CSKT Tribal Fish and Game Fishing Permits
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Division of Fish, Wildlife, Recreation and Conservation (CSKT)
Contact
- Address
- PO Box 278 (office at 406 6th Avenue East, Polson, MT 59860)
Pablo, MT 59855 - Natural Resources Department, Pablo
- 406-675-2700
- Tribal Fish and Game, Polson
- 406-883-2888
- Tribal Fish and Game Chief
- 406-241-3345
- info@cskt.org
- Website
- cskt.org/natural-resources/tribal-fish-game
At a glance
- Licences and permits
- 18
- Of which specialty
- 5
- Cheapest listed licence
- $10.00
- Fees verified
- 4 Sep 2026
Who does not need one
The Flathead Reservation is a sovereign jurisdiction of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, and that includes the south half of Flathead Lake - the half most visiting anglers fish. A Montana state fishing licence on its own does NOT authorise you to fish reservation waters. Non-members need a CSKT Tribal Conservation License first, and then a Flathead Reservation Fishing License, with the CSKT Prevention Pass fee assessed on top. The Tribes put it plainly: "The CSKT require a Conservation Permit to access (hike, bike, bird hunt, fish, etc.) tribal lands." The relationship with the state runs the other way round: the regulations state "A valid Resident of Flathead Reservation Fishing License will be honored by the State wherever fishing is lawful in Montana" - the tribal licence carries you off-reservation, not the reverse. In practice the tribal licences are sold as a joint state-tribal transaction through Montana FWP's licence system, which is why out-of-state fee lines read as a state amount plus a $14.00 tribal component; buying through that joint system is how most non-members satisfy both. Anyone under 12 needs no licence. AIS is not optional here: "All boats and watercraft entering the Flathead Basin watershed must be inspected for aquatic invasive species (AIS) and certified clean of any AIS by a Tribal, State, or other authorized agency AIS inspector," and operators must carry proof of inspection and produce it on request. There is no separate boat permit; instead only electric motors are allowed on reservation waters other than Flathead Lake. Non-member licences run to the last day of February each year.
Specialty licences 5
Extra items an angler must hold on top of the base licence. These are the ones most often missed — a base licence alone does not cover them.
| Licence | Type | Who needs it | Applies to | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSKT Prevention Pass (Aquatic Invasive Species)Regulations: "CSKT Prevention Pass is a fee assessed to the purchase of any CSKT fishing license." Out-of-state purchasers instead show a $14.00 tribal component on their licence lines. | Stamp | Every CSKT fishing licence - the fee is assessed automatically on purchase | Any · annual · all | $2.00 |
| Duplicate License | Permit | Replacing a lost tribal licence | Any · annual · all | $5.00 |
| Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License - Out-of-StatePublished as "$19 + $14 Tribal" for out-of-state purchasers. | Permit | Out-of-state anglers fishing the south half of Flathead Lake | Non-resident · annual · 12+ | $19.00 |
| Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License - Resident of the ReservationPlus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. This is the water-specific licence for the reservation half of Flathead Lake. | Permit | Fishing the south half of Flathead Lake, the portion within the Flathead Reservation | Resident · annual · 12+ | $19.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Camping LicenseNot required to fish, but required to camp while fishing. Exceptions exist for non-member spouses and descendants of tribal members and for certain fee campgrounds such as Blue Bay. The $25.00 figure is published for reservation residents; no separate out-of-state camping figure was found on the source loaded. | Access or habitat fee | Non-members age 18 and over camping on the Reservation; held together with a valid Conservation License | Resident · annual · 18+ | $25.00 |
Every licence and fee 18
| Licence | Residency | Term | Ages | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base licence 10 | ||||
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Resident of the Reservation, Ages 12-14 and 62+ Non-member residents of the Reservation ages 12 to 14 and 62 and over, and qualifying disabled anglers Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. The disabled tier is the same $10.00. | Resident | annual | 12-14 and 62+ | $10.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Montana Resident, Not Resident of the Reservation, Ages 12-14 Montana residents living off the Reservation, ages 12 to 14 Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. | Resident | annual | 12-14 | $12.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Resident of the Reservation, Ages 15-61 Non-member residents of the Reservation ages 15 to 61 fishing reservation waters Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. Requires a valid Tribal Conservation License first. | Resident | annual | 15-61 | $20.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Montana Resident, Not Resident of the Reservation, Age 15+ Montana residents living off the Reservation, age 15 and over Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass, and the $100 Tribal Conservation License. | Resident | annual | 15+ | $23.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Out-of-State, Ages 12-14 Out-of-state non-members ages 12 to 14 Published as "$33 + $14 Tribal". | Non-resident | annual | 12-14 | $33.00 |
| Tribal Conservation License - Disabled, Resident of the Reservation Qualifying disabled non-member residents of the Reservation | Resident | annual | all | $37.00 |
| Tribal Conservation License - Non-Member Resident of the Reservation Prerequisite for every non-member recreating on tribal lands and waters of the Flathead Reservation, including fishing; must be held before a fishing licence "The CSKT require a Conservation Permit to access (hike, bike, bird hunt, fish, etc.) tribal lands." Not required for anyone under 12. | Resident | annual | 12+ | $40.00 |
| Flathead Reservation Fishing License - Out-of-State, Age 15+ Out-of-state non-members age 15 and over Published as "$66 + $14 Tribal" - the licence is sold as a joint state and tribal transaction through the Montana FWP licence system, with a $14.00 tribal component on top. Also requires the $100 Tribal Conservation License. | Non-resident | annual | 15+ | $66.00 |
| Tribal Conservation License - Three-Day Non-members not resident on the Reservation, for a specified three-day period Valid only for the specific three-day period designated on the licence. | Non-resident | 3-day | 12+ | $80.00 |
| Tribal Conservation License - Non-Resident of the Reservation Non-members who do not live on the Flathead Reservation, whether Montana residents or out-of-state The same $100 conservation licence figure applies to Montana residents living off-reservation and to out-of-state visitors. | Non-resident | annual | 12+ | $100.00 |
| Combination licence 3 | ||||
| Combined Conservation and Fishing License - One-Day, Out-of-State Out-of-state non-members wanting a one-day conservation and fishing package Published as "$80 + $14 Tribal". | Non-resident | 1-day | 12+ | $80.00 |
| Combined Conservation and Fishing License - Three-Day, Montana Resident Montana residents not living on the Reservation who want a three-day conservation and fishing package Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. | Resident | 3-day | 12+ | $105.00 |
| Combined Conservation and Fishing License - Three-Day, Out-of-State Out-of-state non-members wanting a three-day conservation and fishing package Published as "$146 + $14 Tribal". | Non-resident | 3-day | 12+ | $146.00 |
| Stamp 1 | ||||
| CSKT Prevention Pass (Aquatic Invasive Species) Every CSKT fishing licence - the fee is assessed automatically on purchase Regulations: "CSKT Prevention Pass is a fee assessed to the purchase of any CSKT fishing license." Out-of-state purchasers instead show a $14.00 tribal component on their licence lines. | Any | annual | all | $2.00 |
| Permit 3 | ||||
| Duplicate License Replacing a lost tribal licence | Any | annual | all | $5.00 |
| Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License - Out-of-State Out-of-state anglers fishing the south half of Flathead Lake Published as "$19 + $14 Tribal" for out-of-state purchasers. | Non-resident | annual | 12+ | $19.00 |
| Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License - Resident of the Reservation Fishing the south half of Flathead Lake, the portion within the Flathead Reservation Plus the $2.00 CSKT AIS Prevention Pass. This is the water-specific licence for the reservation half of Flathead Lake. | Resident | annual | 12+ | $19.00 |
| Access or habitat fee 1 | ||||
| Flathead Reservation Camping License Non-members age 18 and over camping on the Reservation; held together with a valid Conservation License Not required to fish, but required to camp while fishing. Exceptions exist for non-member spouses and descendants of tribal members and for certain fee campgrounds such as Blue Bay. The $25.00 figure is published for reservation residents; no separate out-of-state camping figure was found on the source loaded. | Resident | annual | 18+ | $25.00 |
Fees as published by CSKT Tribal Fish and Game and read on 4 September 2026. Agencies change fees without notice and vendors add issuing charges, so confirm the current price at the point of sale. We do not reproduce seasons, limits or gear rules — see the agency's regulations page for those.
Notes on this listing
PRICE CAVEAT - READ BEFORE USING. Every fee here comes from the Tribes' own published Ordinance 44 non-member regulations PDF for the 2024-2025 permit year, hosted on cskt.org and loaded 2026-09-04. That is the most recent non-member regulations document actually reachable on cskt.org: the CSKT Permit and Regulations page refers to a 2025-2026 non-member document, and the URL indexed for it (cskt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2025.2026_NonMember-Regs.pdf) returned a 404, while cskt.org/natural-resources/ still links only the 2024-2025 files. CSKT permit years run 1 March to the last day of February, so the 2026-2027 year began 1 March 2026 and these amounts may have been revised - CSKT has raised recreation fees in recent years. Verify against the current-year regulations or the Montana FWP licence system before quoting any figure to an angler. The residency field is imperfect for CSKT, which tiers by three categories rather than two: non-member resident OF THE RESERVATION, Montana resident living off-reservation, and out-of-state. Each licence name states which tier it belongs to. The conservation licence at $100 covers both off-reservation Montana residents and out-of-state visitors, so it is filed once as nonresident. Tribal member fees are set in a separate member regulations document (cskt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/2024.2025_MemberRegs.pdf) which was not loaded, so no member tier is listed. Licences must first be bought in person from a reservation licence vendor before subsequent purchases can be made online. No office hours are published.
About CSKT Tribal Fish and Game
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Division of Fish, Wildlife, Recreation and Conservation manages fishing on the sovereign waters of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation (MT). A state fishing licence is generally not valid here.
Base and combination licences run from $10.00 to $146.00 depending on residency, term and age.
Beyond the base licence there are 5 specialty items to watch for, including the CSKT Prevention Pass (Aquatic Invasive Species), Duplicate License, Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License – Out-of-State and the Flathead Lake (South Half) Fishing License – Resident of the Reservation. These are separate purchases and a base licence does not cover them.
The fee table below was read from official sources on 4 September 2026. We list what each item is called, who needs it and what it costs, and link out for the rules themselves — seasons, limits and gear regulations live on the agency’s own page and change too often to mirror.