Permits
Bariloche fishing permit, or license: 2026 prices, who counts as a resident, and how to buy it
The permit is compulsory for everyone holding a rod. Residents with an Argentine DNI pay a fifth of the visitor rate. All prices, rules and the season calendar below.
You cannot fish in Patagonia without a permit: not from the shore, not from a boat, not "just to hold the rod". The fishing permit (permiso de pesca, what English-speaking anglers call the fishing license) is personal, issued to each angler, and an inspector can ask for it together with your ID at any moment. The good news for people who live in Argentina: the regulations define residents as "Argentine anglers or foreigners residing in the country", and the resident rate is a fifth of the visitor rate.
Permit prices, 2025/26 season, in Argentine pesos
| Permit | Residents of Argentina | Non-residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 day | 10,000 | 50,000 |
| 10 days | 20,000 | 140,000 |
| Season, to 31 October | 40,000 | 280,000 |
| Ages 13–17, season | 20,000 | — |
| Under 12, over 65, pensioners, people with disabilities | free, but a permit is still issued | — |
Trolling supplement, the same for everyone: 20,000 for a day, 40,000 for 10 days, 80,000 for the season. Trolling means dragging a lure behind a moving boat; that is how we fish both Alicurá and Nahuel Huapi, so a day supplement is added to a day permit.
An example. A non-resident, one day on Alicurá trolling: 50,000 + 20,000 = ARS 70,000. A resident with a DNI, same day: 10,000 + 20,000 = 30,000. For a non-resident, two consecutive day permits are cheaper than the 10-day permit (100,000 against 140,000); from three days on, the 10-day permit wins.
Who counts as a resident. 2025/26 regulations, "Permisos ordinarios": the first category is "for Argentine anglers or foreigners residing in the country" (para pescadores argentinos o extranjeros residentes en el país). In practice, residency is shown with an Argentine DNI. If you only have a passport and are in the country as a tourist, the non-resident rate applies.
Where the permit is valid
One permit covers the provinces of Neuquén, Río Negro and Chubut and the southern national parks: that is Alicurá (on the Neuquén–Río Negro border), Nahuel Huapi, the Limay, Moreno, Gutiérrez and everything else around Bariloche. Santa Cruz and Tierra del Fuego need their own permits. The season runs from 1 November to 31 October, and a season permit is valid to the end of it.
How to buy it
- Online at permisosdepesca.com.ar: register, choose the category (residente / no residente), the duration and the trolling supplement, and pay. The permit arrives by email. Under the regulations, an electronic permit or a printout with a QR code is shown together with your ID and needs no stamp. Keep it on your phone.
- Permits for the 2026/27 season go on sale on 15 October 2026; current ones are valid until 31 October.
- If you fish with me, you do not need to buy anything. Send me a photo of your passport or DNI a couple of days before, I file the permit in your name, and you pay it at cost on the day.
What people also ask
Does a child need a permit?
Under 12 it is free, but a permit is still issued in the child's name. Ages 13–17 pay half the adult resident season rate.
I'm in the boat but not fishing. Do I need a permit?
Everyone who fishes needs one. If you are only along for the ride and the photos, no. But the moment you pick up a rod, you are an angler.
What happens if I fish without a permit?
A fine and seizure of tackle and catch; in Neuquén the regulations also prohibit hiring guides without provincial registration. Checks on Alicurá are frequent: this is not a formality.
I have a 10-day permit. Is trolling paid per day?
No: the trolling supplement is sold for the same duration as the ordinary permit, a day, 10 days or the season.
2025/26 season calendar for the waters around Bariloche
| Water | Open | Particulars |
|---|---|---|
| Alicurá (reservoir) | 1 Nov — 31 Oct | all year; 5 rainbows + 2 perch; barbless; no fishing or navigation in the fish-farm pen areas or within 500 m of the dam |
| Nahuel Huapi (lake) | 1 Nov — 1 May | plus 2–31 May and October: 1 fish under 40 cm, not within 200 m of river mouths; closed June to September |
| Moreno (lake) | 1 Nov — 31 Oct | 1 salmonid under 35 cm; from 30 April, release only |
| Gutiérrez (lake) | 1 Nov — 1 May | plus May and October: release only, no trolling |
| Limay inside the park | 1 Nov — 31 May | no motors; upper stretch fly-only and release; trolling banned |
General rules for all of Patagonia: live bait is banned, artificial lures only; on Alicurá brown trout, brook trout and landlocked salmon are always released; where it says "barbless", hooks with the barb crushed all season.
Checked on 8 October 2026 against the 2025/26 regulations and the current tariff. Regulations and prices are reissued for 1 November; I will update the 2026/27 figures as soon as they are published.
Sources
Reglamento de Pesca Deportiva Continental Patagónico 2025/2026, "Permiso de pesca" section (categories and prices) and the Río Negro and National Parks annexes: reglamentodepesca.org.ar · Permit sales: permisosdepesca.com.ar.