SA Fish Size and Bag Limits: KG Whiting, Snapper, Calamari and More

South Australia’s fishing rules used to fit on the back of a bait-shop calendar. Then came the snapper closure and the algal bloom, and now the answer to “what can I keep off Glenelg Jetty?” depends on which gulf you’re beside and what month it is.

The PIRSA website and the free SA Fishing app are the source of truth. Everything below was read off PIRSA on 5 October 2026, and some of it will change.

Do You Need a Fishing Licence in SA?

No. In PIRSA’s words: “You do not need a licence for recreational fishing in South Australia.” The exceptions:

• Reservoirs need a permit. SA Water sells them for reserves including Myponga and Happy Valley.
• Rock lobster pots must be registered before use — one registration per person, two pots maximum, and you must be over 15. It costs $94 for one pot or $261 for two, can’t be bought before 1 September, and expires on 31 May.
• Mesh nets must be registered; new registrations are only available for Lake George.
• Snapper you keep must be reported (see below).

How SA’s Rules Are Structured

PIRSA splits the coast into four fishing zones: West Coast, Spencer Gulf, Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island, and South East. Limits often differ by zone, and PIRSA’s tables call the West Coast and South East “all other waters”.

Metropolitan Adelaide sits in the Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zone, which has lower bags than the other zones for several species. The zone ends just east of Cape Jervis, so Encounter Bay — Victor Harbor, Port Elliot, Middleton — falls outside it.

In a city where everything is twenty minutes away, the drive to Victor still changes your bag limits.

The layers stack:

• Size limits — tip of the snout to tip of the tail for most fish. Garfish are measured from the tip of the upper jaw; blue swimmer crabs across the shell from the base of the largest spines.
• Daily bag limits — per person, midnight to midnight.
• Boat limits — usually three times the personal bag, applying when three or more people are fishing aboard. With one or two, each person keeps their own bag.
• Possession limits — your total, freezer included. King George whiting, for example, is capped at 72 fish or 10 kg of fillets per person.

Fish kept for bait must still be legal size, and you can’t fillet at sea any fish with a size limit.

Snapper: South East Only

Snapper is closed in the West Coast, Spencer Gulf, and Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zones until 30 June 2027, and catch-and-release is prohibited there. In the South East zone, from just east of Cape Jervis to the Victorian border, it’s 38 cm, a bag of 5 and a boat limit of 15, and every snapper kept must be reported through the SA Fishing app or Fishwatch on 1800 065 522. The closure dates, the no-transit rule and what happens after mid-2027 are in our SA fishing closures calendar.

Calamari and Garfish Closures

Since 1 May 2026, southern calamari have been under a total closure in the Spencer Gulf and Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zones, and garfish in the Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zone. Targeting, taking and possessing are all banned, with no end date published. That covers every metro jetty from Brighton to Semaphore.

Garfish stay open in Spencer Gulf and all other waters. Calamari stay open on the West Coast and in the South East, so the squid jig can come out at Streaky Bay or Victor Harbor, just not off Henley.

King George Whiting: Size Line and Spawning Closure

KG whiting size depends on longitude and the gulfs, not the fishing zone: 32 cm east of 136°E and anywhere in Spencer Gulf — which covers all gulf waters, Adelaide included — and 30 cm west of 136°E outside Spencer Gulf. Port Lincoln sits just west of 136°E, but it’s Spencer Gulf water, so the 32 cm gulf limit applies there. The 30 cm limit only applies west of 136°E outside the gulf — Coffin Bay, Streaky Bay and the West Coast. The bag is 5 in the Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zone and 10 elsewhere.

The spawning closure runs 1 March to 30 June each year and covers defined waters, not every whiting patch in the state. Where it applies is set by PIRSA’s closure map — open it, or the SA Fishing app, before you chase whiting in autumn. The rest of the year’s dates are in the SA fishing closures calendar.

Seasonal Closures

• Onkaparinga River — no bream fishing upstream of the Main South Road Bridge at Noarlunga, 1 September to 30 November. The river mouth is downstream of it.
• Lakes and Coorong — no fishing for or possessing black bream, 1 August to 31 January.
• Rock lobster — both zones close at 6 pm on 31 May. The southern zone reopens at 6 am on 1 October and the northern zone at 12 noon on 1 November.

Size, Bag and Boat Limits

Checked against PIRSA on 5 October 2026. Rules change — confirm on the SA Fishing app or the PIRSA species page before you keep anything. “GSV/KI” is the Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zone, which includes Adelaide.

Egg-carrying female blue swimmer crabs are fully protected, and hoop and drop nets in marine waters can’t be baited with meat or poultry.

Check Before You Go

Adelaide’s jetty grapevine is fast, confident and about two closures behind.

The SA Fishing app carries current limits for every regulated species, a GPS map of closure zones and the snapper report, and Fishwatch on 1800 065 522 answers rules questions around the clock.

Fisheries officers are about as moved by “nobody told me” as a Crows supporter is by a Power premiership flag.

FAQ

Do you need a fishing licence in SA?

No. South Australia has no recreational fishing licence. You do need a permit to fish certain reservoirs, rock lobster pots and mesh nets must be registered with PIRSA, and any snapper you keep must be reported through the SA Fishing app or Fishwatch on 1800 065 522.

What is the size and bag limit for snapper in SA?

In the South East zone, the only part of SA open to snapper, the minimum size is 38 cm, the bag limit is 5 and the boat limit is 15, and every snapper kept must be reported. Snapper is closed in all other SA waters until 30 June 2027.

What is the size limit for King George whiting in SA?

King George whiting must be 32 cm east of longitude 136°E and anywhere in Spencer Gulf, which takes in all gulf waters including Adelaide and Port Lincoln, and 30 cm west of 136°E outside Spencer Gulf. The daily bag is 5 in the Gulf St Vincent and Kangaroo Island zone and 10 elsewhere.

Do fish kept for bait have to be legal size in SA?

Yes. PIRSA’s rule is that fish taken for use as bait must still meet size limits. You also can’t fillet at sea any fish that is subject to a size limit, including crabs and sharks.

What is the possession limit for King George whiting in SA?

Per person, it is 72 fish, or 10 kg of fillets, or 36 fish plus up to 5 kg of fillets. Possession limits apply where fish are being stored long-term by freezing, pickling or smoking.

What is a boat limit in SA fishing?

A boat limit is the most of a species that can be landed on one boat in a day, usually three times the personal bag limit. It applies when three or more people are fishing on board; with one or two aboard, each person keeps their own bag.

Once you know what you can keep, check the SA bite forecast, SA tide times and the spot guides for wind, swell and the next feeding window.