The crayfish fishing season has officially started in Ukraine, but what fishermen need to know to avoid fines
On July 1, the seasonal ban on crayfish fishing, which had been in effect since December 1, 2025, ended in Kyiv region and throughout Ukraine. From now on, fishing enthusiasts can once again catch these river inhabitants, adhering to the Amateur Fishing Rules. This was reported by the State Fisheries Agency.
The crayfish fishing season is open in Ukraine
The ban on crayfish fishing in Ukraine's water bodies, which lasted since the end of last year, has ended. From today, fishermen can resume catching them provided they comply with environmental protection requirements.
The head of the State Fisheries Agency, Ihor Klymenok, noted that lifting the ban is long-awaited by many fishermen but emphasized the need for responsible attitude towards aquatic bioresources and compliance with the law.
Crayfish fishing rules
According to current regulations, one person is allowed to catch up to 30 crayfish per day.
Permitted fishing methods:
- hand collection;
- crayfish trap of the "grab" type with a diameter up to 70 cm and mesh size up to 22 mm (no more than one per fisherman);
- landing net with a diameter up to 100 cm;
- "grab" ("spider") no larger than 1×1 m with mesh size up to 10 mm.
At the same time, hand collection of crayfish is prohibited during nighttime — later than one hour after sunset and earlier than one hour before sunrise — when using lighting.
Minimum sizes for catch
When fishing, it is mandatory to consider the minimum allowed sizes of crayfish:
- in Dnipro reservoirs — 11 cm;
- in other inland water bodies and the Black Sea region — 10 cm;
- in the Azov region — 9 cm.
Length is measured along the back — from the line between the middle of the eyes to the edge of the middle tail plate.
Liability for violations
Illegal crayfish fishing entails administrative or criminal liability, as well as compensation for damage to the fishery.
The compensation amount is 3,332 UAH for each illegally caught crayfish.
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