit tags to people outside the specified party is prohibited.

The fishing gear must be clearly marked to be easy to detect by other boaters in the area. The equipment used for marking the fishing gear shall not be placed or left in water without the fishing gear, with the exception of fishing on ice (Fishing Act, section 48). The fishing inspector will remove any empty tags or abandoned fishing gear from the water while performing inspections.

Any lost or found trap permit tags must immediately be reported to the fisheries office. Found tags may not be used.

Trap permit tags are delivered to the address provided by the customer.