Applying for licenses, boats and permits
The Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) has introduced a new Licensing and Quota Management System (LQMS) to improve reliability, reduce administrative burden, and deliver better services for industry.
You can now manage all of your transactions with the VFA, including applying for permits and licences, via the LQMS Fisher Portal.
Please refer to our User Guide to assist you to hop online, register for the portal and complete any applications.
Please follow the instructions here to learn about how to hop online and complete transactions
- If you are unable to access the portal, please contact the Commercial Licensing team for support:
- commercial.licensing@vfa.vic.gov.au
- 1800 620 896 (business hours)
All applications must be accompanied by the relevant fee and any attachments requested in the LQMS Fisher Portal.
Application Fees
Application fees are listed below and must be paid through Fisher Portal upon application.
The application fees listed in the fee schedule are non-refundable.
Additional fees and/or levies will be payable prior to the issue of a commercial fishery licence if the application is approved.
The fees can be paid via credit card in the Fisher Portal.
Electronic funds transfer (EFT)
To pay via EFT please contact commercial licensing on 1800 620 896
New commercial fishery licence operators
As part of the application process, new operators will be required to undergo an interview with a fisheries officer to assess their knowledge of the provisions of the Fisheries Act 1995 and Fisheries Regulations 2019 relevant to the fishery for which the application is sought.
Fee Schedule
The fees listed below are valid from 1 July 2025.
| Licence type | Fee ($AUD) |
|---|---|
Licence applications (fishery access) | $342.92 |
Licence applications (aquaculture – private land) | $342.92 |
Licence applications (aquaculture – crown land) | $342.92 |
Abalone licence transfer | $257.19 |
Access licence transfer | $257.19 |
Aquaculture licence transfer | $257.19 |
General permit applications or variations | $171.46 |
Fish receiver (abalone) | $342.92 |
Boat registrations & transfers | $43.71 |
Pot transfers | $43.71 |
Licence variation | $43.71 |
Operator change | $43.71 |
Boat replacements | $43.71 |
Quota transfer | $43.71 |
Quota unit transfer (abalone) | $257.19 |
Quota unit nomination (abalone) | $43.71 |
Group recreational fishing licence | $42.19 |
Enquiries
Telephone enquiries can be made to the Commercial Fisheries Licensing Officer on 1800 620 896.
Office hours 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday (closed on public holidays).
Mailing address: Commercial Licensing , PO Box 4509, Melbourne 3001.
Commercial Licensing: commercial.licensing@vfa.vic.gov.au.
Recreational Licensing: rec.licensing@vfa.vic.gov.au.
Privacy statement
The Victorian Government is committed to protecting information about you and has enacted the Information Privacy Act 2000 to provide a statutory framework to guide government departments in their personal information handling.
The Victorian Fisheries Authority values and protects the personal information it collects in the course of undertaking its responsibilities and continues to demonstrate a strong culture of protecting the confidentiality and privacy of clients and members of the community.
The information you supply in transactions that is collected by VFA is not traded, sold or licensed. Personal information provided by you will not be used/disclosed for any purpose other than the purpose of the transaction you have entered unless such a use or disclosure is required or authorised by the Information Privacy Act 2000, Fisheries Act 1995 or other legislation. If you wish to access information held about you, please contact VFA.