Bluefin tuna bag limits depend on which ocean you’re fishing, whether you’re a recreational or commercial fisherman, and the size of the fish. For recreational anglers in the Atlantic, the default is one bluefin between 27 and less than 73 inches curved fork length per vessel per day. Off California in the Pacific, the default is two Pacific bluefin per person per day, with a six-fish possession cap on multi-day trips. Both numbers can shift mid-season, and either fishery can close without much warning when quotas fill, so confirming the current status before you leave the dock matters as much as knowing the baseline rule.
Atlantic Recreational Bag Limits
The Atlantic recreational fishery sorts bluefin into size classes, and each class has its own retention rule. If you hold an HMS Angling or Charter/Headboat permit, the default limit is one school, large school, or small medium bluefin measuring 27 inches to less than 73 inches curved fork length per vessel per day or trip.1NOAA Fisheries. Recreational Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses and Bag Limits The limit is attached to the vessel, not to each person aboard. A boat with five anglers still gets one fish.
It’s also trip-based no matter how long you’re out. A two-day offshore run and two trips in a single day both cap at one bluefin in this size class at the dock.2NOAA Fisheries. Recreational Daily Retention Limit for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Remains at Default Limit
Trophy bluefin, meaning fish measuring 73 inches or greater, are held to one per vessel per year, and only while the trophy subquota for your region is still open.1NOAA Fisheries. Recreational Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses and Bag Limits NOAA divides trophy fishing into management areas: the Gulf of Maine, Southern New England, the South, and the Gulf of America. Once a region’s trophy subquota is filled, that area closes for the rest of the year, whether or not you personally have caught your fish.
NOAA can also raise or lower the default daily limit mid-season based on landings data. Some years the retention limit has been bumped to two or three fish per vessel when the recreational quota is running behind, or dropped to zero when landings are running hot. The NOAA Fisheries statuses page is the only reliable place to confirm what’s allowed on any given day.1NOAA Fisheries. Recreational Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses and Bag Limits
Pacific Recreational Bag Limits
West Coast anglers work under a different framework. Off California, the daily bag limit is two Pacific bluefin per person, with a total possession limit of six fish on multi-day trips.3NOAA Fisheries. West Coast HMS FMP Compliance Guide The Pacific limit is per angler, not per vessel. A boat carrying four fishermen can legally land up to eight bluefin in a single day, as long as each person stays within the two-fish personal limit.
On multi-day trips, California may require a multi-day trip declaration for Pacific bluefin, and daily limits can be aggregated up to the six-fish possession cap.3NOAA Fisheries. West Coast HMS FMP Compliance Guide
Commercial Quotas Instead of Bag Limits
Commercial fishermen don’t work with a simple daily bag number. The Atlantic bluefin commercial fishery runs on a quota system that splits the total allowable catch across gear-based categories: General, Harpoon, Longline, and Trap. Each category gets a base quota in metric tons, and NOAA tracks landings through the year to keep the total inside sustainable limits.4NOAA Fisheries. Commercial Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses, Minimum Sizes, and Retention Limits
The General category, which covers rod and reel, handline, bandit gear, green-stick, and harpoon gear, holds the largest share and is broken into seasonal sub-periods: January through March, June through August, September, October through November, and December.4NOAA Fisheries. Commercial Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses, Minimum Sizes, and Retention Limits Each sub-period has its own allocation and closes when landings hit the sub-quota. In January 2026, the General category’s January-through-March sub-period closed on January 14 after landings passed the adjusted quota of 63.7 metric tons.5NOAA Fisheries. Closure: Atlantic Bluefin Tuna General Category Commercial Fishery
Harpoon and Longline categories carry their own separate quotas and open dates. When any category’s quota is projected to be reached, NOAA announces a closure and commercial vessels in that category must stop retaining bluefin immediately.6NOAA Fisheries. Closure: Atlantic Bluefin Tuna General Category (Commercial) Fishery A sub-period scheduled to run into March can shut down in mid-January if pressure is heavy.
You Cannot Keep a Bluefin Without a Permit
Federal permits are the gate. Recreational anglers need an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Angling permit, which also covers swordfish, billfish, and sharks. A hardcopy has to be aboard the vessel while fishing.7NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Angling Permit Vessels fishing exclusively in state waters still need the federal permit if they want to keep bluefin.8NOAA Fisheries. Frequently Asked Questions: Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Permits HMS Angling permit holders cannot sell their catch. Charter and headboat operations need a separate HMS Charter/Headboat permit.
Commercial fishermen hold a permit tied to their gear category. The Atlantic Tunas General and Harpoon category permits are open-access. The Longline category permit is limited-access and only becomes available when a current holder leaves the fishery. All vessel permits renew annually and attach to the vessel, not the individual.9NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Permits
Reporting Every Fish Within 24 Hours
Every bluefin landed or discarded dead has to be reported within 24 hours of the end of the trip, whether you’re fishing recreationally or commercially.10NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Reporting Those reports feed the landings data NOAA uses to open, adjust, and close fisheries. Miss the window and you’re breaking the same rule set that governs the bag limit itself.
Three ways to file:
- HMS Permit Shop online at hmspermits.noaa.gov.
- NOAA’s free Catch Reporting mobile app, which records landings and releases on the boat and submits when you get a signal.11NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Bluefin Tuna General Category Fishery: Commercial Daily Retention Limit Adjustment – Section: Catch reporting
- Phone: 1-888-872-8862, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The report should include the date, location, gear type, and length of the fish. Commercial landings also trigger a separate dealer reporting requirement; the vessel owner’s report supplements what the dealer files rather than replacing it.10NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Reporting
Check the Status Before Every Trip
Bluefin limits move. NOAA adjusts recreational retention limits within a season based on how landings are tracking against quotas, and commercial categories close as soon as their sub-period quota is reached. What was legal last weekend may not be legal this weekend. Before you leave the dock, pull up the NOAA Fisheries HMS statuses page for the fishery you’re targeting and confirm the current limit and the fishery’s open status.1NOAA Fisheries. Recreational Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fishery Statuses and Bag Limits